Barra Hall Park is an formal park situated near the centre of Hayes in the ward of Townfield in the

London Borough of Hillingdon The London Borough of Hillingdon () is the largest and westernmost borough in West London, England. It was formed from the districts of Hayes and Harlington, Ruislip-Northwood, Uxbridge, and Yiewsley and West Drayton in the ceremonial county ...

. The park came into existence in December 1923. The main entrance to the park is off Freemans Lane. There are ten entrances all together, spread around the perimeter of the park.

History

Barra Hall Park came into existence on 20 December 1923 when the then

Urban District Council In England and Wales, Northern Ireland, and the Republic of Ireland, an urban district was a type of local government district that covered an urbanised area. Urban districts had an elected urban district council (UDC), which shared local gove ...

(UDC) of Hayes bought the Hall and its grounds from Ms Ethel Penfold for £5,700 in order to use it as a town hall. Later alterations by the UDC brought the total to £7,000. The Barra Hall building was officially opened as town hall on 23 February 1924 and its grounds became a

municipal park An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a municipal park (North America) or a public park, public open space, or municipal gardens ( UK), is a park in cities and other incorporated places that offer recreation and green space to re ...

with playground,

tennis court A tennis court is the venue where the sport of tennis is played. It is a firm rectangular surface with a low net stretched across the centre. The same surface can be used to play both Types of tennis match, doubles and singles matches. A variet ...

s and a paddling pool opened by music hall star Jessie Matthews. In 1965, Hayes UDC was integrated into the

(LBH) and the hall was eventually supplanted by the new Civic Centre in

Uxbridge Uxbridge () is a suburban town in west London and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Hillingdon. Situated west-northwest of Charing Cross, it is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan. Uxb ...

as main council office. The Barra Hall building was originally a

manor house A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were held the lord's manorial courts, communal meals w ...

, formerly known as Grove House. In the late eighteenth century it was home to Alderman Harvey Combe, elected

Lord Mayor of London The Lord Mayor of London is the mayor of the City of London and the leader of the City of London Corporation. Within the City, the Lord Mayor is accorded precedence over all individuals except the sovereign and retains various traditional pow ...

in 1799. It passed ownership and in 1871 was bought by Robert Reid. Reid was an auctioneer and surveyor and claimed to descend from the Reids of Barra. After enlarging and refacing the building he changed its name to Barra Hall in 1875. Army Cavalry were stationed here during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. On 6 October 2005, a renovated Barra Hall was opened as a

Sure Start Sure Start is a UK Government area-based initiative, announced in 1998 by the then Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown, applying primarily in England with slightly different versions in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The initiative o ...

children's centre.

Flora and fauna

Barra Hall Park features ornamental

lawn A lawn is an area of soil-covered land planted with grasses and other durable plants such as clover which are maintained at a short height with a lawnmower (or sometimes grazing animals) and used for aesthetic and recreational purposes. ...

s, recreational

grass Poaceae () or Gramineae () is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos and the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivated in lawns a ...

areas,

rose A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be ...

and shrub

bed A bed is an item of furniture that is used as a place to sleep, rest, and relax. Most modern beds consist of a soft, cushioned mattress on a bed frame. The mattress rests either on a solid base, often wood slats, or a sprung base. Many beds ...

s, seasonal bedding and numerous mature

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are ...

Facilities and features

The Bandstand in Town Hall Park, Hayes - geograph

The main building within the grounds is a grade-two

listed Listed may refer to: * Listed, Bornholm, a fishing village on the Danish island of Bornholm * Listed (MMM program), a television show on MuchMoreMusic * Endangered species in biology * Listed building, in architecture, designation of a historicall ...

, which was at one time the town hall for Hayes and Harlington. There is also Barra Hall Open Air Theatre, a

bandstand A bandstand (sometimes music kiosk) is a circular, semicircular or polygonal structure set in a park, garden, pier, or indoor space, designed to accommodate musical bands performing concerts. A simple construction, it both creates an orname ...

, a refreshment kiosk and a children's play area.

Art and culture

* Hayes town's annual carnival, a major feature of local life since the 1950s, culminates in a fête and

funfair A fair (archaic: faire or fayre) is a gathering of people for a variety of entertainment or commercial activities. Fairs are typically temporary with scheduled times lasting from an afternoon to several weeks. Types Variations of fairs incl ...

on an appointed weekend each July at Barra Hall Park. * Barra Hall Open Air Theatre is a community venue for music, theatre and dance. * On Sunday 5 August 2012,

Jeremy Deller Jeremy Deller (born 30 March 1966) is an English conceptual, video and installation artist. Much of Deller's work is collaborative; it has a strong political aspect, in the subjects dealt with and also the devaluation of artistic ego through th ...

's art installation ''Sacrilege'' (an inflatable life-size model of Stonehenge) was installed in the park from 10.30am to 6pm. An estimated 1,400 people visited on the day. * The park features a tree sculpture titled "Man looking for his dog" by Tom "Carver" Harvey. * Parts of ''

Bend It Like Beckham ''Bend It Like Beckham'' (also known as ''Kick It Like Beckham'') is a 2002 sports comedy-drama film directed by Gurinder Chadha from a screenplay by Chadha, Paul Mayeda Berges, and Guljit Bindra. The film stars Parminder Nagra, Keira Knight ...

'' were filmed in the park. * Parts of '' Chocolat'' were filmed in the Barra Hall building.

Transport

Buses

The

195 Year 195 ( CXCV) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Scrapula and Clemens (or, less frequently, year 948 ''Ab urbe cond ...

and H98 stop near Barra Hall Park on Church Road, and the U4 stops near the park at Barra Hall Circus. Hayes town centre is approximately 1 km away, with its many other regular bus services.

Train

The closest train station is Hayes and Harlington, which is a little over 1 km walk away.

Car

On-site parking is available. Street parking (Park and Pay) may be found on the surrounding roads near to the entrances.

References

;Citations ;Bibliography * Kelter, Catherine. (1996) ''Hayes Past''. London: Historical Publications Ltd {{LB Hillingdon Parks and open spaces in the London Borough of Hillingdon Grade II* listed buildings in the London Borough of Hillingdon