Cranford Countryside Park is a 144-acre

public 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 r ...

in Cranford, 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 ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. Situated in close proximity to Heathrow Airport, it is bordered by the M4 Motorway to the north, the A312 trunk road to the east, and by the towns of Harlington and Cranford to the South West and South East respectively. Although its namesake Cranford is within the

London Borough of Hounslow The London Borough of Hounslow () is a London borough in West London, England, forming part of Outer London. It was created in 1965 when three smaller borough councils (forming part of the former Middlesex County Council area) amalgamated under ...

, the park itself is geographically in fact part of the London Borough of Hillingdon, as it straddles the southernmost point of this borough. Although the park is in an urban location, it is vehicle-accessible only by a small road before a motorway entrance slip, and as such it has been described as a 'hidden gem'. The park features in the London Parks & Gardens Trust's ‘Inventory of Historic Green Spaces’ and is centrally positioned among the Crane Valley's parkland chain. It is fully open to the public from 07:30-21:00 during the summer months, and closes instead at dusk during the autumn, winter and spring. Facilities include an information centre, toilets, a car park, a children's playground and a bridle route. Situated roughly 1 mile south of

Hayes & Harlington railway station Hayes & Harlington is a railway station serving the west London districts Hayes and Harlington in the London Borough of Hillingdon. It is down the line from and is situated between and . It has long operated as a minor stop on the Great ...

and one mile north-west of

Hounslow West tube station Hounslow West is a London Underground station in locality of Hounslow West in Hounslow within the London Borough of Hounslow, West London. The station is on the Heathrow branch of the Piccadilly line, between Hatton Cross and Hounslow Centra ...

, Cranford Park is accessible by rail; however

London Bus Buses have been used as a mode of public transport in London since 1829, when George Shillibeer started operating a horse-drawn ''omnibus'' service from Paddington to the City of London. In the decades since their introduction, the red London b ...

routes 81, 105, 111, 195, 222, H98, H28, and E6 serve passengers closer to the park's location.

History

The park has significant historical importance, with settlements in the area including within the area of the park dating at least from Saxon times. As such, there is within the park grounds a number of Grade II listed buildings including the medieval St Dunstan's Church and a block of 18th century stables. There was once a manor house on the site of the park, however this was demolished following the conclusion of

World War 2 World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

shortly before the park was jointly opened to the public by Hayes & Harlington UDC and Heston & Isleworth Borough Council in 1949 The park surrounds and extends from the church of St Dunstan with Holy Angels, Parish of Cranford. The church is thought to have been founded during the reign of Edward the Confessor, and the surrounding land has been part of the estates of the Knights Templar, Sir Roger Aston and

Elizabeth Carey, Lady Berkeley Elizabeth, Lady Berkeley (''née'' Carey; later Chamberlain; 24 May 1576 – 23 April 1635), was an English courtier and patron of the arts. Life Elizabeth Carey was the only child of George Carey, 2nd Baron Hunsdon, and Elizabeth Spencer. Que ...

whose living descendants still have possessions here today. It is likely that a place of worship of some capacity has stood on this site since at least the 8th Century The earliest known reference is to be found in Sir Montague Sharpe's edition of "Middlesex in British, Roman and Saxon Times", in which he mentions the church at Cranford as one of those built upon the site of a compita, or 'little chapel', which usually stood at the cross-roads, and where the

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

offered sacrifices to their rural gods twice a year.

References

External links

Cranford Park at LB Hillingdon
{{coord, 51.4886, -0.4164, format=dms, type:landmark_region:GB_dim:2000, display=title Parks and open spaces in the London Borough of Hillingdon Parks and open spaces in the London Borough of Hounslow Nature reserves in the London Borough of Hounslow