Streatham Common is a large open space on the southern edge of

Streatham Streatham ( ) is a district in south London, England. Centred south of Charing Cross, it lies mostly within the London Borough of Lambeth, with some parts extending into the neighbouring London Borough of Wandsworth. Streatham was in Surrey ...

in the

London Borough of Lambeth Lambeth () is a London borough in South London, England, which forms part of Inner London. Its name was recorded in 1062 as ''Lambehitha'' ("landing place for lambs") and in 1255 as ''Lambeth''. The geographical centre of London is at Frazier S ...

. The shallow sloping lower (western) half of the common is mostly mowed grass, and the upper (eastern) half is mostly woodland with some small areas of gorse scrub and acid grassland. The eastern half has been designated a Local Nature Reserve.

History

Streatham Common is one of two former areas of common land in the former parish of Streatham. The other is now known as

Tooting Bec Common The Tooting Commons consist of two adjacent areas of common land lying between Balham, Streatham and Tooting, in south west London: Tooting Bec Common and Tooting Graveney Common. Since 1996, they have been wholly within the London Borough of ...

. After

enclosure Enclosure or Inclosure is a term, used in English landownership, that refers to the appropriation of "waste" or " common land" enclosing it and by doing so depriving commoners of their rights of access and privilege. Agreements to enclose land ...

, the Common was purchased in 1883 for use as a public open space under the powers conferred under the Metropolitan Commons Act 1878. It was at this time that most of the trees lining the edges of the lower common were planted. The Common was conveyed to the

Metropolitan Board of Works The Metropolitan Board of Works (MBW) was the principal instrument of local government in a wide area of Middlesex, Surrey, and Kent, defined by the Metropolis Management Act 1855, from December 1855 until the establishment of the London Coun ...

and was subsequently administered by the

London County Council London County Council (LCC) was the principal local government body for the County of London throughout its existence from 1889 to 1965, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today kn ...

and

Greater London Council The Greater London Council (GLC) was the top-tier local government administrative body for Greater London from 1965 to 1986. It replaced the earlier London County Council (LCC) which had covered a much smaller area. The GLC was dissolved in 198 ...

before maintenance responsibility passed to the

in 1971. The Common had a long tradition of cricket playing from the 18th century, and the right to play cricket is enshrined in the Supplementary Act that brought the common into public ownership. Thomas Ripley the famous architect built and lived at 10 Streatham Common South, now known as Ripley House. Henry Tate, founder of the

Tate Gallery Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the U ...

and the

Tate & Lyle Tate & Lyle PLC is a British-headquartered, global supplier of food and beverage ingredients to industrial markets. It was originally a sugar refining business, but from the 1970s it began to diversify, eventually divesting its sugar business i ...

sugar company lived at Park Hill by the Common.

The Rookery

Adjacent to the historic common, there is a formal garden, The Rookery, formerly the grounds of a large house that housed visitors to one of Streatham's historic mineral wells. The Rookery is well known for its old cedar trees in the main garden. There is also a rock garden - with a cascade and lower water garden dominated by giant Gunnera. A series of walled gardens were created in part of the former kitchen gardens, including an Old English Garden and a White Garden - which predates the more famous garden in the same style at

Sissinghurst Castle Sissinghurst Castle Garden, at Sissinghurst in the Weald of Kent in England, was created by Vita Sackville-West, poet and writer, and her husband Harold Nicolson, author and diplomat. It is among the most famous gardens in England and is desig ...

. The remaining parts of the kitchen gardens, which had been used as a council plant nursery, but had been abandoned for twenty years, are now managed by Streatham Common Community Garden for community food growing, and are open to the public on most Sundays. The Rookery and the adjacent Hilly Four Acres field was purchased by public subscription in 1911 to save the site from residential development, presented to the

, and opened as a public park in 1913. The south east end of Streatham Common and The Rookery abut Norwood Grove within the

London Borough of Croydon The London Borough of Croydon () is a London borough in south London, part of Outer London. It covers an area of . It is the southernmost borough of London. At its centre is the historic town of Croydon from which the borough takes its name; ...

. The appeal committee that had bought The Rookery was reformed in 1923 to save Norwood Grove from development, and there is now an almost continuous series of green spaces along the ridge line from Streatham to

Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition building ...

. The gently sloping lawns of The Rookery are used as an open-air theatre in the summer.

Management

A Management Advisory Committee (MAC) was set up in 1996. The MAC subsequently developed a Vision Statement for the conservation of Streatham Common and The Rookery, resulting in the designation of the nature reserve and subsequent detailed habitat management plans. A separate Friends of Streatham Common group promotes events on the Common and in The Rookery, including a very successful annua
kite festival
The MAC's functions have been carried out by the Friends group since 2011. The Streatham Common Co-operative (SCCoop) was set up by members of the Friends to provide local management of the Common that would provide greater local accountability than the borough-wide parks maintenance contracts. After several years preparation, management of The Rookery transferred to SCCoop in 2015. After Lambeth budget cuts threatened closure of the paddling pool, SCCoop accepted responsibility for managing the pool from Summer 2016 and the associated fund-raising. During 2017, SCCoop has also taken on conservation work in the nature reserve areas of the Common. Following the 2016 "in-sourcing" of Lambeth's parks maintenance from Veolia to a new Lambeth Landscapes DSO, plans for a further transfer of maintenance functions have been deferred. The

London Wildlife Trust London Wildlife Trust (LWT), founded in 1981, is a local nature conservation charity for Greater London. It is one of 46 members of the Royal Society of Wildlife Trusts (known as The Wildlife Trusts), each of which is a local nature conservatio ...

is currently working with Lambeth Council and the Friends of Streatham Common to improve the site for wildlife, as a part of The Great North Wood Project. In 2010, Streatham Common was saved from the threat of a "temporary" ice rink being built on it while Tesco redeveloped the former Streatham ice rink by a vigorous local campaign under the umbrella group 'Hands Off Our Common'.

References

External links

Streatham Common Kite DayFriends of Streatham CommonStreatham Common Co-operative (SCCoop)Streatham Common Community GardenThe Natural History Exploration of Streatham Common
{{Local Nature Reserves in Greater London Parks and open spaces in the London Borough of Lambeth Common land in London Local nature reserves in Greater London Streatham History of the London Borough of Lambeth

History

The Rookery

Management

See also

References

External links