The Wildspace Conservation Park, also known as London Riverside Conservation Park or Wildspace, is a major new conservation park under development. The conservation park is predominantly in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, within the

London Borough of Havering The London Borough of Havering () in East London, England, forms part of Outer London. It has a population of 259,552 inhabitants; the principal town is Romford, while other communities are Hornchurch, Upminster, Collier Row and Rainham. ...

, but also extends across the capital's administrative boundary and into

Thurrock Thurrock () is a unitary authority area with borough status and unparished area in the ceremonial county of Essex, England. It is part of the London commuter belt and an area of regeneration within the Thames Gateway redevelopment zone. The ...

Essex Essex () is a Ceremonial counties of England, county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the Riv ...

. It covers much of the

Rainham Marshes Rainham may refer to: *Rainham, Kent, Medway, England **Rainham railway station (Kent) *Rainham, London Rainham ( ) is a suburb of East London, England, in the London Borough of Havering. Historically an ancient parish in the county of Essex, ...

near to Rainham and Wennington and its area is 645 hectares. The conservation park is being developed by the

London Thames Gateway Development Corporation The London Thames Gateway Development Corporation (LTGDC) was a non-departmental public body sponsored by the Department for Communities and Local Government, with directors appointed by the Secretary of State, including some democratically elect ...

(LTGDC) along with the London Borough of Havering, the

Royal Society for the Protection of Birds The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) is a charitable organisation registered in England and Wales and in Scotland. It was founded in 1889. It works to promote conservation and protection of birds and the wider environment thro ...

(RSPB), the

Mayor of London The mayor of London is the chief executive of the Greater London Authority. The role was created in 2000 after the Greater London devolution referendum in 1998, and was the first directly elected mayor in the United Kingdom. The current m ...

, Thurrock Council and the Thurruck Thames Gateway Development Corporation on land owned by the LTGDC, the London Borough of Havering, the RSPB, the

Port of London Authority The Port of London Authority (PLA) is a self-funding public trust established on 31 March 1909 in accordance with the Port of London Act 1908 to govern the Port of London. Its responsibility extends over the Tideway of the River Thames and its ...

, Oldrealm Ltd and Cleanaway Ltd. It was opened to the public in 2006 and plans for its future development were set out within a new joint publication, endorsed by

Bill Oddie William Edgar Oddie (born 7 July 1941) is an English writer, comedian, songwriter, musician, artist, birder, conservationist, television presenter and actor. He was a member of comedy trio The Goodies. A birder since his childhood in Quinto ...

, which illustrates that the first phase of development is expected to be completed in 2008, following which subsequent phases are planned in order to develop the conservation park into a visitor attraction capable of attracting 1,000,000 visitors per annum when completed in 2023. The conservation park is seen as a flagship new green space within the

London Riverside The London Riverside is a redevelopment area on the north side of the River Thames in East London, England and part of the larger Thames Gateway redevelopment zone. The London Riverside area forms part of the Green Enterprise District, a project ...

section of the London

Thames Gateway Thames Gateway is a term applied to an area around the Thames Estuary in the context of discourse around regeneration and further urbanisation. The term was first coined by the UK government and applies to an area of land stretching east from ...

regeneration area. When complete, it will form a 6.4 km² (640 hectares / 1580 acres) conservation, recreation and amenity zone twice the size of

Hampstead Heath Hampstead Heath (locally known simply as the Heath) is an ancient heath in London, spanning . This grassy public space sits astride a sandy ridge, one of the highest points in London, running from Hampstead to Highgate, which rests on a band ...

.24dash.com 'World-class' riverside conservation park for Thames Gateway
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References

{{Green London Parks and open spaces in the London Borough of Havering Thames Gateway Thurrock