St Margaret's

Hadley Green

Hadley · 16 miles

Spanning roughly ten hectares, Hadley Green lies on the historic Great North Road, between Hadley Green Road and Fold Lane, in the London Borough of Barnet. The area is recognised as a Site of Metropolitan Importance for Nature Conservation, and its open-space character reflects its long use as a village common. Public access is unrestricted and entry is free, with the nearest settlement being the town of Hadley. The reserve consists mainly of acid grassland dotted with trees and several ponds, creating a mosaic of habitats that support regionally rare plant species. The water bodies host a notable invertebrate community, including eleven recorded species of dragonflies and damselflies. A footpath forming part of the London Loop long-distance walk traverses the site, linking it to the adjoining King George’s Fields and offering walkers a quiet stretch of countryside within the urban area. Historically, the green is associated with the Battle of Barnet in 1471, a decisive engagement of the Wars of the Roses, and it remained common grazing land for local villagers until the twentieth century. In 1818 the land was formally secured for the people of Hadley parish as public open space, preserving its natural and historic value for contemporary visitors.

Monken Hadley War Memorial

Hadley · 16 miles

The Monken Hadley War Memorial is located immediately to the north of Monken Hadley at the western end of Camlet Way in Monken Hadley Common. It commemorates the men of the district who died in the First and Second World Wars and is in the form of a tapered decorated column with a celtic cross at the top and the names of the dead shown on the shaft. It was unveiled by Francis Fremantle, Member of Parliament for St Albans, in December 1920. It became a Grade II listed building in April 2017.

Darland's Lake Nature Reserve

Totteridge · 17 miles

I've mapped the Nature Reserve to cover the whole area based on previous visits there, and the attached map

Swan Lane Open Space

Woodside Park · 19 miles

The park offers a compact green space within Whetstone, part of the London Borough of Barnet, and is listed as the smallest of the borough’s sixteen Premier Parks. It combines open, mown lawns with a collection of mature trees, notably giant redwoods and a Cedar of Lebanon, alongside more natural zones that are actively managed for wildlife. Visitors can use the children’s playground, stop at the on-site café, or follow the pond’s edge, where reeds and water plants now fringe a spring-fed water body that once hosted model boating. Laid out around the 1930s, the site was reclaimed from former gravel pits that bordered a nineteenth-century estate. Locally dubbed “The Pits” from at least the 1960s, the area bears a somber memory of a 1925 tragedy in which three schoolchildren drowned while exploring the disused workings. The park’s upper section appeared in the early 1970s during filming of a Monty Python “Hells Grannies” sketch, with the period Wendy House visible in the background. Rose beds beside the café have been planted to commemorate two local residents, adding a personal touch to the landscape. Access points are provided from Swan Lane, Whetstone High Road and Woodside Lane, situating the open space close to the Woodside Park neighbourhood. As a public amenity, the park does not charge admission and offers basic facilities such as the playground and café for casual visits.

St Margarets Priory (Remains)

St Margaret's · 0.6 miles

Former nunnery of the Order of St Benet Biographies

Berkhamsted Castle

Berkhamsted · 2.5 miles

Norman motte-and-bailey castle built on earlier Saxon site. Final surrender of Saxons to Normans made here.