As Lewisham’s largest green space at 96 hectares, Beckenham Place Park has undergone massive renovation and restoration projects to attract visitors and possess a valued place in the community.
In the past, the park was failing to attract visitors despite including many historic attractions like the Grade II* listed Georgian mansion and 20 hectares of ancient woodland. In 2013, there was an estimated 200,000-220,000 visitors per year. To tackle this, the Council developed an ambitious plan which received significant financial support from the National Lottery Heritage Fund and from the Mayor of London which allowed a major investment plan to be put into action in in 2018-2019. This plan consisted of the restoration of the parkland and its historic buildings to increase use by the general public. Though this included areas such as restoring gardens and enhancing habitats, the highlight of the project was the recreation of the lake as a public amenity. During public consultation on changes to the park there was a modest level of interest in use of the lake for swimming and other leisure activities. After public consultation, it became known that there was an interest in the lake for swimming and other water-based activities, so an operator called PTP Coaching has been providing lifeguarding and boating activities after high-quality water conditions were achieved.
In 2021, Beckenham Place Park hosts many popular events weekly like a 5km parkrun on Saturdays at 9am and a Free Weekly Health Walk every Tuesday morning. The Mansion, open daily to the public, also holds numerous events like sewing and craft classes, visiting artists’ open studios, and yoga classes. This festive season, there are various Christmas Markets and a Christmas Kids Fair running from Saturday 4th December to Sunday 2nd January 2022.
I visited the Christmas Market at The Mansion, held on the 4th December 2021, and enjoyed the stalls selling various festive items like custom wreaths, candles, and handmade jewelry. I interviewed the owner of The Crystal Spectrum, who had a stall at the market selling many types of crystals. When asked how business had been on the day of the market, she responded, “It’s been really good! It’s been really nice.”
Overall, the efforts of regeneration at Beckenham Place Park have been extremely effective. It is now a common place for families to go on the weekends and enjoy the countless events offered at The Mansion and around the park itself. It will be interesting to see how the park adapts in the future to attract more visitors and become more engrained in the community it is a part of.
