Ladywell Fields in Lewisham is another of the wonderful public parks in south east London. Lewisham is a busy transport hub and a densely populated area, and this means that the history of the area, and the preservation of historical green areas, can be overlooked, or disregarded. This park, Ladywell Fields, is one such area which may take visitors by surprise, and I am going to explore the park in two posts. Do follow!
History of the area
‘…Ladywell Fields is a public park formed from three historic fields, through which the Ravensbourne river runs. ‘Ladywell’ derives from the medicinal well recorded here in the C15th, which was named after the nearby parish church of St Mary, the fields forming water meadows attached to the church…’.
London Gardens Online, April 2012
The railway lines through Ladywell Fields in Lewisham
There are two railway lines through the park: the Mid-Kent line and the Catford Loop line. The Mid-Kent line line runs along the edge of Ladywell Fields between Ladywell Station to Catford Bridge Station. Catford Bridge Station opened in 1857 and it is the bigger of the two stations in Catford. The smaller smaller Catford Station opened in 1892 and today mainly serves Thameslink trains. This line runs diagonally across the park, between Crofton Park and Bellingham. Somehow the railway doesn’t harm the peacefulness of the park – curious!
The line to Catford Station 
Train on the line into Catford Station
Creating the Park
‘…In 1889 the area between the Ravensbourne and the railway was purchased by the LCC and Lewisham District Board of Works, with further land purchased in 1891 and 1894, and it was opened as Ladywell Recreation Ground. Because the area was liable to flooding the river channel was straightened and enlarged, weirs were added, and the meadows were drained and landscaped…’.
London Gardens Online, April 2012
In 2011 a major renovation of the park was completed, winning a Living Wetlands Award for Lewisham Council.
The Northern Field at Ladywell station
The River Ravensbourne
Sports facilities
There are plenty of facilities for both children and adults in this field, and they are all well-used. Children were squealing on the swings and slides and adults were playing tennis on every occasion that I visited. Other people were walking, or jogging, and a few were sitting quietly and enjoying the scene.
And after exercising there is a cafe on site!
The River Ravensbourne divides this long field into two and if you cross the river hidden away next to Lewisham Hospital are more tennis courts and an athletics stadium. And here you cross the river and the railway line on a spiral stair to access the next field, the Middle Field, and continue along the Waterlink Way.
Ladywell Fields in Lewisham is a huge open green space, nearly one mile long and covering 54 acres, in the centre of Lewisham. These lands have been open for over 1,000 years – ancient water meadows along the River Ravensbourne – and are a remarkable resource in a busy inner city. In the next post we will cross the river and continue onwards!
- Sources
- Ladywell Fields Blog
- The Friends of Ladywell Fields: http://ladywellfields.blogspot.com
- The Living Wetlands Award: https://restorerivers.eu/wiki/images/c/c7/CIWEM_Living_Wetlands_Award_-_Ladywell_Fields.pdf
- The history of Ladywell: http://www.ideal-homes.org.uk/lewisham/assets/histories/ladywell and https://hidden-london.com/gazetteer/ladywell/
- https://www.hortweek.com/ladywell-fields-claims-top-award/landscape/article/1170554
[…] to the North Field. Even the two halves of the field are different, one from the other. From the North Field we cross over the railway line and the River Ravensbourne via an elaborate metal bridge and find […]
[…] The South Field in Ladywell Fields is a large, almost rectangular field which feels very much like parkland. With Predergast School on one side and two railway stations and Catford shopping centre at the other end there are always people walking through and across the park. In the other direction the field leads to the Lewisham Shopping Centre via the Middle Field, and the North Field. […]