Iliffe Yard © Gareth Morris
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A walk around Southwark
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Recommended by Area Coordinator Suzette Aagaard This walk links OGSW gardens open on Saturday or Sunday and other green spaces open all the time. Please check garden opening times before starting your walk. See also ‘A walk around Kennington’ (page 47). This walk is not suited to those with mobility issues as it includes some steep stone steps.
paupers’ graveyard with its iron memorial gate festooned with ribbons dedicated to the ‘Outcast Dead’. The beautiful Garden of Remembrance is open on some weekends.
Stepping out of Borough tube station, take a breath in the little grassed churchyard by the impressive church of St George the Martyr. Walk down Borough High Street and, tucked down an alleyway on your right, you’ll find the National Trust’s George Inn, London’s only galleried inn (featured in Dickens’ Little Dorrit). Back on Borough High Street, carry on towards the Market.
A little further along Redcross Way is the picturesque Red Cross Garden established by Octavia Hill, whose motto was ‘happy homes, open spaces, forever, for everyone’. At the end of Redcross Way, cross over onto Mint Street, at the end of which you’ll reach Mint Street Park.
Rather than entering the market here, follow the pavement around it towards London Bridge. Just as you reach Number 2 London Bridge on your left, look for steps down towards Glaziers Hall. At the bottom, turn right and take in the river view opposite the rear entrance to Southwark Cathedral. Inside the Cathedral, go right down the glazed walkway; as well as the Cathedral itself, the herb garden at the rear is worth a look, and should you need a coffee break there is a little courtyard café.
SOUTHWARK
Leaving the Cathedral, turn left and head through Borough Market. If you’re walking on a Saturday enjoy the sights and smells of the market; on a Sunday the stalls are closed, but many of the restaurants are still open. Turn right into the arcaded section and, once out of the market, cross over at Park Street and take the first left onto Redcross Way, signposted ‘The Borough’. At the end, cross over Southwark Street and under the arch of Redcross Way. Opposite the historic The Boot and Flogger – London’s first real wine bar – you’ll see Cross Bones Graveyard – a medieval
Come out of the little park onto Weller Street, past Charles Dickens Primary School and down Toulmin Street. At the end, turn left onto Great Suffolk Street. Once over Borough High Street, you will arrive at Trinity Church Square (page 55) and the neighbouring Merrick Square (page 54) where, as well as the beautiful gardens, you can enjoy music and refreshments. Walk up Great Dover Street back to Borough Tube.
Trinity Church Square © Colin Wing
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SK3. The Deanery SE1 9JE Map 7
This gem of a secret riverside garden, just beside the Globe Theatre, belongs to the Dean of Southwark Cathedral’s private residence and dates back to 1712. Hidden away from neighbouring and bustling tourist areas, it has become a tranquil haven for wildlife. The Deanery garden has been planted with mature shrubs, trees and herbaceous plants and is tended by the cathedral’s gardener. Access to this small garden is via historic Cardinal Cap Alley, which is narrow. Visitor numbers may have to be restricted at busy times. Gardener Mark Gibbons will be present. Open: Saturday 10am-5pm Entrance: Via the very narrow Cardinal Cap Alley, behind 51 Bankside, near Tate Modern Access: Some steps and narrow paths Nearest stations: St Paul’s, Southwark, Borough Buses: 344, 381, RV1 Website: www.southwarkanglican.org The Deanery © Diana Jarvis
49 Bankside © Diana Jarvis
SK1. 49 Bankside SE1 9JE Map 7
This hidden and historic secret garden is a real gem both in terms of its location and its fascinating past. Situated between the Globe Theatre and Tate Modern on London’s cultural and creative South Bank, 49 Bankside has a unique story to tell, as featured in Gillian Tindall’s book The House by the Thames. Access to this delightful garden is via the ancient Cardinal Cap Alley – London’s narrowest street. It has a small paved area with a pond and fountain, dating from the 1930s. Climbers cover the walls while pots brim with foliage to provide texture and colour. Gardeners Colin Brewer and Adam Bakker will be present. Open: Saturday 10am-5pm Entrance: Small entrance off Cardinal Cap Alley Access: Via a very narrow alleyway; small garden with uneven surfaces and pond – numbers will be limited Nearest stations: Blackfriars, London Bridge Buses: 344, 381, RV1
NEW SK2. Bell House SE21 7BG Map 14
A two-acre site surrounding a historic Georgian house in the centre of Dulwich, Bell House gardens comprise lawns and mature herbaceous borders, a woodland walk, rose garden, front lawns and ha-ha and the original walled garden. The walled garden is currently being redeveloped into a working kitchen garden. There are vegetable and herb beds, cutting beds for flowers and growing plants for the garden as well as a beehive and a mature flower garden. Plans are afoot to plant a vineyard and an orchard too. The gardens are run and maintained by kind-hearted volunteers. Open: Saturday 2-5pm, Sunday 2-5pm Entrance: 27 College Road Access: All on one level, narrow uneven paths Nearest stations: North Dulwich, West Dulwich Buses: P4, 37, P13 Website: www.bellhouse.co.uk
Bell House © Fabienne Hanton
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SK8. Trinity Church Square SE1 4HT Map 12
This formal garden square was built between 1824 and 1832 on land owned by the Corporation of Trinity House. The church is now the Henry Wood Hall, which is used for orchestral rehearsals. The garden is maintained by Trinity House and Trinity Newington Residents Association (TNRA) and contains one of the oldest outside statues in London, probably of Alfred the Great and possibly originally located in Westminster Hall. The garden has been open to residents since 1997 and has been well used since the closure of Trinity Street to through traffic in 2002. Most houses still owned by Trinity House have been converted into flats. Open: Sunday 11am-6pm Access: Level entrance; garden is mostly lawn Nearest stations: Borough, Elephant and Castle, London Bridge Buses: 21, 35, 40, 133, 343, C10 Website: www.tnra.net
Iliffe Yard © Gareth Morris
SK4. Iliffe Yard SE17 3QA Map 12
Iliffe Yard is the largest of three Victorian workshop yards on the historic Pullens Estate at Elephant and Castle. The estate was built as progressive workers’ housing in the 1880s and is one of few remaining examples of such architecture in London. What were once light industrial units are now studios for artists, artisans and other creative businesses. A gardening group has turned the yard into a green urban oasis with large numbers of pots, baskets, vines and planters along its 300m length. Visitors will be able to see many of the studio units as well as the yard. Open: Saturday 9am-7pm, Sunday 10am-6pm Entrance: Crampton Street or Amelia Street Access: Cobblestone yard; uneven in parts (pedestrians take care) but wheelchair accessible Nearest stations: Kennington, Elephant and Castle Buses: 12, 35, 40, 45, 53, 68, 133, 148, 171, 176, 333, 468 Website: www.iliffeyard.co.uk WC
SK5. Kath Gillmore Community Garden SE1 8HT Map 12
The Kath Gillmore Community Garden can be found on the Grade II-listed Peabody housing estate, built in 1871. The garden was created from a disused tarmac courtyard in 2013 and consists of 14 raised beds. Residents use these to grow food and nectar-rich plants. A planted courtyard with fruiting hedge and herbs provides an enchanting entrance to the garden. It has hosted many gardening clubs, theatrical performances and bike workshops and is managed by a local beekeeper (children’s bee suits will be available to try on), with the help of residents of the Peabody Blackfriars Estate and surrounding estates and neighbourhoods. Open: Saturday 12-5pm Entrance: Between Blocks S & T of the Peabody Blackfriars Estate on Blackfriars Road Access: Level access Nearest stations: Southwark, Waterloo, Elephant and Castle Buses: 45, 63, 100 Website: www.peabody.org.uk/about-us/our-mission/ourhistory/history-of-our-estates#blackfriars
SK6. Merrick Square SE1 4JB Map 12
Part of the garden at Merrick Square featured in the 2018 Disney film Christopher Robin, when Winnie the Pooh tracked down Christopher Robin to a city park bench. Exterior shots of Merrick Square were also used for Christopher Robin’s family home in the film. The small, tranquil and well-maintained garden square was originally laid out in 1853 and 1856 as part of the development of land belonging to the Corporation of Trinity House. There are 32 single houses, owned by Trinity House, in the square. Holy Trinity Rectory, between number 16 and number 17, was built in 1872. The square still has its original 19th century cast-iron railings. Open: Sunday 11am-6pm Entrance: West side of Merrick Square Access: Kerb at entrance; outer parts of garden are reached across lawns Nearest stations: Borough, Elephant and Castle, London Bridge Buses: 21, 35, 40, 133, 343, C10 Website: www.tnra.net
SK9. Walworth Allotment Association SE17 3EQ Map 12
This site of 16 individual and shared allotment plots was established in the 1970s by the Walworth Allotment Association, a group of local people who were passionate about gardening and growing produce. The group prides itself on only using organic pesticides that enhance and care for the earth. A variety of vegetables, herbs, fruits and fruit trees now grow on this former reclaimed building site. A twice-yearly working party helps to maintain the site, which also boasts a wildlife area, beehives, pond and communal area.
Open: Saturday 10am-6pm, Sunday 10am-6pm Entrance: Fielding Street, off Walworth Road, just west of railway bridge Access: Ground uneven in parts, but still wheelchair accessible Nearest stations: Kennington, Elephant and Castle Buses: 12, 68, 171, 176, 468 from Elephant and Castle WC
Star Community Garden
SK10. Walworth Garden SE17 3BN Map 12
Walworth Garden is an award-winning organic garden at the heart of the local community. It was established in 1987 when local residents reclaimed a derelict plot of land in a built-up corner of Walworth. Now, it’s an established horticultural charity and social enterprise with its own QCF-accredited school of horticulture, three glasshouses, a wildlife area, vegetable garden and trained fruit trees and apiary. Its Garden Services Division employs and trains local apprentices to create and maintain gardens. In 2018 it gained its seventh consecutive Community Green Flag Award and an ‘Outstanding’ certificate in the RHS/Britain in Bloom ‘It’s Your Neighbourhood’ award scheme. Open: Saturday 10am-4pm, Sunday 10am-4pm Entrance: 206 Manor Place Access: Wheelchair access and accessible toilet; paved, bark and grass paths Nearest stations: Kennington, Elephant and Castle Buses: 133, 155, 333 + 12, 35, 40, 45, 68, 148, 171, 176, 468 Conditions: We are open seven days a week and are free for all to access Website: www.walworthgarden.org.uk WC
SK7. Community Garden at Tate Modern SE1 9TG Map 7
This dedicated community garden gives local residents some quiet time, allows children to explore wildlife, and offers space that families can enjoy together. The garden has a wildlife pond, an orchard, herb and flowerbeds as well as a pergola and a winding path leading to a small fernery. Tate Modern and the green community charity Bankside Open Spaces Trust (BOST) work in partnership on the project. The garden has an active events programme with children taking part in planting days, pond dipping, wildlife-spotting, gardening clubs and a popular Halloween event. Local people meet, dig, have fun and derive great pleasure from the flowers, plants and animals. Gardener Joe Mayhook and members of his team of volunteers will be present. Open: Saturday 10.30am-5pm Entrance: A gated garden on the front lawned area of Tate Modern on the east side Nearest stations: London Bridge, Southwark Buses: RV1, 381 Website: www.tate.org.uk/modern/building/garden/
Walworth Garden © Graham Willson