Gladstone Park

)]] It was chiefly the loss of sports grounds at Neasden by the arrival of the Great Central Railway towards the end of the 19th century that motivated local public backing for a new park at Dollis Hill. Hence, there was very strong support at Neasden for the idea that the district council should buy from the Finch family the part of their estate that lay south of Dollis Hill Lane, for £50,000. However, considerable opposition to the proposal, mainly on cost grounds, arose from other parts of Willesden, largely driven by the editor of the Willesden Chronicle from his office in South Kilburn. In the end the issue was resolved at an inquiry held by an inspector from the Local Government…

railway is obvious, and widens at the western end, at Dudding Hill station ]] Once it had been agreed that Gladstone Park should become a reality, the main planning was handed over to Oliver Claude Robson, the District Council Surveyor who was to serve for 43 years, from 1875 to 1918. Robson's first major pleasure ground project had been the nearby Roundwood Park which had opened in 1895, and where he had to convert poorly drained farmland. The much larger Gladstone Park was to prove a rather less challenging undertaking. It was decided to leave the northern part of new park in its "original and natural beauty", and devote the section south of the railway to sports. The latter was to prove…

Gladstone Park is administered by the London Borough of Brent. It has ninety-seven acres of parkland as well as the twenty-seven acres of the William Gladstone open space on its eastern perimeter. Maintained by Brent Parks Service, it is the most heavily used park in Brent and is a current holder of the Green Flag Award, the national standard for parks and green spaces in England and Wales. The award is based on high environmental standards, quality of green space, amenity values and community involvement. Gladstone Park has a formal garden, duck pond, varied terrain, woodland, hedgerows and open ground, all of which change with the seasons. On clear days it offers views from the top of the…