Greenford parks

Northala Fields

Where is it?

Kensington Rd, Northolt, UB5

The site lies to the east of the Target roundabout and directly south of the A40 Western Avenue. There are several entrances around the park from residential areas and linking with the subway under the Target Roundabout.

Getting there

  • bus: E10 stops on Kensington Rd, routes 90, 120, 140 and 282 to the Target Roundabout
  • tube: Northolt (Central Line) on Mandeville Rd, approximately 800m walk
  • parking:
    • 2 car parks on Kensington Rd and the A40 slip road to Target Roundabout approaching from the east.
    • car parks are locked in accordance with park locking times
    • number of bicycle locking stands located throughout the park

Facilities 

  • disabled access/facilities - mixture of tarmac and crushed brick and gravel path surfaces with some steep slopes, gently sloping spiral path to the panoramic viewpoint at the top of mound three.  There are a number of benches throughout the park 
  • playgrounds – 2 well equipped playgrounds for the under-14s, one at Dolphin Road and 1 with wooden style play equipment and large slide in the centre of the park
  • model boating lake, 6 fishing lakes, and 3wildlife ponds
  • colourful mosaic celebrating learning in Northolt in 2008 which was designed by students from West London Academy and Belvue School and constructed by young people and members of the local community with the support of artists from Art4Space, the Northolt Extended Schools Project and Ealing Council
  • visitor's centre which includes; a café, public toilets, classrooms and a fishing office

About the park

Northala Fields was opened in 2008 and covers 27.5 hectares. It was created using waste from the original Wembley Stadium and the White City shopping centre. The park has transformed these materials into wildlife habitats and recreational facilities.

The park features 4 large conical mounds along the A40, which reduce noise and visual pollution and serve as unique landmarks. The tallest mound, at 22 meters, offers a 360-degree view of the area, including central London and Canary Wharf.

Water is a key part of the park, with 6 fishing lakes, a model boating lake, wildlife ponds, streams, and wetlands. Get Hooked on Fishing, a national charity, works with the council to manage the fishing activities.

Brief history of site

The site was formerly used as playing fields by the London borough of Kensington and Chelsea, but was purchased by Ealing Council in 1997 for development into a new park. It is part of the larger Northolt Greenford Countryside Park, which forms a continuous belt of over 100 hectares of green space in the northwest of the borough of Ealing. 

Wildlife value

The potential wildlife value of Northala Fields has been greatly improved with the re-modelling of the site from sports ground to new park. 

Areas of habitat have been created using native species of local provenance where possible. The approach to the design of Northala Fields has been a careful balance of providing a significant contribution to biodiversity in the area, whilst ensuring that the design meets the requirements to minimise potential bird strike hazard to aircraft from the nearby Northolt Aerodrome.

Each mound has been created with varying soil conditions that supports wildflower and grass seed mix to give four distinct habitats. A number of the habitats that have been created at Northala Fields are identified within the Ealing Biodiversity Action Plan.  These are:

  • neutral and marshy grassland 
  • moundside wildflower meadows
  • streams and swales
  • woodland and scrub

The wetland habitats provide opportunities for wetland invertebrates including dragonflies and damselflies, while the diverse wildflower grassland provides resources for a number of terrestrial species of invertebrate.

Awards

  • Green Flag awarded in 2009
  • Rosa Barba European Award of Landscape – short-listed
  • Landscape Institute – winner of site of over 5ha award
  • Local Government Chronicle Awards – short-listed for the innovation category

Local contacts

  • Northolt and Greenford Countryside Park Society: The society is made up of people from the local community. It ensures that the park is retained as an area of natural beauty, which is safe, enhances the environment and improves local amenities. Active engagement of local people has been important to the park's success, eg local schoolchildren were involved in the design of the playground and mosaic feature, which they get to use.
  • Model Boating Club