Queen's Gardens (Croydon)
Encyclopedia
The Queen's Gardens are a small area of urban gardens in the centre of Croydon
, South London
. It is part of the Croydon Vision 2020
re-generation plan with Park Place. They are bordered by Croydon Town Hall, Taberner house, Park Lane and Katharine Street.
The gardens and its central fountain were opened by Queen Elizabeth II
in 1983. The area had previously consisted of the Town Hall gardens and the site of Croydon's police station and Croydon Central railway station
. They now comprise areas of lawn with standard trees, a central fountain with benches, and a sunken garden area with formal flower beds and trees exploiting the former track bed and station wall complete with original railings on top. Situated just across from Croydon's register office
, the gardens are popular for wedding photographs. A subway exits the park under Park Lane into an underground car park and across to the Fairfield Halls
; the gardens are well-used as a path between Council offices and to the underpass.
As part of the Park Place
development, there are proposals to radically alter the Queen's Gardens, with a more formal and modern planting style, an ice rink, space for performances and entrance into the Park Place shopping centre.
Croydon
Croydon is a town in South London, England, located within the London Borough of Croydon to which it gives its name. It is situated south of Charing Cross...
, South London
South London
South London is the southern part of London, England, United Kingdom.According to the 2011 official Boundary Commission for England definition, South London includes the London boroughs of Bexley, Bromley, Croydon, Greenwich, Kingston, Lambeth, Lewisham, Merton, Southwark, Sutton and...
. It is part of the Croydon Vision 2020
Croydon Vision 2020
Croydon Vision 2020 is a regeneration programme by the London Borough of Croydon for the centre of Croydon in South London. The original study was carried out in 1999 by EDAW and is being taken forward through the Local Development Framework process...
re-generation plan with Park Place. They are bordered by Croydon Town Hall, Taberner house, Park Lane and Katharine Street.
The gardens and its central fountain were opened by Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
in 1983. The area had previously consisted of the Town Hall gardens and the site of Croydon's police station and Croydon Central railway station
Croydon Central railway station
Croydon Central station was a railway station in Croydon, Surrey, now in South London, England. It was a largely unsuccessful venture by the London Brighton and South Coast Railway to bring trains closer to the centre of Croydon, as East Croydon station was deemed too far from the busy town...
. They now comprise areas of lawn with standard trees, a central fountain with benches, and a sunken garden area with formal flower beds and trees exploiting the former track bed and station wall complete with original railings on top. Situated just across from Croydon's register office
Register office
A register office is a British term for a civil registry, a government office and depository where births, deaths and marriages are officially recorded and where you can get officially married, without a religious ceremony...
, the gardens are popular for wedding photographs. A subway exits the park under Park Lane into an underground car park and across to the Fairfield Halls
Fairfield Halls
Fairfield Hall is an arts centre in Croydon, London, England and opened in 1962. It contains a concert hall, the Ashcroft Theatre , the Arnhem Gallery civic hall and an art gallery....
; the gardens are well-used as a path between Council offices and to the underpass.
As part of the Park Place
Park Place (Croydon)
Park Place was a shopping centre which had been expected to open in Croydon, England by 2011, although this date has been pushed back and building has not started. It is part of the Croydon Vision 2020 re-generation scheme...
development, there are proposals to radically alter the Queen's Gardens, with a more formal and modern planting style, an ice rink, space for performances and entrance into the Park Place shopping centre.