Central Parks

The Grade II listed historic Central Parks are made up of five parks - Andrews (East) Park, Hoglands Park, Houndwell Park, Palmerston Park and Watts (West) Park which together cover 21 hectares. The Central Parks were established between 1854 and 1866 on ancient fields known as Lammas Lands. Lammas Lands were the ancient medieval town fields cultivated privately for six months each year until 1 August (Lammas Day) when they became available for common grazing.

Central Parks are a green oasis in the heart of the city centre. You will find lots to do in the parks with a new mini-golf course (opened in May 2011), a skate park, basketball court and cricket pitches. Events include family and children's activities, guided walks, arts in the park, Thai food and culture festival and regular music in the bandstand.

Central Parks have been awarded the Green Flag for six years running, recognising their high quality and standards of management.

See the management plan below for more details of the parks and what is happening.

Follow this link to see a detailed map of the Central Parks. (Note: it's a large file and download speeds may vary)

Find your local park by using Google maps.

Use the scroll keys + or - to zoom in or zoom out. Use your mouse cursor to drag the map around in any direction. If you want to see a larger map then click on the link provided underneath the map.