Epping Forest is the largest
public open space in the London area, at almost 6,000 acres.
It stretches 12 miles from Manor Park in East London to just
north of Epping in Essex. As well as being a popular area for
recreation and enjoyment it is also of national and
international conservation importance with two thirds of it
being designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest and a
Special Area of Conservation.
In the second half of the 19th century large
areas of the Forest were being inclosed for development, with
scant regard for commoners’ rights or general recreational
needs. Such was the City of London’s concern over this that it
joined forces with the commoners who had the right to graze
their animals on the Forest and cut wood, and fought a legal
battle against the inclosures, culminating in two
ground-breaking Acts of Parliament passed in 1878. One of
these entrusted the ownership and care of Epping Forest to the
City, with the second making similar provision for other open
spaces under similar threat. The Epping Forest Act of 1878
appointed the City of London as the Conservator of Epping
Forest and its strictures still govern how the Forest is
managed today.
Epping Forest now combines the roles of scenic open space,
important wildlife habitat and recreational opportunities. It hosts
numerous
events and activities. There are three Forest Centres spread
across Epping Forest, Epping Forest Visitor Centre in the north at
High Beach, a well-established beauty spot;
Queen Elizabeth’s Hunting Lodge in Chingford, a Tudor timber
hunt-standing dating from 1543; and in the south, The Temple,
dating from the 1760s, set in
Wanstead Park, once the formal gardens of the magnificent
Wanstead House.
For further information, download the Epping Forest leaflet,
Useful Information (413kb) and its
accompanying map (81kb).
Please
note that all images used on this website are copyright of the
City of London.
Please email
epping.forest@cityoflondon.gov.uk
if you wish to seek permission to copy any of the images. The City
of London manages over 10,000 acres of green space in and around
London for the recreation and enjoyment of the public.
Find out more about the other spaces.
Epping
Forest to receive £4.76m improvements grant from Heritage
Lottery Fund
The HLF has contributed £4.76m towards the implementation of the
£6.8m Branching Out Project. The project covers long-lasting
improvements to Epping Forest's visitor facilities, education
projects and conservation work.
Further information about the Epping Forest Branching Out
Project
Epping Forest - have your say!
A new website
www.greenstat.org.uk has been set up
to record feedback and provide local residents with the
opportunity to comment on how open spaces nationwide are
managed and maintained. The Conservators will be able to
access this information and compare results on Epping Forest
with other open spaces up and down the country. This provides
us as the Conservators with very valuable feedback and will
also provide everybody with a truly national voice of what we
think about our open spaces!
We would very much welcome your involvement. Please visit
www.greenstat.org.uk and click on the London
region, where you will then see a list of organisations – please
chose ‘City of London’ which is conveniently located at the very
top of the page. You will then be asked to select whether you wish
to comment on the Service provided by City of London, or to comment
on a specific Open Space. If you select option 2 ‘Park or Open
Space’ you will be given a list of City of London open spaces to
comment on – please select ‘Epping Forest’ form this list and you
will then be taken through an online survey. Alternatively, a hard
copy of the Visitor Survey is available from the Epping Forest
Visitor Centre: Tel 020 8508 0028 or email:
epping.forest@cityoflondon.gov.uk
Thank you to all those who have completed the Visitor Survey
(either online or by hard copy) to date. Your feedback is very,
very important to us.
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