Pat Hickson Garden opens on Old Kent Road

People in the Old Kent Road neighbourhood can now enjoy a newly reclaimed and landscaped park named after Pat Hickson.

Family and friends of the late Pat Hickson joined Cllrs Catherine Rose and Richard Livingstone, to officially open the Ilderton Road garden and remember Pat.

Many will recall her as an active member of the local community and chair of the local tenant resident association; she sadly passed away in 2019.

The land, originally jointly owned by Southwark and Lewisham councils and then repurposed by Network Rail, has now been landscaped and planted by Southwark Council. A new pathway through the site links Surrey Canal Road to Stockholm Street. Local people can also enjoy the grassed areas and wild meadow planting.

The main area is planted with 22 new, varied trees and a further 15 trees are located towards the eastern edge of the garden, bringing the council closer to its target of 10,000 new trees by May 2022.

A hedge is planted along the main road boundary, offering a screen from the thoroughfare and climbers now scale the fencing. These new plants will provide habitat for birds and other wildlife.

Cllr Catherine Rose, Cabinet Member for Transport, Parks and Sport said:

“This new garden offers local people a space in which to relax and take a moment for themselves. It adds to more than 130 such spaces in our care and brings even more homes closer to wildlife and nature.

Pat Hickson Garden has been transformed into a greener, more attractive and useful public space for the local community, of which Pat was a devoted advocate and member.”