Alexandra Park

Alexandra Park, or Alex Park as it’s known, was once rather shabby but now it has been restored to something approaching its former glory.

It’s a mixture of formal flourishes and a more relaxed landscape resulting in a lovely wooded Victorian park with curved pathways bordering oval green spaces and a large lake. Here you’ll find pesky pigeons, ubiquitous Canada geese, coots and moorhens, as well as the occasional heron and even terrapins.

There are two play areas – one for toddlers, one for older kids – as well as tennis courts and a cricket pitch. It’s an active place with tai chi sessions, yoga, fitness training, tennis coaching and parkrun on Saturday mornings with junior parkrun on Sunday mornings.

The heart of the park is The Pavilion; a café with good coffee, tasty food and community activities such as a weekly dementia group.

Tennis at Alexandra Park

These four, outdoor floodlit tennis courts are have just been repainted ready for Wimbledon season so should be looking ship-shape. Book them online for £3/£4 an hour here. You can sign up for adult coaching sessions on Wednesday evenings, and junior coaching on Thursday evenings (both £20 a month) here. There are also free sessions for 12-year-olds and over on Saturdays. Details here.