Improving Queens Park, Caterham

Green silhouettes of people using a park with text "Improving Queens Park, Caterham".

We’re improving Queens Park in Caterham, to ensure it continues to meet the needs of residents and visitors who use it. This work forms part of our Open Space Strategy, adopted in 2021, which sets out how we will manage and improve our open spaces across the district.

We are now at an important stage following the end of our consultation, thank you to all residents who gave their views.  

You can read about the background to this work and why it's required.

Working with our lead consultants, Jon Sheaff & Associates landscape architects, we prepared three draft designs for an improved Queens Park which we invited residents' thoughts on. These designs could be subject to change, based on planning and funding issues, but they take into account comments raised by residents last summer.

The majority of responses (62%) preferred option one. 

The majority of respondents told us they want:

  • A good quality playground, in its current location.
  • Toilets and better refreshment facilities adjacent to the play-area.
  • Measures which help to prevent flooding.

Thank you to residents who gave their views on the future design of the park. Your thoughts and ideas will be really helpful as we move forward with this work. We have published a summary of your feedback and our architects, Jon Sheaff & Associates, has also produced a summary of the work so far, including the background to why the work is required, different design options and the outcome of the resident consultation.

Following resident feedback, we are now starting the detailed design work on option one, the preferred option for the future design of the park. We will be refining the design, based on what residents have told us, especially to provide more detailed proposals for flood alleviation in the park.

We’re also investigating opportunities to help fund the improvements to the park, which could include grants or capital funding to help with flood alleviation and work to introduce new play equipment and improve footpaths.

Potential grant funding sources include, but are not limited to:

  • Community Infrastructure Levy.
  • Sport England.
  • Future rounds of funding from the Levelling Up Fund.
  • UK Shared Prosperity Fund.
  • National Lottery Heritage Fund.

We hoped to use money from the government’s Levelling Up Fund to improve Queens Park, but our bid was unsuccessful. Unfortunately, this will delay the delivery of the improvements to the park and may also change some of the improvements we’re able to deliver.