Dagnam Park
Investing in heritage and archaeological restoration at Dagnam Park in Havering
National Highways’ Lower Thames Crossing project recently gave £90,000 to the London Borough of Havering, in partnership with The Friends of Dagnam Park, to support enhancements and heritage and archaeological restoration at Dagnam Park.
Dagnam Park, part of the Manor Nature Reserve in Havering, is a 345-acre nature reserve comprising mature woodland, large open fields and established ponds.
The park has a fascinating historical past and was designed by the well-known landscape architect Humphrey Repton. Today, its original 18th century boundaries together with many original landscape features remain, as well as the footprints for Dagnam Manor house, a three-story Georgian mansion which was destroyed during WWII.
The funds supported the Friends of Dagnam Park, a group of local volunteers, who actively work to improve the park and support the work of the park's maintenance team.
What has been done?
- repaired recently unearthed archaeological features of the old Dagnam Manor house
- new public access footpaths
- improvements to damaged walls
- restored the Round Pond
- replaced or repaired broken original iron railings for the large deer heard at the park
An event was recently held at the park to celebrate the completion of the work and a class of children from Drapers' Maylands Primary School were invited to attend.
The event included the unveiling of a new heritage trail within the park, which involved the creation of a tailormade map for local children to find points of interest that would teach them about the park’s rich heritage and natural history.
"We’re really pleased with the funding received from National Highways for the Dagnam Park restoration works. For councils Like the London Borough of Havering, there isn’t always enough money to do the things we want to do with green spaces and heritage, so it’s fantastic that organisations such as National Highways help to fund these types of projects."Cllr Ray Morgon
