Discover Northolt: Parks, History and the Grand Union Canal

Northolt combines expansive landscapes, traces of medieval history and prominent memorial sites. This creates a varied picture for planning your trip: Northala Fields offers nature and views, Northolt Manor leads to the area's historic roots, while the village green, church, canal and monuments reveal further facets.

Northala Fields: Landscape, Hills and Views

Northala Fields features a developing mosaic of different habitats. These include wildlife ponds, fishing ponds, streams, wildflower meadows and scrubland. A distinctive landscape feature is Northala Fields & Mounds, with four conical hills. They were created from rubble from the original Wembley Stadium and the new White City Shopping Centre.

The highest of these hills has a spiral path leading to a viewing platform at the summit. A 360-degree panoramic view is documented from there. As a guide for getting there, Northala Fields is approximately 800 metres on foot from Northolt Underground station on the Central line. Northala Fields parkrun is also among the area's listed attractions and is open to all runners, explicitly including beginners.

Northolt Manor and the History of the Area

Northolt Manor encompasses an early medieval village and a medieval manor complex surrounded by a moat. Earthworks and underground remains of this complex have survived. The medieval layout of Northolt Manor has also been recreated on the site. Northolt Manor is designated as a Local Nature Reserve on the site of a 14th-century moated manor house.

Further historical points of reference can be found in Northolt Village. The present-day St Mary's Church dates from the 14th century; parts date back to the 13th century. Northolt Village Green was designated a Conservation Area in 1969. The village includes a village green and a stream that flows through it. Northolt's Clock Tower was built in 1937 to celebrate the accession of King George VI.

Memorial Sites, Farms and Walking Routes

The Polish Air Force Memorial at RAF Northolt was unveiled on 2 November 1948. It commemorates Polish airmen who died and the wartime service of Polish squadrons. Since 1948, a memorial service has been held annually at the Polish Air Force Memorial on the first weekend of September. This historical context adds an explicitly Polish and military dimension to the area's history of remembrance.

For a different perspective on the surroundings, there is the Marnham Fields, Bridge Farm and Smith's Farm circular walk. It begins and ends at the entrance to Northolt and Greenford Countryside Park at the junction of Millet Road and Marnham Crescent. Marnham Field was cleared and restored as part of the Countryside Park. The surviving 19th-century farmhouse at Smith's Farm recalls the agricultural past of the area; Smith's Farm was the last working farm in the vicinity.

Canal History and Further Points of Orientation

The section of the Grand Union Canal running through Northolt also has a clearly dated history: it opened in 1801 as part of the Paddington Arm of the Grand Junction Canal. Northolt therefore brings together different forms of local history – medieval complexes, ecclesiastical heritage, agriculture, remembrance culture and historic waterways.

If you would like to explore more destinations from the same London selection, you can also find Ruislip, Rotherhithe, Woodford, Bromley, Richmond, Northwood, Wembley and Thornton Heath.