Barnet Playgrounds and Parks for Children

The playgrounds Barnet families most often head for are Fair Play in New Barnet, built so disabled and non-disabled children can play together; the new Halliwick Recreation Ground playground, opened in February 2026; Victoria Park in Finchley; and Golders Hill Park, where the playground sits beside a free zoo. Every entry was checked against the council’s or the owner’s own page on 26 October 2026.

We have not reviewed these playgrounds, and nothing here is a rating. Each entry sets out what the park’s owner publishes: the ages its play areas are meant for, cafes and toilets, how to get there, and anything recently built or changed. All of them are free. Barnet Council’s park directory sorts play areas into three bands, toddler (2 to 6), junior (5 to 10) and senior (7 to 14), and we use the same bands below. Much of that directory was last updated in 2018, so where the council has announced newer work we say so.

High Barnet, New Barnet and East Barnet

Fair Play Barnet, Victoria Recreation Ground, New Barnet

Fair Play is the borough’s fully accessible playground, built for people “of all ages and abilities” to play together. Barnet Council lists a wheelchair seesaw, a wheelchair swing, a ramped multi-play unit, a netted swing, a raised roundabout, a 360-degree swing, a climbing net and musical instruments, plus large picnic tables that take several wheelchairs. The council’s opening announcement adds solid safety surfacing across the whole area, communication boards for non-verbal children, a textured path for visually impaired visitors and a single entrance and exit. The Mayor opened it on 13 February 2024; it cost about £500,000, £100,000 of it from the council. The cafe and toilets, including a Changing Places toilet, are inside New Barnet Leisure Centre next door, which has a pay car park with blue badge spaces. Bus 384 stops on Lawton Road; New Barnet station is about ten minutes’ walk. Lawton Road, EN4 9BS.

The rest of Victoria Recreation Ground has its own toddler, junior and senior play areas, a basketball court and an outdoor gym, so older brothers and sisters have somewhere to go too.

Old Court House Recreation Ground, High Barnet

Old Court is the park off Wood Street in High Barnet. The council lists toddler, junior and senior play areas, a cafe, tennis courts, a bowls green, gardens and a car park, and says it bought the estate in 1923 and opened it to the public the following year; the county court that gives it its name sat here until the First World War. There are entrances from Wood Street, Manor Close, Mays Lane and Orchard Road, and the car park is off Manor Close. High Barnet station (Northern line) is a short walk, and buses 34, 84, 107, 184, 234, 263, 307, 326, 384 and 389 run nearby. Manor Close, EN5.

Oak Hill Park, East Barnet

Oak Hill Park sits in the valley of Pymmes Brook, with the Oak Hill Woods nature reserve along one side. The council says the land was sold to East Barnet Council in 1930 and the park opened in 1933, and lists toddler, junior and senior play areas, an outdoor gym, a multi-sports court, tennis courts and a car park. The Oak Hill Park Cafe has its own website, and GoParks London lists it with indoor and outdoor seating and says the park is always open. Buses 184, 307, 382 and 125. Parkside Gardens, EN4 8JS.

Totteridge and Whetstone

Brook Farm Open Space, Totteridge

The council opened a £200,000 play area here in August 2022. Its announcement lists a mini castle, swings, slides, a seesaw, a climbing frame and “even an alligator to be traversed”. Brook Farm is open fields beside the Dollis Brook rather than a formal park, and the council’s directory entry lists no cafe or toilets, so bring what you need. It suits a walk along the brook with a stop at the playground. Totteridge and Whetstone station (Northern line) is the nearest. Council address: High Road, Whetstone, N20.

Finchley and Friern Barnet

Victoria Park, Finchley

Victoria Park opened in 1902 and was Finchley’s only public park until 1914, according to Wikipedia, which also notes that part of the land was Colby’s Farm, where Dickens wrote some of Martin Chuzzlewit. The council lists toddler, junior and senior play areas, a cafe, toilets, a multi-sports court, tennis courts and gardens. Under the park’s master plan the council set aside £200,000 for its two playgrounds, with the one by the cafe for toddlers and younger children and the one near the Long Lane entrance for older children (council consultation). Entrances on Ballards Lane, Long Lane, Etchingham Park Road and Park View Road. Finchley Central and West Finchley stations are close, and buses 82, 125 and 260 run along Ballards Lane. Ballards Lane, N3.

Friary Park, Friern Barnet

A formal Edwardian park in the grounds of Friary House, which opened to the public in 1910, according to Wikipedia. The council lists toddler, junior and senior play areas, a skate park, a basketball hoop, an outdoor gym, a water feature and a cafe, and the park hosts a summer show on its open grass. Wikipedia says the cafe is in Friary House itself, the Gothic Revival building in the middle of the park. There is a free health walk on Wednesdays from 9.30am to 10.30am, the council says. Buses 234, 383 and 634. Friary Road, N12.

Cherry Tree Wood, East Finchley

Cherry Tree Wood is the wood and park opposite East Finchley station, which the council describes as a remnant of the medieval Finchley Wood. It won a Green Flag Award in 2024, Barnet Post reported, with the Friends of Cherry Tree Wood crediting its volunteers. The council lists toddler, junior and senior play areas, a cafe, tennis courts and a multi-sports court; GoParks London lists outdoor seating only at the cafe and says the park is open dawn to dusk. The council says the park opened in 1915 and was known as Dirthouse Wood until it was renamed. Buses 263, 143, 102, 234 and H3. Summerlee Avenue, N2.

Halliwick Recreation Ground, Muswell Hill

The newest big playground in the borough. The Mayor of Barnet opened it on 8 February 2026, and the council’s announcement lists swings, somersault bars, picnic benches, a tower with monkey bars and a “sensory dome” for climbing on. The £275,000 playground is for children aged two to 14 and was paid for by the council, the London Marathon Foundation, the CSDS Foundation and the National Lottery Community Fund, after fundraising by the Friends of Halliwick Rec. The park also has a new wetland area and two refurbished tennis courts. The council’s listing shows no cafe. Albion Avenue, N10, on the Friern Barnet and Muswell Hill border.

Hendon, Mill Hill and Colindale

Hendon Park, Hendon

Hendon Council opened Hendon Park in 1903, according to the council, which lists toddler, junior and senior play areas, a cafe, a basketball court, a multi-sports court, an outdoor gym, tennis courts, gardens and a water feature. Hendon Central station (Northern line) is the nearest, and the council lists buses 113, 143, 186, 362, 643 and 797. Queens Road, NW4.

Sunny Hill Park, Hendon

The playground in the photograph at the top of this page, which shows a zip wire in front of a climbing frame with a slide, and swings beyond. The council lists toddler, junior and senior play areas, a cafe, a basketball court, tennis courts and a marked and measured walking route of 2.5km. The council gives its address as Watford Way (A41 southbound), NW4 4XA.

Mill Hill Park, Mill Hill

A 14.3-hectare park either side of the A1, linked by an underpass. The council lists toddler, junior and senior play areas, a cafe, crazy golf, a basketball court, tennis courts, an outdoor gym and a car park, and says the park opened in 1924 on the land of Daws Farm. Wikipedia adds toilets and a community forest nature reserve planted in 1993 and 1994. Access from Wise Lane, Daws Lane, Flower Lane, Watford Way and The Rise. Mill Hill Broadway (Thameslink) is the nearest station; buses 113, 186, 221 and 251. Daws Lane, NW7.

Colindale Park, Colindale

Colindale Park reopened in 2021 after a £1.2 million upgrade, and its centrepiece is a play area built around a climbing “volcano”, according to the council’s announcement. The same work added an outdoor gym, table tennis, fixed chess tables, a picnic area with garden tables and a blossom orchard. The council’s listing shows play for toddlers, juniors and older children but no cafe. Colindale station (Northern line) is a short walk. Colindale Avenue, NW9.

Silkstream Park and Montrose Playing Fields, Burnt Oak

The two parks between Colindale and Burnt Oak were joined up in a £5 million upgrade. The council said in 2020 that the first of two new playgrounds, in Silkstream Park, was open, for children aged three to 15, with a climbing frame, slide, seesaw, swings and a roundabout. The second was to follow in Montrose Playing Fields, beside an “Active Zone” with tennis courts, table tennis, a parkour area, a basketball court and an outdoor gym, and a skate park nearby; by September 2026 the council described both parks’ transformation as complete. The plans also included toilets and a cafe called The Hub; we could not find current opening hours for it, so do not count on it. Unitas Youth Zone is next door. Silkstream Road and Montrose Avenue, HA8; Burnt Oak and Colindale stations are both close.

West Hendon Playing Fields, West Hendon

The playground here was expanded in 2026, alongside two new tennis courts and a 3x3 basketball court, as we reported in September. The council’s list of equipment includes a climbing frame and monkey bars, a seesaw, a roundabout, several slides, different types of swing, and two large picnic tables that take a wheelchair. A kiosk-style cafe is planned for a later phase but is not yet funded, and the council’s listing shows a car park and a marked walking route of 2.5km. The Welsh Harp reservoir is next to the park. Goldsmith Avenue, NW9.

Golders Green

Golders Hill Park, Golders Green

Run by the City of London as part of Hampstead Heath rather than by Barnet Council. The City’s page lists a free zoo, a cafe, a bandstand, a walled garden, all-weather table tennis tables and toilets, with the park open 7.30am to dusk. The play area is for children up to 12, with a basket swing and a climbing frame; the sandpit is closed while the City works on plans to improve it, and dogs, glass and smoking are not allowed in the play area. The cafe opens 9am to dusk (020 8455 8010). The park can close at short notice when winds of 40mph or more are forecast. North End Way, NW3 7HE; Golders Green station is the nearest.

How we chose

These are the playgrounds people across the borough search for, chosen on what can be checked: the size and age range the owner publishes, cafes and toilets nearby, recent investment, and how easily families from EN4, EN5, N2, N3, N10, N12, N20, NW4, NW7, NW9 and NW11 can reach them. Every fact comes from Barnet Council’s park directory and news releases or the City of London’s own pages, and we say so where it comes from anywhere else. Barnet has dozens more small neighbourhood playgrounds; the council’s park directory lets you search by postcode. Opening hours and cafe times change through the year, so check before a late afternoon trip in winter.

Run a playground, park cafe or Friends group that should be here, or spot something that has changed? Email newsdesk@barnetlive.co.uk.

For more locally, see things to do in Barnet, what’s on in Barnet this month, half term and Halloween in Barnet, our guides to Barnet restaurants, pubs and Sunday roasts, and the Barnet business directory.

Frequently asked questions

Is there an accessible playground for disabled children in Barnet?

Yes. Fair Play Barnet in Victoria Recreation Ground, Lawton Road, New Barnet EN4 9BS, is built so children and adults of all abilities can play together. Barnet Council lists a wheelchair seesaw, a wheelchair swing, a ramped multi-play unit and picnic tables that take several wheelchairs, with a Changing Places toilet and a cafe inside New Barnet Leisure Centre next door. It is free and opened in early 2024.

What is the newest playground in Barnet?

The newest we found is at Halliwick Recreation Ground, Albion Avenue, N10, which the Mayor of Barnet opened on 8 February 2026. The £275,000 playground is for children aged two to 14 and has swings, somersault bars, a tower with monkey bars and a climbing dome. West Hendon Playing Fields also has an expanded playground, finished in September 2026.

Which Barnet parks have a playground and a cafe?

Barnet Council lists a cafe as well as play areas for toddlers, juniors and older children at Victoria Park in Finchley, Friary Park, Oak Hill Park, Hendon Park, Sunny Hill Park, Mill Hill Park, Old Court House Recreation Ground and Cherry Tree Wood. Golders Hill Park, run by the City of London, has a cafe open 9am to dusk next to a playground for children up to 12 and a free zoo.