King George's Fields (Monken Hadley)

King George’s Fields is a 28-hectare nature reserve in Monken Hadley, part of the London Borough of Barnet. It belongs to a national network of playing fields created as memorials after King George V’s death in 1936. The King George’s Fields Foundation once managed these grants, and today the charity Fields in Trust oversees their upkeep. Since July 1955 the site has held legal protection for its wildlife and landscape. Overgrown hedgerows divide the fields, while narrow strips of woodland and small streams weave between them.

The reserve shelters breeding birds such as sparrowhawks, stock doves and bullfinches, alongside willow warblers and chaffinches. Common butterflies flutter across the grass, and the uncommon chimney sweeper moth can also be spotted. The Shirebourne brook flows north to south through the heart of the site, adding a ribbon of water to the patchwork of habitats. Sparrows and finches nest in the magnificent old oaks that dot the landscape.

Hadley Green Road, Burnside Close and South Close all open into the fields. On the opposite side of Hadley Green Road lies Hadley Green, where the Battle of Barnet took place in 1471 during the Wars of the Roses. The London Loop long-distance walk crosses the reserve, guiding visitors through its quiet corners and along the brook’s edge.