Mile End Park

Mile End Park runs all the way from Old Ford Road down to Hamlets Way in Poplar. It much more than a green space – the park has a leisure centre, climbing wall, the Ecology Pavillion, go-karting track and a host of climbing frames and swings.

The area also has a rather grim history of war and disease…

• It is thought that the name Mile End comes from early 13th century to describe the area a mile from the City where victims of the plague could be safely buried

• There was the bloody Peasants Revolt where protesters against King Richard II’s poll tax where rounded up and hanged

• Mile End was heavily bombed during the war because East London was an important area for imports and storage of raw materials. There was considerable damage to surrounding homes, and poverty was rife in the post war period

In fact, Mile End Park (as we know it) did not become a park until 1952. At this time, residents still lived in relatively poor conditions with few green spaces. The most damaged areas of Mile End were converted into public land, and the new Park was opened – covering 10 acres!

The park was not completed until 1999 when the Green Bridge was built, allowing cyclists and pedestrians to travel its length without crossing any roads.