Harrow Nature Conservation Forum



Stanmore Common



Stanmore Common is a special place. It is North-west London's most thriving heathland. Heathland is a special mixture of acid soil loving plants such as heather, gorse, and bedstraws growing in soil of poor fertility caused by in this case deposition of acidic gravel from an ancient river. It is a landscape that is manmade by grazing and removal of trees by humans.

Stanmore Common is more than heathland; its open grassy areas are surrounded by birch-oak woodland rapidly being colonised by yew, holly and beech. It has a number of streams and ponds, which are full of aquatic life. It has special plants such as heath spotted orchid and broad-leafed helliborine, devils bit scabious and betony.

It is rich in animal life and has munjac deer, woodmice, bank vole, field vole and shrews and seven species of bat have been seen on the reserve or close to it. It is good for birds with a wide range of woodland species including all three main British woodpeckers and one can still see uncommon birds such as bullfinch. Woodcock is a winter visitor and mandarin duck breeds in the trees on the common. Grass Snake is resident as are its prey which includes frogs. Stanmore Common has a large range of invertebrates especially associated with dead wood and heathland and wetland. It is also rich in fungi and fungi walks are done every year. The reserve is big for an urban site at 124 acres and needs all the help it can get to manage it to keep the site in good condition.


The meeting place for all events such as guided walks and conservation work parties is the car park in Warren Lane Stanmore HA7 4LB map reference TQ 16157 94082. Warren Lane is off Wood Lane, which is accessible from Brockley Hill (A5) from the east or one can turn directly into Warren Lane off the A4140 "The Common" (called "Stanmore Hill" lower down) which runs west of the site.

Public transport is by 142 bus running from Watford to Brent Cross roughly every 15-20 minutes. The bus runs past Edgware Tube (Northern line) and Stanmore tube (Jubilee line). Also one can take the 107 bus running every 15 -30 minutes from New Barnet through Borehamwood to Edgware, descending opposite the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital in Brockley Hill and from there it is 15 minute walk along Wood Lane and Warren lane. Alternatively a pleasant and largely road-free route leads from Stanmore Common through Stanmore Country Park to Stanmore Jubilee Line station – click here for details.

Link to detailed map of reserve

For more information, see the London Authority "Wildweb" description and National Biodiversity Network species list for this site.

Contact details
Warden: Simon Braidman
Phone: 020 8386 2502
simonbraidman@hotmail.co.uk 		Assistant Warden: David Bailey
Phone: 0750 694 4140
yeliab@ymail.com

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