Petersham Playground, Kew's Children's Garden and Bushy Park lead 15 Richmond playgrounds checked 26 Oct, with ages, toilets, opening times and dog rules.

The Richmond playgrounds most families head for are Petersham Playground in Richmond Park, rebuilt in 2025 with sand and water play; the Children’s Garden at Kew; the Bushy Park playground by the Diana Fountain; and Radnor Gardens on the Twickenham riverside. Every entry was checked against the council’s, the Royal Parks’, Kew’s or English Heritage’s own pages on 26 October 2026.

We have not reviewed these playgrounds and nothing here is a rating. Each entry sets out what the body that runs the park says about it: the ages it is built for, the equipment, toilets, cafes and opening times. Where nobody has said, we have not guessed.

Dogs. Richmond Council’s dog control order, renewed from 22 September 2026 for three years, bars dogs from play and sports areas enclosed by fences or hedges, playgrounds included. The fixed penalty is £100.

Closing times. Most council parks are open at all times. The ones the council locks open by 7.30am Monday to Saturday and 9am on Sundays and bank holidays; its opening times page has them closing by 5pm until 31 October and by 4.30pm from the week of 2 November.

Richmond, Kew and North Sheen

Petersham Playground, Richmond Park

The Royal Parks reopened Petersham Playground on 12 April 2025 after a rebuild designed around nature, with native hedgerows, bird boxes and bug hotels. Its page lists scramble logs, balance beams, a giant seesaw, slides, a tree tunnel, hammocks, toddler swings, timber play huts and sand and water play. It is for children up to 12. There are public toilets including an accessible one, baby changing, picnic tables, a drinking water fountain and cycle racks.

It opens at 8.30am, and closing times follow the park’s vehicle gates through the seasons. In winter it stays shut in frosty weather, and it is closed on 25 December. Inside Petersham Gate, Richmond Park, TW10.

The Children’s Garden, Kew Gardens

Kew says its Children’s Garden is the size of 40 tennis courts, with more than 100 trees and a 4m-high canopy walk wrapped around a 200-year-old oak. It is split into four themed spaces, the Earth, Air, Sun and Water Gardens, with climbing, balancing and crawling throughout. It is designed for children aged 2 to 12.

Entry is included in standard admission to Kew Gardens and needs no booking. Kew warns it gets very busy at weekends and in school holidays, and suggests opening time or later in the afternoon as quieter. It usually closes an hour before the Gardens do. Alcohol and glass are not allowed. The Family Kitchen just behind it serves pizza, salads and ice cream. Nearest entrances: Elizabeth Gate and Brentford Gate, Kew, TW9.

Old Deer Park

The council calls Old Deer Park one of its most important sites for sport and events; it is Crown land leased to the council, named after the hunting park James I created in 1604. Its page lists a junior and infant play area with a wheelchair accessible roundabout and a spinner bowl, plus tennis courts and an outdoor gym. A footbridge links it to the towpath, and Pools on the Park is next door. Open at all times. Old Palace Lane, Richmond, TW9 1PQ.

North Sheen Recreation Ground

Opened in June 1909 on part of an orchard of the Popham Estate, the council says. Its page lists two play areas covering all ages, with a wheelchair accessible roundabout and interactive play panels, a paddling pool, football pitches and a large dog-free lawn in the north-west corner. The accessible toilet is in the cafe and opens with it. North Sheen is one of the parks locked at night. Dancer Road, Richmond, TW9 4LB, near North Sheen station.

Westerley Ware Recreation Ground, Kew

A small recreation ground at the foot of Kew Bridge, with a hedged memorial garden first laid out for those who fell in the First World War. The council lists a play area for under-13s with a spinner bowl, basket swing, accessible swing seat and interactive play panels, plus tennis courts and a pétanque piste. The Friends of Westerley Ware look after it with the council. Locked at night. Kew Green, TW9 3AP.

Twickenham, St Margarets and Whitton

Marble Hill

English Heritage opened a new play area at Marble Hill in 2021 as part of its Marble Hill Revived project, backed by the National Lottery Heritage Fund and Community Fund. Its facilities page describes a play area with a mini trampoline, a climbing area and a willow tunnel, and an enclosed picnic area beside it. The fenced children’s area is dog-free (assistance dogs welcome). The cafe has highchairs and a microwave for warming food, and there is baby changing; toilets are at the cafe and in the house. The park is free; the 76-space car park charges non-members. Richmond Road, Twickenham, TW1 2NL.

Radnor Gardens

A riverside garden on Cross Deep where, the council says, the first weeping willows are thought to have been planted; its summerhouse and gazebo date from the mid 18th century. Its page lists a play area with a wheelchair accessible roundabout, an accessible swing seat, interactive play panels, a basket swing and a spinner bowl. There is a cafe and a bowls club, and the accessible toilet opens with the cafe. Open at all times. Cross Deep, Twickenham, TW1 4RB, near Strawberry Hill station.

Diamond Jubilee Gardens and Champions Wharf Play Beach

Two play spaces side by side on Twickenham Embankment. Diamond Jubilee Gardens, on the site of an old open-air pool, has a play area, a sand pit, a cafe and toilets, and is open at all times. Below it, the Champions Wharf play beach, opened in 2013, is a permanent play beach with a 7m Viking boat and a 5.5m wherry, a Victorian water taxi, and the council says it suits all ages. The beach is locked at night, and dogs must be on a lead at both under the council’s order. The Embankment, Twickenham, TW1 3DU.

Cambridge Gardens, East Twickenham

A small recreation ground by the river at the Richmond Bridge end of the towpath, which the council is developing as one of its Friendly Parks for All. Its page describes a play area for younger children with a wheelchair accessible roundabout, talk tubes, interactive play panels, an accessible swing seat and a spinner bowl. There is a cafe, an outdoor gym and four tennis courts; the accessible toilet opens with the cafe. Open at all times. Clevedon Road, Twickenham, TW1 2TA.

Heathfield Recreation Ground, Whitton

The council says Heathfield has “a popular traditional play area as well as a natural play area”. Its page lists play equipment for under-13s and older children, including a wheelchair accessible roundabout and a basket swing, plus a wildflower meadow, outdoor fitness equipment and a games area. Gender-neutral and accessible toilets open during park hours. It is one of the council’s Friendly Parks for All, with a waymarked path and a sensory trail. Powder Mill Lane, Twickenham, TW2 6EG.

Teddington and the Hamptons

Bushy Park Playground

Bushy Park’s playground sits near the Diana Fountain and the Hampton Court Gate entrance. The Royal Parks list a large sandpit shaded by a pergola, a timber climbing frame, a balance trail, a basket swing, a dry river and climbing boulders, with cradle swings, a twin see-saw and a turtle drum for the youngest. It is for children up to 12. There are children’s toilets with baby changing, wheelchair accessible toilets, a drinking water point and a refreshment kiosk nearby.

It opens daily at 8.30am, sometimes later if it fails the morning safety inspection, and last entry is 30 minutes before closing. The Royal Parks say it is open on Christmas Day. Bushy Park, off Hampton Court Road.

Carlisle Park, Hampton

Named after George James, 9th Earl of Carlisle. The council lists a play area with a wheelchair accessible roundabout, basket swing and spinner bowl, along with a bowling green, seven tennis courts, an outdoor gym, a drinking fountain, car parking and public toilets (the accessible one needs a radar key). There is a sensory tree trail on a waymarked path. Carlisle Park is one of the parks locked at night. Wensleydale Road, Hampton, TW12 2UL.

Broom Road Recreation Ground, Teddington

A large sports ground with, the council says, “a natural play area and seating that looks out over the River Thames” at the back. Its page lists the natural play area with a basket swing, and there is a car park. Across the road, the council runs the Normansfield play park, a hard-surfaced playground for young children that keeps the hours of the private Langdon Park estate around it. Trowlock Way, Teddington, TW11 9QY.

Barnes, Mortlake and East Sheen

Vine Road Recreation Ground, Barnes

A former orchard between two railway lines. The council lists a play area for under-13s with an accessible swing seat and a basket swing, a paddling pool, a wildflower meadow and a community food-growing plot. Male, female and accessible toilets open during park hours, and there is a car park with a disabled bay. Barnes Common Limited runs projects here. Locked at night. Vine Road, Barnes, SW13 0NE, between Barnes and Barnes Bridge stations.

Palewell Common and Fields, East Sheen

Flanked by Richmond Park and the Bank of England Sports Ground. The council lists play areas, a paddling pool, a nine-hole pitch and putt (April to October, clubs for hire) and a pétanque piste with boules for hire. The cafe is Pistachios on the Park (our listing), with a gender-neutral toilet open during cafe hours, and there is an accessible public toilet that needs a radar key. Open at all times. Enmore Gardens, SW14 8RF, nearest station Mortlake.

More council play areas

Smaller playgrounds the council lists, each on its find a park pages: Sheen Common (a large natural playground in the woods, toilet open at weekends); Kneller Gardens, Whitton (play for under-13s and older children, cafe, toilets); Moormead and Bandy Recreation Ground, St Margarets (accessible roundabout, talk tunnels); Murray Park, Whitton (playground and mini skate park); Castelnau Recreation Ground, Barnes (paddling pool, play for under-13s); Mortlake Green (all ages, basket swing); Hatherop Park, Hampton; Holly Road Recreation Ground, Hampton Hill; and Church Road, Teddington (under-13s, no ball games).

How we chose

These are the playgrounds Richmond families search for and the larger council play areas, picked for what the people who run them publish about them, not for our taste. The facts come from Richmond Council’s park pages, its dog control order and its opening times page; the Royal Parks pages for Petersham and Bushy Park; Kew’s Children’s Garden page; and English Heritage’s Marble Hill pages, all read on 26 October 2026. To report broken play equipment in a council park, email parks@richmond.gov.uk or call 020 8891 1411.

Run a park cafe or a Friends group, or spot something that has changed? Email newsdesk@richmondonline.co.uk.

More in Richmond

Frequently asked questions

Are dogs allowed in Richmond playgrounds?

Not in the council’s. Richmond Council’s dog control order, renewed from 22 September 2026 for three years, bars dogs from play and sports areas enclosed by fences or hedges, including playgrounds, with a £100 fixed penalty. Marble Hill’s fenced children’s area is also dog-free, though assistance dogs are welcome.

Which Richmond playgrounds have toilets?

Petersham Playground in Richmond Park and the Bushy Park playground both have toilets with baby changing. Carlisle Park, Vine Road Recreation Ground and Heathfield Recreation Ground have public toilets open during park hours (Carlisle Park’s accessible toilet needs a radar key). At Radnor Gardens, Cambridge Gardens, North Sheen and Palewell Common the toilet is in the cafe and opens with it.

Which Richmond playgrounds have a paddling pool?

The council lists paddling pools at North Sheen Recreation Ground, Vine Road Recreation Ground in Barnes, Palewell Common in East Sheen and Castelnau Recreation Ground in Barnes. They are summer facilities, so expect them to be empty in autumn and winter.