Secret gardens in the heart of London

Beautifully landscaped and meticulously maintained, London’s private garden squares might just be the capital’s best-kept secret – albeit one that’s hiding in plain sight. Walk around the residential streets of Notting Hill, Knightsbridge or Chelsea and there they are, enclosed by iron railings and surrounded by elegant period homes, an oasis in the heart of the city. To unlock the gate to these secret gardens, however, requires a key – available only to those fortunate enough to live on the square.

“Private garden squares are unique to London, a cherished part of its heritage and valued by residents for the way they unite the community,” says Charlie Williams, associate director, Savills Chelsea. “They bring a touch of the countryside to the city, a haven from the bustle of London life, somewhere to sit and read the newspaper, and for the children to let off steam.”

Sought-after locations in Chelsea include the Grade II listed Georgian townhouses on Carlyle Square, once home to the TV personality David Frost, who hosted summer parties in the gardens. The premium for a house here, and on neighbouring Paultons Square, is 8%-12% above average property prices in the area, says Williams. Larger homes on Carlyle Square start at about £8 million.

London’s garden squares were developed predominantly in the 18th and 19th centuries, with master builder Thomas Cubitt leading the charge. He constructed many of the elegant Regency terraces on the Duke of Westminster’s Belgravia estate, mapping out landscape designs for garden squares and even establishing nurseries for the plants. Cubitt’s handiwork can still be seen in two of Belgravia’s most desirable addresses: Eaton Square and Chester Square. Properties there give owners the right to a prized garden key for an annual fee of about £500.

“The post-Covid demand for outdoor space underlines the value placed on these residents-only garden squares, but it’s the exceptionally beautiful properties surrounding them that complete the appeal,” says Verity Wakley, associate director, Savills Sloane Street. “Think of the white stucco façades of Eaton Square or the red bricks of Cadogan Square, where first-floor apartments have soaring four-metre ceilings and verdant views. Buyers recognise that these are magnificent places to live. Pricing is on a par across most of Belgravia’s squares, with apartments from £3 million, while houses can reach more than £25 million.”

These gardens are more than just urban oases: they foster a keen community spirit in the heart of the city. Cadogan Square has a tennis court, Belgrave Square hosts an annual dog show, and several gardens stage plays in summer, including the Shakespeare in the Squares series, of which Savills is a sponsor.

“Notting Hill’s Ladbroke Conservation Area has 16 garden squares, with the largest, Ladbroke Square, close to seven acres,” says Alister Sherwood, associate director, Savills Notting Hill. “Properties on Elgin Crescent and Lansdowne Road with direct access to Rosmead Garden are increasingly popular. These are predominantly houses, often wider and larger than average, with handsome classical 19th-century architecture, painted in attractive pastel shades. For families, knowing that their garden gate leads directly to this secure space, where children can meet their friends, is hugely appealing.”

One of London’s best-known private squares is Rosmead Garden in W11, the location of a pivotal scene involving Anna Scott and William Thacker (played by Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant) in the 1999 film Notting Hill. It gave a rare glimpse beyond the densely planted boundaries of this Grade II listed garden – and enchanted a global audience.

Typically, garden-square houses in Notting Hill can sell for up to around £13 million, with prices from £2,500 to £3,500 per square foot. However in one instance last year, Savills achieved more than £4,000 per square foot when it sold a house on Lansdowne Road for more than £20 million.

“These are generous, elegant houses with a real feeling of space,” says Sherwood. “To be minutes from Westbourne Grove, with all the buzz and the best of London life on offer, yet to look out of your house and feel you are in the countryside, that’s the real appeal of a garden square.”

CHARLIE WILLIAMS, CHELSEA
cwilliams@savills.com
+ 44 (0) 207 578 9016

VERITY WAKLEY, SLOANE STREET
 vwakley@savills.com
+44 (0) 207 824 9029

ALISTER SHERWOOD, NOTTING HILL
asherwood@savills.com
+44 (0) 203 430 6603

Pictures from top: Chester Square, Belgravia (Alamy); communal gardens in Carlyle Square, Chelsea (Alamy); spring blossoms in popular Eaton Square (Alamy); the planting in Carlyle Square, Chelsea (Alamy)