LUC was appointed by the London Borough of Hackney to lead the landscape design for the transformation of Hackney Downs Playground, creating an ambitious, inclusive and imaginative play space for children and young people of different ages and abilities.
Hackney Downs Playground formed part of the Council’s commitment to improving parks and green spaces through its 10-year Parks and Green Spaces Strategy. Located within a densely populated and culturally diverse area, and close to several schools including Stormont House School for children with special educational needs, the playground provides an important recreational resource for the surrounding community.
The existing playground offered a good range of play opportunities for younger children but had limited provision for older age groups, particularly for more challenging physical play. Other issues included restricted access, limited seating and shade, high perimeter fencing which separated the playground from the wider park, and conflicts with cyclists using the busy paths immediately alongside it. Mature trees were an important feature of the playground but also introduced constraints associated with their root protection areas.
Following public consultation beginning in 2022, LUC developed proposals that retained successful and well-loved elements of the existing playground while substantially expanding the range and character of play. The design extends the playground to provide opportunities for older children and introduces new climbing, balancing, swinging and adventurous play alongside informal and imaginative play within the landscape.
At the heart of the design is the existing shelter and mosaic. Depictions of wild animals within the mosaic inspired the wider design concept, with planting, colour, stone, landform and natural materials used to evoke their habitats and create a distinctive setting for play. The existing central mound was enlarged and transformed into a more ambitious play feature, incorporating boulders, climbing logs, a new tower and bridge, and a wide slide descending into a sand play area. New seating steps face towards the mosaic, reinforcing it as the centrepiece of the playground.
Elsewhere, existing features including the timber climbing structure, sand and water play, roundabout and swings were integrated with new elements. Stone climbing stacks, log trails, swings and loose-parts play provide a broader range of experiences, while new seating gives children, families and carers more opportunities to pause and socialise.
Planting plays an important role in integrating the playground into Hackney Downs. New boundary planting softens its edges, while areas of long grass and seasonal wildflowers help define the extended play space, provide a degree of enclosure and create a greener, more wildlife-friendly setting. Existing mature trees were retained and incorporated into the design.
Hackney Downs Playground was completed and reopened in spring 2025, the £1.7m project creates a richer, more varied play landscape that responds to its parkland setting while providing opportunities for challenge, exploration, imagination, and social play across a wider range of ages.
Hackney Downs Playground
Designer: LUC
Client: London Borough of Hackney
Images & Text: LUC
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