Britain’s garden-less cities: Interactive map reveals how many properties have gardens where you live as survey shows one in eight have no outdoor space
- One in five London households do not have access to their own garden
- Gardens in London are on average 20 per cent smaller than the rest of Britain
- Householders in Scotland tend to have the best access and largest gardens
One in eight households in Britain do not have access to a private garden or patio area, new figures from the Ordnance Survey mapping data have shown.
Londoners have the least access to their own private space although the figures show that black people in England are almost four times as likely as white people to live in properties without a garden.
One in five households in London do not have access to an outdoor space at home according to a survey by Natural England.
People in London have the easiest access to a public park or a playing field according to data collated by the Ordnance Survey
The research found that black Britons have least access to private gardens
One in eight households in Britain do not have access to their own private garden
Researchers asked residents if they had a private or a shared garden, a patio or even a balcony.
However, almost 90 per cent of those surveyed said their local park or green spaces are within ‘easy walking distance’.
The study found those in semi-skilled or unskilled manual occupations, or those who are casual workers or unemployed are almost three times as likely to be without a garden compared with those in managerial, administrative or professional occupations.
Just seven per cent of managers reported not having a garden compared to 20 per cent of low skilled workers.
Elderly people sheltering at home during the Covid-19 breakdown are among the most likely to have access to a garden. Only eight per cent of the over-65s said they did not have any outdoor space.
The researchers found properties in London had the smallest gardens, which at 140sq metres are 26 per cent smaller than the average of the rest of the country.
London gardens are on average half the size of a tennis court. In Scotland, back gardens are on average 226 square metres – rising to an average of 727 square metres on Na h-Eileanan Siar in the Outer Hebrides.
In the City of London, only eight per cent of properties have a private space which average just 16 square metres, is marginally larger than a parking space.
The survey shows that some 46,000 people have Clapham Common in London as their nearest park. The research shows that an average park services a population of around 2,000 people
According to the Ordnance Survey data, the Office of National Statistics worked out that 28 per cent of Britons live within 300 metres of a public park. Almost three quarters live within a 15-minute walk of the park.
Despite having the lowest access to their own gardens, Londoners are most likely to live within a five-minute walk from the local park.
According to the ONS: ‘Parks are most accessible in the poorest areas, with people in the most deprived neighbourhoods of England around twice as likely as those in the least deprived to be within five minutes’ walk of a public park (34 per cent compared with 18 per cent). Including playing fields, this rises to 57 per cent compared with 42 per cent.
‘We see similar trends in Wales and Scotland, with greater access among those living in more deprived areas.
‘Parks and playing fields could be seen as especially valuable to those without access to a private garden, but some have closed temporarily during the COVID-19 pandemic with people failing to maintain social distance from one another.
‘The average park in Great Britain serves just under 2,000 people, although some parks in densely populated areas cater for many more. Around 46,000 people have Clapham Common as their nearest park, more than 20 times the average.’