Iffley Fields

Year of Project: 2024-Present

Location: Meadow Lane Playground, Iffley Fields

Collaborators: Iffley Fields Residents Association, Oxford City Council,ODS, Friends of Aston's Eyot, The Nature Effect CIC, GoodGym Oxford,local residents and community groups

Stream: NatureScape

The Story

The Iffley Fields NaturEscape began in 2024 as a community-led vision to transform Meadow Lane Playground in East Oxford into a nature-rich space for play, learning and connection.Located beside the River Thames in a neighbourhood with a strong sense of community, the playground sits within an area that experiences both seasonal flooding and summer drought. 

Local residents recognised an opportunity to create something more than a traditional playground: a place where children, families and the wider community could experience nature, learn about climate resilience and become active stewards of their local environment.The project was initiated by the Iffley Fields Residents Association and developed through extensive community consultation. Early ideas included a large wildlife pond and extensive habitat creation. 

As the project evolved, practical constraints led to a redesign that retained its core vision while focusing on climate-resilient planting, nature play, biodiversity enhancement and community stewardship.

At the heart of the project is the belief that meaningful environmental action begins with connection: connection to place, to nature and to one another. The NaturEscape aims to create a living landscape where people can experience nature-based solutions to climate change within a playful, welcoming and joyful environment

Impact

The NaturEscape is being developed as a wildlife-friendly, climate-resilient public playground where play, nature recovery and environmental learning come together. Features include:

  • Climate-resilient drought-tolerant planting

  • Seasonal wetland and bog planting in naturally waterlogged areas

  • Wildflower and pollinator corridors

  • Deadwood habitat and nature recovery zones

  • Forest school-inspired play spaces

  • Rainwater harvesting and sustainable site management

  • Interpretation exploring climate resilience, biodiversity and localwildlife

  • Volunteer stewardship and community planting programmes

The first phase of the project has already been completed through community effort. Volunteers, including GoodGym Oxford and local residents, have contributed more than 60 hours of practical work to restore neglected areas of the playground.Derelict fencing between tree lines has been removed, redundant hedging cleared, and new natural play features introduced, including a log circle and balancing logs created from locally sourced timber from Shotover. These improvements have opened up previously underused areas, improved sight lines, increased opportunities for play and social interaction, and reduced littering and anti-social behaviour. Long-term residents have commented that the playground now looks better than it ever has.The next phase focuses on climate-resilient planting, habitat creation and environmental learning. Alongside physical improvements, the project aims to make access to nature more inclusive and equitable through volunteering, community events and nature connection activities for mothers experiencing isolation, refugee and migrant women, and families experiencing disadvantage.Working with local partners and nearby Aston's Eyot Nature Reserve, the project supports wellbeing, social connection and a stronger sense of belonging while encouraging people to care for local green spaces.

More than a playground, the NaturEscape is an evolving community landscape where people, wildlife and climate resilience can thrive together.

An illustrated overview of a community park featuring playground equipment, walking paths, gardens, a pond, and seating areas, with children playing and adults walking.
A tree with thick trunk and green ivy growing on it. Next to the tree, there is a structure made of sticks and branches leaning against the tree.
People gathered around a tree with a wire fence, some kneeling and some standing, looking through the wire fence into the tree.
Group of people standing outdoors near a handmade wooden structure decorated with vines and branches, with trees and a wooden fence in the background.
A young girl with blonde hair in a ponytail, wearing an orange dress and purple tights, sitting on a large tree stump in a wooded park area. There are several other tree stumps arranged in a semicircle and a wooden fence in the background, with lush
A man wearing a plaid shirt, jeans, and rubber boots is working outdoors near a tree with dense green ivy. He is using a hammer and pliers on the fence in front of the tree, possibly repairing or securing it. The ground is covered with dirt and dry l
Two people planting a tree in a park, with others standing and walking in the background, overcast sky and bare trees.
A young girl with braided hair wearing a polka dot jacket and rubber boots is pulling a black wagon filled with yard waste, including branches and leaves, along a paved sidewalk next to a leafless bush and a fence.
Child planting a small plant in the soil, wearing a blue jacket, with garden gloves, and surrounded by pots with plants in a garden.
A tree with ivy and vines wrapped around its trunk and branches in a park, with houses and a blue sky in the background.
An outdoor playground with a curved dirt pathway, wooden benches, a tall slide, leafless trees, sunny weather, and a blue sky.
A row of trees with thick trunks and green leaves, with a wire fence and a dirt path in the background. Sunlight casts long shadows on the ground.

The Next Phase

In 2026, we secured two new grants to build on the work at Iffley Fields and create more opportunities for local people to connect with nature.

An Oxford Community Foundation Thriving in Nature Grant is supporting a new programme at nearby Aston’s Eyot, particularly aimed at people who may experience barriers to accessing or feeling confident in wilder green spaces. Working with local organisations including Motherkind, Donnington Doorstep Family Centre and Transition Lighthouse, alongside forest school practitioners, we’ll co-design supported seasonal activities such as forest school, nature crafts, outdoor skills and gatherings. The funding will also provide a community tool shed, tools and equipment to support activities across both sites.

At Meadow Lane Playground, a Community Resilience Grant supported by Oxfordshire County Council will enable the next stage of the NaturEscape. As a floodplain site, the playground needs to cope with both winter waterlogging and increasingly hot, dry summers. We’vestarted introducing specialist planting for wetter areas alongside drought-tolerant, pollinator-friendly planting, improving the soil and helping create a more resilient and biodiverse space.

Alongside these developments, there will be more opportunities for the wider community to get involved through volunteering and seasonal events at at the playground.