Trumble Gardens — Attraction in London

Whilst my daughter loves this park, it is absolutely atrocious. There is loads of smashed glass surrounding the play area where the miscreants go to drink at night. This park has a gate, but it also has multiple openings where there are gaps in bushes where a dog of lead could easily get in or a child could get out if it were not being properly parented. This is not ideal in general but even worse as it is right next to where cars go. I haven't checked out the toilets but they were disgusting when I was a child going here around 25 years ago so considering the state of the place i would assume that these are no better. Also, when you enter the main park, to get to the children's play area it is deep inside and to the left. When I was there a random man came in and I haven't a clue what he was doing as he was alone and not a child but he left pretty quickly when he saw me clocking him.

All in all, the little one enjoys the recreational aspect of this park but from a parents perspective be prepared to have to move glass away from your child and scope the place for stray men. Not a clue who this park is maintained by because it clearly is not...

Small garden area with a children's play area and 5 abandoned tennis courts. Has a car entry ramp and small parking space.

I come here mainly to play tennis and whilst it is very messy and you get the occasional weirdos hanging around, it's free courts and it is in the middle of a residential area, which attracts many nearby residents who are looking for a place to play tennis.

I wouldn't recommend young children coming here, or anyone coming by themselves as there are many drunks or strange people hanging around the courts. If you are afraid of going alone, sometimes you get the occasional couple or family who just come and sit on the benches just to watch a free tennis game. The gardens and courts are very close to the high street so it's easy to access and leave. Police do, however, frequently come down to search the area; I'm not sure if that's a good sign or not...

But overall, quite nice to have free tennis courts nearby despite the mess around. The surface of three of the courts is pretty good, and in the summer you get lots of friendly sportspeople around playing tennis if you may be worried to go by yourself with lots of...

Avoid. The main garden area is a gathering point for local dossers and drunks, most of them prone to foul language and random acts of violence. The children's playpark nearby is routinely used by men - unaccompanied by children - who sit for hours using their mobile phones. The logical conclusion is that they are either drug dealers making their arrangements or paedophiles photographing other people's children with their phones. The park and playpark are completely ignored by Croydon Council. Police patrols on foot in Thornton Heath are as frequent as parades with the Olympic torch so drunks and criminals can carry on unchecked. If you absolutely must take your children there do not do so with fewer than two adults to...