Commons

See all these commons on our map of parks and playgrounds.

Find public transport and driving directions to these locations on Transport Direct.

Coe Fen (Laundress Green)

Photo copyright Cambridge2000

The countryside sneaks right into the centre of Cambridge south of Silver Street. This piece of land is called Laundress Green , as it was here that laundry would be stretched out to dry and bleach in the sun.

Although it is only minutes from the city centre, cattle graze here in the summer and the grass is left uncut.

It is a very popular gathering place for picnickers and drinkers from the nearby pubs. Punts can be hired for taking up river through the meadows to Grantchester, or for floating down stream past The Backs by all the riverside colleges to Jesus Lock

Coldham's Common

• six full size football pitches
• two junior football pitches
• one gaelic football pitch
• one american football pitch
• play area

A sizable block of common land near the heart of Cambridge, split in two by the Cambridge-Ipswich railway line, the largest section of which has a diverse range of habitats which support active and passive recreation.

Much of the common is close mown and there is an artificial pitch used for a range of sports including football and hockey. All pitches can be hired through Abbey Pool which is situated on north west side of the common.

The play area for older children is by Abbey Pool and has a skatem ariel runway, ball court and swings.

Surrounding the artificial pitch is one of the naturally grazed areas, on the other side of the railway, beyond the footballl pitches to the east, known as the Rifle Butts. This area supports grazing and is a large campsite for the Cambridge Folk Festival in the last week of July and the first week in August.

A pedestrian underpass on the west end of the common, near the artificial pitch, takes you under the railway line to another section of naturally grazed common which aligns Coldhams Lane.

Donkey('s) Common

• Skate ramp

Alongside Gonville Place, with the Kelsey Kerridge/Parkside Pools sports complex, Queen Anne Terrace car park, skating ramps and YMCA. During World War II there were temporary huts on the common and after the war they were used for temporary housing.

Empty Common

Between the Nuffield (Evelyn) Hospital and the Government Offices site. Hobson's Brook runs along the east side.

Midsummer Common

Home to the annual Midsummer Fair, one of the longest-established fairs in England, bonfire night and the Strawberry Fair.

The common borders the river Cam, houseboats are typically moored on the common's bank and many colleges' boathouses are located on the opposite bank.

Former names include Midsummer Green, Greencoft and Butts Green. The common is naturally grazed by a herd of bulls between April and October.

Queen's Green

The area between Queens' College and Queen's Road, separated from the College by an old branch of the river.

Sheep's Green

• Learner pool

Sheep's Green is situated to the west of Coe Fen and runs along the west bank of the River Cam. It is an ideal place to walk along the river and get away from the busy city streets.

For six months of the year, April to October, Sheeps Green is grazed on by cattle and at times horses. Sheeps Green has an outdoor learner pool which is open to the public in the summer months.

Stourbridge Common

• Play area

The all ages play area has springys, a modular climber, runway and rotating unit.

King John granted a charter in 1211 formalising an annual fair held by the Leper Hospital at Steresbrigge, between 24th August and 29th September. The name came from a Cam tributary, the Stour, at the eastern end of the common.

The fair grew to become one of the most important in Europe by the 1390s, with the University controlling the weights and measures. The town received a charter to administer the fair in 1589.

Much of Sturbridge Field was enclosed in 1811, leaving Sturbridge Fair Green. The fair declined at the end of the Eighteenth Century and the town formally abolished it in 1934.

Thank you to Ian Kitching for some of the historical background.