Parliament Hill athletics track on Hampstead Heath gets £2m revamp

Parliament Hill athletics track was officially reopened on Wednesday (April 17) by Michael Mainelli, the 695th Lord Mayor of the City of London Corporation (CoLC).

He told participants, including chair of Hampstead Heath, Highgate Wood and Queen's Park Committee, William Upton KC, Highgate Harriers and their Quad Kids, and members of ColC: "I can say with certainty it will be a runaway success."

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The eight-lane track has undergone the £2m revamp with funding from the ColC, which manages the Heath as a registered charity.

Children from the Quad Kids running club with Michael Mainelli, Lord Mayor of City of London, William Upton KC and British Olympic athlete Phil Norman (Image: Nathalie Raffray)

The track has been resurfaced, there are improved long jump facilities and new energy efficient floodlights will ensure the site remains a key venue for national and international athletics events, and retains its UK Athletics Trackmark accreditation.

Work started in June and finished in December. The venue will host the annual Night of the 10,000m PB’s on May 18, a free event which brings together elite runners from across the world to compete alongside some of the UK’s best athletes.

Parliament Hill athletics track as seen at night (Image: CoLC)

John Holliday, consultant at Conway Ltd which won the contract for the work, said: "We were up against it because of the weather because we needed to get the markings down.

"When we took the surface up it was all clay, and of course with all the rain, it was hard work."

The track also has LED floodlighting that can be switched up or down, and which also protects neighbours from harsh light pollution at night.

Lord Mayor of the City of London Michael Mainelli with chair of the Hampstead Heath committee William Upton KC at the official launch of the Parliament Hill Athletics Track on Hampstead Heath (Image: Nathalie Raffray)

Mr Upton KC said: “These improvements will not only deliver a first-class sports facility, they have also been made with our environmental footprint in mind.”

Joseph Lowe, trustee of the Highgate Harriers, which was established in 1879, was "so grateful for the £2m investment".

"Without this investment the track would have lost certification for England Athletics. Without that we couldn't hold any league matches here and we couldn't hold 10,000 people here.

Joseph Lowe, trustee of the Highgate Harriers, a running club on Hampstead Heath since 1879 (Image: Nathalie Raffray)

"Without this we would of had to move," he added.

The Quad Kids, aimed at children from the age of 30 months, are a feeder for the main Highgate Harriers.

He said the Harriers contributed £50,000 which paid for a power supply put in to the track so there would be "no need for any generators burning diesel".

Caroline Williams, operations director at City of London Corporation, who oversaw the project to refurbish and restore the Parliament Hill athletics track (Image: Nathalie Raffray)

Caroline Williams, head of operations at CoLC, started in September and the athletics track was her first major project.

"From September to completion I've been involved with the refurbishment and restoration of the track," she said.

"There were a lot of core issues, but we managed to complete it before winter and get all the white lining done which was imperative.

"We needed it to host the night of the 10,000 PBs. That was our goal."

She said since December many schools and groups had booked to use the track.

She added: "It's fully booked right through the summer so very popular and showing it's worth already. I'm delighted."