A short history of Culpeper

Named after the famous 17th-Century herbalist who published his works in Islington, Culpeper started life as a joint project between the Free School on White Lion Street, a local alternative school for excluded children, and Penton Primary School, located adjacent to the garden until its sad closure in 2002.

The aim was to provide somewhere for children to learn to grow and care for plants and vegetables. In 1982, with a small grant from Islington Council, work began to transform a derelict, rubbish-filled site into the beautiful public open space it is today. Local people were consulted and when it was discovered that the site was already earmarked as Public Open Space things really took off.

The overall design of the garden was drawn up by a landscape architect and as construction and planting took place, Culpeper was born.