Hampstead Heath Café Takeover Sparks Community Uproar and Legal Challenge
A significant controversy has erupted over the future of four beloved cafés on Hampstead Heath, as the City of London Corporation moves to transfer their operation to the Australian-inspired restaurant group Daisy Green. The decision has ignited fierce opposition from local residents and current operators, leading to accusations of misinformation and a substantial legal battle.
Accusations of Hostility and Misinformation
The City of London Corporation, which manages Hampstead Heath as a charity, has publicly accused campaigners fighting the takeover of conducting a campaign marked by hostility, intimidation, and harassment. In an open letter to local residents, Alderman Gregory Jones KC, chairman of the Hampstead Heath, Highgate Wood and Queen’s Park Committee, stated that the merits of selecting Daisy Green have been overshadowed by individuals in favour of spreading misinformation and lies.
The Corporation insists that the remarketing process was open, competitive, and independently supported, with Daisy Green chosen from thirty bidders based on their proposal’s strength. Key factors included commitments to community investment, financial sustainability, affordability, and fair staff pay.
Community Backlash and Legal Action
Despite these assurances, the decision has faced substantial community resistance. A petition against the takeover, initiated by current café operators Patrick Matthews and Emma Fernandez, has garnered over 20,000 signatures. Matthews and Fernandez, who run the cafés at Parliament Hill Lido and Queen’s Park, have launched a crowdfunded legal challenge, questioning the fairness and transparency of the tender process.
They argue that the process was neither right, open, nor fair and have expressed a desire to engage constructively with the Corporation to retain their operations. Matthews emphasised that their campaign is supported by customers who wish to keep the cafés as they are, reflecting deep-seated community attachment to the existing establishments.
Background and Rationale for the Change
The cafés—located at Golders Hill Park, Parliament Hill, Parliament Hill Lido, and Queen’s Park—were put out to tender as part of a broader review of food and drink outlets across the Corporation’s open spaces. The existing operators had been trading on temporary, at-will tenancies, which the Corporation deemed financially unsustainable in the long term.
During the six-month assessment, bidders were required to submit detailed business plans, financial projections, and operational concepts. Daisy Green was awarded four of the five contracts, with the D’Auria family, who have run the Parliament Hill Fields café for 45 years, continuing to supply the Parliament Hill ice cream counter and other Daisy Green venues.
Statements from Both Sides
Prue Freeman, co-founder of Daisy Green, expressed gratitude to the D’Auria family for their support and encouragement and acknowledged their huge legacy, which she aims to preserve. Freeman stated, We look forward to engaging further with the community and working together to build a café for everyone.
In contrast, Matthews reiterated that he and his wife have not been in contact with the City Corporation directly but have maintained courteous communications with Prue Freeman. He affirmed their commitment to continuing the fight to remain as operators, highlighting the ongoing support from their customer base.
The dispute underscores a broader tension between commercial sustainability and community preservation in London’s cherished green spaces, with both sides entrenched in their positions as the legal and public relations battles intensify.
