Visit London's smallest nature reserve

Barnsbury Wood in Islington is London's smallest nature reserve, covering less than an acre of land in what was once the garden of the Vicarage of nearby St Andrew's Church, which belonged to George Thornhill who was responsible for the building of the surrounding houses in the 1840s. The garden later became overgrown and was acquired for development by Islington Council in 1974, but this never happened and it was declared a nature reserve in the 1990s.

Fittingly for such a tiny nature reserve, Barnsbury Wood also has tiny opening hours, and if you want to see it you'll have to visit on Tuesdays between 2 and 4pm, or on Saturdays between July and September from 2 to 4pm. At other times it's reserved for tiny people, hosting activities for school children. If you find the time to venture inside today, you may have the chance to see long tailed tits, lesser stag beetles, common toads and sixteen spot ladybirds.

For more, see http://www.islington.gov.uk/services/parks-environment/parks/islington_nature_reserves/Pages/barnsbury.aspx

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