Oakwood

The huge Roundhay Park plays host to numerous events throughout the year and there are gardens, lakes and sports facilities along with wildlife throughout making it great for walks with all the family. Attached to this is Tropical World where you can see the UK's largest tropical plant and animal collections outside of Kew Gardens.

If you’re a film lover then you will enjoy the residents not for profit cinema that shows a variety of films. With tickets just £5, you can enjoy mainstream, unusual and community focused pieces at the Roundhay Parochial Hall.

The library has been a mainstay since 1955, and is a great place to read a book. There is a celebration for Oakwood Day each May and the annual Roundhay and Oakwood Festival runs from the end of October through early November showcasing arts, literature, music, poetry and much more in the area.

Opposite the beautiful clock is an Art Deco-fronted, Grade II Listed Building that has been a fish and chip shop since 1934. Roundhay Road is the main route through Oakwood and here you will find the shops as well as numerous food and drink options.

With a cafe, a couple of bars and a few pubs, there is a venue for all times of the day. Elsewhere, there are takeaways, fast food in the form of McDonald’s and Subway and restaurants that offer fine Italian, Thai, Indian and rustic dining.

Being so close to the city centre, you’re never too far from a shopping spree, and Oakwood is also home to a number of local amenities and shops. With a Lloyds bank, hairdressers, beauty salons, home interior stores, retailers, a travel agent, a post office and a dentist, surgery, opticians and pharmacy, everything is nearby. There are also some local supermarket chains.

You can get your fill of local produce with the Oakwood Farmers’ Market at the Oakwood Clock, which is held every third Saturday and has been since March 2008. With FARMA accreditation and nothing from more than 20 miles away, you can get speciality cheeses, meats and more to enjoy.

There are a number of options within Oakwood and surrounding areas, including:

• Leeds Montessori School and Day Nursery
• Roundhay St John’s Church of England (Primary School)
• Gledhow Primary School
• Hovingham Primary School
• Grange Farm Primary School
• John Jamieson all age (3-19) special school for children with learning difficulties
• Stepping Stones (pre-school)
• Roundhay School - all-through education (4-18)

Just 2.2 miles from Leeds city centre, it is a quick seven minute drive from Oakwood by car, and there are also the number 42 and 48 buses that take you there in three stops. The M62 is less than 30 miles away and jetting off is easy with Leeds Bradford International Airport being just 10.2 miles from the village.

The stunning Roundhay Park covers more than 700 acres and the lands were a private estate since William the Conqueror in the 11th century before being bought and completely redesigned by the Mayor of Leeds in 1871 ahead of opening to the public. In the 1800s, Oakwood was synonymous with quarrying and you can still see some evidence of this around the area.

Outside the south entrance to park stands the iconic Oakwood Clock that was built in 1904 and has become the hive of the area. It was renovated in 2015 after hard work from the community restoration campaign, which saw the structure get a £100,000 makeover with money from the Heritage Lottery Fund.

Oakwood was in the first ever ‘motion picture’. The 1888 production of Roundhay Garden Scene by Louis Le Prince was filmed in Oakwood Grange.