The town has plenty of open green spaces. Broadway Gardens boast a stunning fountain, and Howard Park and Gardens is surrounded by mature trees and has a splash park for people to enjoy in warm weather. There’s also an outdoor pool in the town that’s open from May to September and around Christmas converts to an Ice Rink. Letchworth Garden City has a gorgeous 13-mile route encircling it called the Garden City Greenway, which people enjoy both cycling and walking along.
The pedestrianised shopping area in the centre of town has a mix of independent stores and national chains. Local independents include David’s, which is a café and bookshop, R&E Family Butcher, and The Secret Wardrobe. Garden Square Shopping Centre has a large selection of national brands and a large, multi-story car park. A monthly farmers market takes place in the town too.
The beautiful art-deco building of the Broadway Cinema and Theatre is in the town centre, and other places to visit include the Broadway Gallery, The International Garden Cities Exhibition and Standalone Farm.
There are many clubs to get involved with, covering a range of interests including sports, music, food, chess and much more. Letchworth Garden City Cricket Club is said to be one of the oldest, as it was founded within two years of the city itself. The town has two golf courses, and several bowls clubs too, including Norton Bowls Club, which was founded in 1908.
Letchworth Garden City was founded by Ebenezer Howard and brought the ideas that he’d developed in his book To-morrow: A Peaceful Path To Real Reform to life. The idea behind Garden Cities is to bring together the benefits of the town and the country, and get rid of their disadvantages. Towns were to be self-contained, surrounded by greenbelts, and there were to be zones for housing, industry and agriculture within the town. Alongside this, the developer would hand over the Garden City to a community trust, so that any profits from would be reinvested into the town, rather than make the developer richer. Management of the Letchworth City Garden estate was taken over by Letchworth Garden City Heritage Foundation in 1995.
Letchworth Garden City is home to the rare black squirrel and they’re now often seen around the town. Muntjac deer are spotted regularly too.