North Stoneham Park

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North Stoneham Park, also known as Stoneham Park, was a historic parkland and country house north of Southampton in Hampshire. It was the home of the Fleming family (later Willis Fleming) and was redesigned in the 18th century by the famous landscape gardener Lancelot Brown. The site is listed in the Hampshire Register of Historic Parks and Gardens. In 2011, plans were announced to build about 1,300 homes on the remaining part of the site, Avenue Park.

History a short version:
- The deer park area likely began as part of a Saxon church estate and later belonged to Hyde Abbey. After the Dissolution of the Monasteries, Henry Wriothesley, 2nd Earl of Southampton, bought the manor in 1545. In 1599 his son sold the estate to Sir Thomas Fleming, and his descendants owned it until 1953.
- The Stoneham War Shrine was built in 1917–18 in Avenue Park by John Willis Fleming to honor 36 local men who died in World War I, including his son Richard. A similar shrine stands at Havenstreet, Isle of Wight. The shrine sits on Cricketers’ Hill, facing St Nicolas’ Church along the old Avenue. It was designed by Christopher Hatton Turnor and dedicated on 28 July 1918 by Bishop James Macarthur. The shrine fell into ruin in the late 20th century but was restored in 2011 and rededicated on 22 May 2011.

Landscape and planning:
- In 1967, Pevsner described the park as a narrow green belt between Eastleigh and Southampton.
- From 1991, Hampshire County Council worked to conserve and restore the parkland, backing it with surveys and studies. The landscape is noted as one of England’s few places showing long continuity of a manor landscape.
- The Eastleigh-Southampton Strategic Gap Planning and Management Framework (1993) aimed to protect the landscape, bring land into public ownership for recreation and education, and safeguard surviving features. The framework was adopted in 1995 by Eastleigh Borough Council and Test Valley Council.

Restoration and current plans:
- Restoration of the Avenue area took place in phases from 1995 to 2011. In 1996, 61 acres of the Avenue were placed in public ownership. In 2000, a broader restoration was funded by developer contributions after the North Stoneham Rectory redevelopment. In 2008, Heritage Lottery funding supported restoring the Stoneham War Shrine and the surrounding parkland.
- In 2011, the local plan proposed building up to 1,300 homes plus community facilities on the surviving Avenue area. The plan noted the land is part of a historic landscape but degraded, and that development would help meet housing needs while the woodland around the Shrine would be protected.