Visit the festival's pop-up bookshop
Saturday 26 April 2025, all day
Venue: Beckenham Place Mansion
Back at the Mansion with its fabulous pop-up bookshop will be local independent and festival bookseller Beckenham Bookshop.
The pop-up bookshop will be open all day from 9am, so you can pick up a copy of your favourite author's book for signing later and explore the colourful and diverse choice of books on display.
Visitors young and old and everyone in between will find something to treasure at Beckenham Bookshop's pop-up.
Take a walk with
Wild South London
Saturday 26 April 2025, 10.30am and 1.30pm
Venue: outside Beckenham Place Mansion (on the car park side of the park) - what3words link: https://w3w.co/lowest.crate.origin
Join Wild South London for a Wild Walk around Beckenham Place Park to celebrate spring and learn about the flora and fauna in the park.
Wild Walks are free events that invite people to get outside, explore local green spaces and learn collectively about the brilliant biodiversity to be found on our doorsteps. We’ll walk for about an hour, stopping along the way to talk about things we find or enjoy some quiet time in nature. Each walk will be led by a Wild South London trustee, but these are informal and collaborative events where anybody is welcome to share knowledge and expertise or ask questions.
Please ensure you wear suitable clothing and footwear based on the weather forecast. Some parts of the walk may be on muddy or uneven ground, but we will ensure we make it as accessible as possible. Please note that although we will not be eating or foraging for anything on this walk, we will point out and talk about species we have some knowledge of as foragers.
Children are more than welcome, as long as they are supervised by an adult at all times. Dogs are also welcome but must be on a lead whilst in the garden areas as per Beckenham Place Park's rules.
Follow Wild South London on Instagram to hear about other events: @wild_south_london
Price: Free of charge, booking needed
Kids! Learn how to drive a sewing machine
Saturday 26 April 2025, 9.30am - 12pm / ages 7-14
Venue: Beckenham Place Mansion
KHY Sewing School is thrilled to be at this year’s annual Books in the Park festival with a special-edition kids Sewing Machine Driving Licence (price £25, normally £40).
In the Sewing Machine Driving Licence workshop, participants will learn to use a sewing machine while crafting a unique book bag featuring an exclusive pattern debuting at the event. Spaces are limited to just 12, so be sure to book in advance.
Price: £25 (incl booking fee)
Food and farmers market joins the festival
Saturday 26 April 2025, all day
Venue: outside Beckenham Place Mansion
Family-run weekly Beckenham Place Park Market will be bringing a string of local traders and produce to the festival this year.
Launched in Beckenham Place Park in March 2022, this market is the perfect place to support the local community by doing your weekly food shop. And you can sample some delicious hot food, with a promise of flavours from around the world!
The market is operated by The Food Market Company.
Follow the market’s account on Instagram or @BeckenhamPlacePark on Facebook for updates.
Swapping a book is as simple as ABC
Saturday 26 April 2025, all day
Venue: The Homestead Courtyard
Do you have lots of books you have outgrown? Donate them!
Are your shelves full of books that you’ve already read? Swap them!
Or are your book shelves bare? Choose a book or two to take home to enjoy.
Please ensure donated books are in great condition and suitable for children aged between 5-11.
Drop-in for book-themed sewing inspiration
Saturday 26 April 2025, from 2pm / all ages
Venue: Beckenham Place Mansion
The KHY Sewing School studio will be open for drop-in sessions from 2pm where you can make bookmarks and page markers to complement your new book purchases or favourite reads.
Stunning textiles and garments created by talented kids and teens will be showcased and you can browse the extensive collection of sewing, fashion and textile books.
Drop-in sessions free of charge, no booking needed
Learn how to live greener and cleaner
Saturday 26 April 2025, all day
Venue: The Homestead Courtyard
Greener and Cleaner, an organisation helping residents of southeast London live greener and cleaner lives, will be onsite offering paper-based crafts for all ages. In the spirit of recycling and nature connection we will help you create creatures and flowers from unwanted magazines and books. Plus donated and craft books for sale or swap.
Drop in during the day to chat to our volunteers about the charity, our Community Hub, Garden or any queries you have about how to get greener.
Lewisham Libraries launches a new zine collection
Saturday 26 April 2025, all day
Venue: The Homestead Courtyard
Lewisham Libraries is launching an exciting new zine collection, bringing DIY publishing and alternative voices to Lewisham readers.
The grassroots collection features zines by local artists and writers covering topics from poetry and art to social justice and community issues.
This addition to Lewisham's library services reflects the borough's commitment to supporting independent creative expression and providing diverse reading materials representing its vibrant community.
You can also pop by and pick up a sheet to do your own self-guided Scavenger Hunt!
Make your own cyanotype bookmark
Saturday 26 April 2025, all day
Venue: The Homestead Courtyard
The first book illustrated with photographs was made possible by the cyanotype process, with its distinctive blue colour.
Photographer Anthony Jones will be returning to Books In the Park with a selection of cyanotype bookmarks and there will be an opportunity for visitors to make their own bookmark throughout the day.
Price: £5, no booking needed
Bringing nature, books and people together
Arts in the Park CIC 15290631
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