At the heart of the Regency Square conservation area are the three garden squares: Clarence, Russell and Regency. Today, the gardens are public spaces, owned and maintained by the city council.  But, prior to World War 2, all three gardens were locked enclosures.  Only people who lived in a square were allowed into its garden.  How else have the gardens changed?

In the pages that follow local author and historian Gill Wales takes us on a journey through the history of our three magnificent gardens.