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Love Parks Week 2010 dates announced |
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Working With Nature grant awards announced Five projects are set to share £1.16m after successfully applying to Grantscape's Working with Nature programme. The projects were chosen for the significance of their biodiversity value and the contributions they can make to national biodiversity objectives... |
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Tree O’Clock Breathing Paces is looking to set a Guinness World Record for the most trees planted in one hour on Saturday 5 December. If you are interested in taking part, Breathing Places would like to hear from you... |
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Spotlight on Friends of Langley Park Chris Ring, chair of Friends of Langley Park, shares his experiences in this isssue's Community Profile... |
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GreenSpace News |
Love Parks Week 2010 dates announced |
Funding news |
Working with Nature grant awards announced |
General news and features |
Tree O’Clock |
Events |
| 17 October Study Tour Organiser: The Glass-House Location: London Contact: www.theglasshouse.org.uk A one-day event for community groups who are at an early stage in developing open space design projects in their neighbourhood. 21 October Finding the Plot Organiser: Women's Environmental Network and Sustain's Local Action on Food Network Location: Reading Contact: www.sustainweb.org A one-day conference to share skills and experience on how access to land for growing food can be improved. 21-22 October Spaces by Design Organiser: The Glass-House Location: Newcastle Contact: www.theglasshouse.org.uk A two-day practical design course for groups who want to improve and change a communal space in their neighbourhood. 26-27 October Young Spacemakers course Organiser: The Glass-House Location: Bristol Contact: www.theglasshouse.org.uk A two-day course aimed at young people who want to work towards improving a communal space in their neighbourhood. 29-30 October Young Spacemakers course Organiser: The Glass-House Location: London Contact: www.theglasshouse.org.uk A two-day course aimed at young people who want to work towards improving a communal space in their neighbourhood. |
Community Profile |
| Chris Ring, Chair Friends of Langley Park What inspired you to get involved with the Friends of Langley Park? The setting up of a friends group was a pre-requisite of the Heritage Lottery Fund bid. I had heard about the bid, and as a regular park user I was keen for it to succeed. I knew that the initial meetings had not gone particularly well so I threw my cap in the ring to try and help. I didn’t quite know what to expect but it has been an interesting and challenging journey. What does being part of the group involve? Primarily it is to chair our monthly meetings in order to direct the group. It also involves raising funds, liaising with the parks team and the project team and (hopefully) leading and inspiring our willing volunteers. There are some legal and administrative tasks relating to the constitution, insurance, finance, AGMs etc. but mostly it is people-based activity. What do you feel has been your greatest success as a group? Probably the regular and productive conservation days, where our members form the majority of the attendees. These are led by a Park Ranger or one of our two gardeners, Peter or Tony. Volunteer numbers are growing and the benefit to the park is both visible and tangible. It is something to be proud of long after the day has finished. I am also extremely proud of our website and regular newsletters, which help to promote the group, the project and the park. What have been the challenges of being involved with the group? Keeping everyone happy and pulling in the same direction. Every member and every committee member has a unique reason for being involved in the group - their needs and ambitions are not the same. Balancing the social side with the business in hand and setting the direction for the manifold challenges and opportunities have not always proved easy. What advice would you give friends groups looking to gain funding/sponsorship? Be careful what you ask for, you might get it! Seriously, I would strongly recommend starting out with a small manageable project with a definite end product. Bidding for substantial sums for larger open-ended projects adds a weight of expectation and workload that may prove difficult to achieve. Smaller projects stand a greater chance of success and rely less on volunteers' time and commitment. There is a lot of money available if you know where to look, but don’t bite off more than you can chew. If you had to offer a friends group advice on starting and running an event during Love Parks Week what would that be? Do something that is enjoyable, different and works whatever the weather and whatever the turnout – it is impossible to predict either! Keep it simple and use the event to promote your organisation through local media. What does the future have in store for the Friends of Langley Park? The Heritage Lottery Fund work should be completed this year and we can all rejoice in our beautiful park and the part we played in its renovation. The tasks ahead will then include making best use of the park, encouraging and welcoming new users and continuing to maintain it in partnership with the parks team and project staff. For more information on the Friends of Langley Park please visit www.friendsoflangleypark.co.uk ^^top |
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COMMUNITY BENCH is the online newsletter of GreenSpace aimed specifically at community groups. It reports on community green space issues across the country and the work of organisations and groups that take an interest in the green spaces. |
