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Green Flag and Green Pennant Award launch new website Keep Britain Tidy has launched a new Green Flag Award website to coincide with the start of the 2010 application process. The new site has all the information applicants will need to apply for a Green Pennant, as well as case studies from existing applicants... |
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Groundwork and M&S announce second year of Greener Living Spaces Groundwork has announced 15 new Greener Living Spaces projects to mark the start of the second year of its partnership with Marks & Spencer... |
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National Tree Week 2009 National Tree Week 2009 is taking place from 26 November – 6 December. The week was first established in 1975 and is the UK's largest annual tree celebration, with over 250,000 people getting involved each year... |
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Spotlight on Hall Cliffe Community Garden Hall Cliffe Community Garden, from Baildon in West Yorkshire, share their group's experiences in this issue's Community Profile... |
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GreenSpace News |
Green Flag and Green Pennant Award launch new website |
Funding news |
Groundwork and M&S announce second year of Greener Living Spaces |
General news and features |
National Tree Week 2009 |
Events |
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25 November – 6 December National Tree Week Organiser: The Tree Council Location: Nationwide Contact: www.treecouncil.org.uk The UK's largest annual tree celebration, which marks the start of the winter tree planting season. 6 December Green Sunday: From Copenhagen to Christmas Organiser: Arcola Energy Location: Sevenoaks, Kent Contact: www.greensundays.org.uk A day for the ecologically curious to explore environmental issues in a relaxed and fun forum through music, film, spoken word, games and discussions. 1-18 December Carbon Army Organiser: BTCV Location: Nationwide Contact: www.btcv.org.uk Events are taking palace across the country to help mitigate the affects of climate change. 3 March 2010 Sustainable Parks: Sustainable Futures Organiser: GreenSpace Location: Liverpool Contact: www.green-space.org.uk A one-day conference focusing on creating and managing sustainable parks and green spaces. |
Community Profile |
| Hall Cliffe Community Garden, Baildon, West Yorkshire Chair: Don Edbury, Secretary: Julia Donoghue, Treasurer: Richard Freeman Committee and Trustees: Eddie Nash, Avril Dawes, Ruth Anderson, Rosemary Cole, Rita Leleux, Teresa Bailey What inspired you to create a garden on an old school playground? Two of our members were part of a community group who tried to stop a local playing field being developed for housing. Part of their supporting evidence showed that Baildon had below 60% of the amount of green and open space recommended by the government. This gave us the idea to create a garden for the benefit of the community on a disused school playground. The site is almost in the village centre and was becoming an eyesore. How difficult was it to convince the council to give you a 25-year lease on the site? Not difficult in essence, but it took a frustratingly long time. Initially Bradford City Council offered a 10-year lease with the proviso that if the land could be sold for development within the 10 years it would be. Negotiations ended with a 25-year unconditional lease for a peppercorn yearly rent of £10. Unfortunately the negotiations had to be conducted through a solicitor, which proved to be expensive. How did you raise the money needed to undertake the initial work and for ongoing maintenance? Our first step was to become a registered charity and a company limited by guarantee. We had to demonstrate to funders that we were well organised, had well thought out, sustainable business plans and that we were in the project for the long haul. Our first funding was from the Countryside Agency (Big Lottery Fund) for a community consultation to find out exactly what local residents wanted within the garden. As a group we also raised significant funding from Waste Recycling Environmental (recycling Landfill Tax) for raised and sensory beds for the disabled to work on and from BTCV, both of whom vetted our organisation and plans carefully before offering funding. We also put in countless hours successfully fundraising from local businesses, holding concerts in a local club, leafleting, running stalls at local galas, car boot sales and appealing to smaller charitable contributors for funds. It is also a fact of continual attempts to raise funding that some applications are turned down. For ongoing maintenance we hold plant sales from cuttings, which are potted up and provide enough annual income to meet maintenance expenditure. The sales are now an established feature and service of the garden. What does being part of the group involve? Members of our group are those from the community who are prepared to take on the responsibility and ownership of the garden to make sure it is cared for. We work every Thursday in all weathers and are always looking to improve the garden. We also have committee meetings to review all the tasks to be completed and make future plans. All those involved have become good friends, which is a nice bonus. Another aspect is the continual chatter from the ladies on work days. The men keep their heads down and do what they are told! What do you feel has been your greatest success as a group? Managing to sustain our project without interruption since our first public meeting in 2001. Our work fundraising, designing, planning and working in the garden itself has never stopped. Along with this, the support we have had from local residents – supplying plants, sponsoring seats, areas, and trees all with plaques in memory of loved ones has been quite heart-warming. The garden has become a major feature in the local community in people’s daily lives. How many volunteers does it take to maintain the garden? The garden itself is half an acre and is about 80m long and 35m wide, with many separate themed areas split by paths, thus we need a dedicated core of 6 to 8 volunteers to work every week on maintenance. What have been the challenges of being involved with the group? Firstly, overcoming the overwhelming and daunting task of planning, designing and fundraising (nearly £100,000 over the last eight years), coupled with the initial hard labour in the garden itself. It was a challenge persuading funders that we as a group were well organised and sustainable, assuring them that any part of the project being funded would be finished on time and as planned. Finally, assembling and keeping together a group with the various skills needed for a successful and ongoing projects is a challenge in itself. At times we simply ran out of ideas, whereas sometimes we had ideas and plans but not the funds to carry them out, but we always managed to find new help or funding. We have learned never to be complacent and have always looked to improve the garden areas. What does the future have in store for the Hall Cliffe Community Garden? We have 19 years of our 25-year lease ahead of us. We have adequate funding and a dedicated group of volunteers. The garden has play areas for toddlers, quiet areas for just sitting and relaxing, excellent access for the disabled and, with hard work from the volunteers, will continue to be an outstanding success. We will also continue to participate in the annual Baildon in Bloom event and the annual Scarecrow festival. Find out more about Hall Cliffe Community Garden by visiting their website. We are currently looking for more Community Profiles, so if your group has done something you'd like to share with others please email community@green-space.org.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. |
