Park BenchNews from around the London Parks
Queen's Park, Kilburn, winner of a 6th Civic Trust Green Flag for cleanliness, sustainability and contribution to the community £2.2m
HLF grant awarded to "Arcadia in the City"
project £2.2m HLF grant awarded to "Arcadia in the City" projectThe "Thames Landscape Strategy" is an ambitious multi-million pound project to restore the networks of vistas and avenues linking the historic landscapes along a 12-mile stretch of the Thames in south-west London, an area described by garden historian Mavis Batey as the cradle of English landscape gardening. It is supported by four councils, Hounlsow, Elmbridge, Kingston and Richmond and five public bodies, the Countryside Commission, English Heritage, English Nature, the Environment Agency and the Royal Parks Agency. As part of this project, "Arcadia in the City" is a £2.5m package of landscape, access and nature conservation enhancements on and below the brow of Richmond Hill. Local people have already been hard at work clearing away the vegetation along the tow path to free up the celebrated vistas of Ham House (on the Surrey bank) and Marble Hill House (on the Middlesex bank). On the 1st February 2003 it was announced that the TLS had been awarded a total of £2.2m for "Arcadia in the City" by the Heritage Lottery Fund with £1.8m to be used for project work on the ground and the remainder on architects fees, landscape architects and consultation. The strategy will regenerate and manage the many historic buildings, landscaped gardens, avenues and meadowlands along this stretch of the Thames and 122 projects are planned for the next four years.
£1 m Face Lift for Canons ParkA HERITAGE Lottery Fund award of more than £1 million to Harrow Council has kick-started the restoration and enhancement of Canons Park in Edgware. The first year of the four-year scheme will be spent on archaeological surveying, appointing contractors, and setting up a project group. Improvements planned include reopening the vista along Whitchurch Avenue, which runs from the original villa to St Lawrence's Church and Whitchurch Lane, restoring the park's listed temple and walled garden, both of which are on English Heritage's at-risk register, and replacing the ornate iron gates which were stolen. Harrow cabinet's portfolio holder for regeneration, Councillor Keith Burchill, said: "We have been given the opportunity not only to tackle an area that has been neglected for a few years, but also of working with the local community to bring the park back up to standard, making it something we can all be proud of." Lights on in Berkeley SquareBERKELEY SQUARE was recently purchased by a consortium of wealthy Middle Eastern investors who plan a £1bn project to restore and regenerate the square and surrounding area. In the square itself it is planned to invest up to £400,000 in tree lights and to install a concert stand and display more public art. First Floating Garden SquareLONDON IS to have its first floating garden square at Reed's Wharf, Mill Street SE1. It is the brainchild of architect Nicholas Lacey, who is using old PLA barges with a steel roof welded on top to carry 25 tonnes of topsoil. He has about 20 so far plus other boats are renting moorings. Diana "Moat" Moves AheadTHE MUCH-DEBATED £3m water feature to commemorate the life of Princess Diana, is moving slowly ahead. The site chosen is on the south side of the Serpentine in Hyde Park, on the grass slope between the car park and the Lido restaurant. Apart from archaeological investigation, nothing has happened on the ground yet. Artist's impressions released in December 2002 of the giant oval of water excited both praise and criticism. Kathryn Gustafson's controversial design consists of a ring-shaped stone fountain, the size of a football pitch. On one side water will bubble down a gentle slope, while on the other it will cascade down, before the two streams converge into a tranquil pool. Gustafson says the design reflects the contrasting joy and turmoil of the Princess's life while its critics continue to complain that the large "ditch" or "moat without a castle" is too static and unimaginative for a public memorial. Work on the 164 ft by 262 ft feature will begin next year and is expected to be finished by summer 2004. Where have all the Sparrows Gone?MAX NICHOLSON carried out his first survey of house sparrows in Kensington Gardens in 1925. That year he counted 2,603. This number had reduced to 885 in 1948 and 81 in 1995. Still going strong in 2000, at the age of 94, Mr Nicholson found there were only 8 sparrows left in 2002 and this spring he counted only four. The London Biodiversity Partnership, which includes the London Wildlife Trust and the London Natural History Society, is carrying out a major study of sparrows. Its house sparrow working group, which will publish its results in the autumn, hopes that geographical variations will help experts to understand the cause of the bird's decline. More details at: http:// www.lbp.org.uk/ New CEO for Heritage FundsCAROLE SOUTER has been appointed as Director of the National Heritage Memorial Fund (HLMF) and its lottery distribution arm, the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF). Souter, currently Director of Planning and Development at English Heritage, will join the Fund in April 2003. LGS Awards for WestminsterWESTMINSTER COUNCIL has won two awards from the London Gardens Society, gaining first place in both the Public Small Squares and Public Large Squares competitions. It is the first time in the six-year history of the awards that Westminster has won both prizes. The top prize for Public Small Square was awarded to Violet Hill Gardens, NW8 and the Public Large Squares award went to Mount Street Garden, W1. Both gardens scored strongly on visual impact with the judges as well as being well maintained and having a strong horticultural content. "Artists' Enclave" in PeckhamPECKHAM'S BELLENDEN Road area is being transformed as part of a regeneration programme by Southwark Council. Southwark has "poured millions into the area and commissioned local artists to beautify the streets with public art on a scale unmatched by any other London neighbourhood project". The area is now described as an undiscovered "artists' enclave of neat cafes and pretty squares". McDermott Park has been designed by TV gardener and celebrity Charlie Dimmock and includes a mock rococo arch by local Royal Academician Tom Phillips. Nearby the delightful cottage-style gardens of Choumart Square, a row of mews cottages, are open to the public annually. The streets are all a short walk from Peckham Rye station. Heritage Plants in ChiswickPLANS BY THE Community Initiative Partnership to develop a "heritage plant centre" in the grounds of Chiswick House, specialising in plants with historic connections to Chiswick, and requiring special growing conditions, have led local residents to raise concerns about parking and delivery access. Hounslow Council has referred the proposal back to the CIP to consult more extensively with English Heritage, The Garden History Society and the Friends of Chiswick House. Commendation for NewlandsTHE REFURBISHED NEWLANDS Park in Barking has won an award in recognition of its transformation as part of the A13 Artscape Project. The park was commended in the 2002 ILAM (institute of Leisure and Amenity Management) Open Space Management Awards. Created in the 1950s, the previously rundown park, the only open play area on the estate, now has separate play areas for young children and teenagers and has been landscaped with over 30 trees and shrubs and a scent garden. “This is fantastic news," said Cllr Geoff Porter. "Now the local community must make it their own and ensure the play equipment and planting is protected so that everyone can benefit." City Corporation Wins Five Green FlagsQUEEN'S PARK, Kilburn, has won its sixth Green Flag award, one of five Corporation of London parks to be so recognised in 2002. The full list of London winners is:
The Green Flag Award Application round for 2003 is now open. Application forms are available from the Civic Trust, tel: 0151 709 1969. The closing date is Friday 28 Feb. 2003. Comeback for Black PoplarCorporation of London staff are currently rearing carefully selected 2-year-old cuttings of the native black poplar to make a comeback at Highgate Wood, Hampstead Heath and Queen's Park, Kilburn. The black poplar is Britain's largest native tree and can grow to over 100ft tall and 60ft in diameter and features in many Constable paintings. |
News from the TrustSquares Day Funds ProjectsSINCE last summer, Duck Island Cottage has seen intense activity to prepare for London Garden Squares Day on Sunday June 8th 2003. This event not only highlights the contribution of London's private and public squares to the quality of the urban environment, but is also a major fundraising event for the Trust. Monies raised last year will contribute to funding a part-time education officer to work with teachers and children in schools. On behalf of the Trust, Council member Sarah Couch has applied to the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) for £50,000 to develop the existing Schools Discovery Project and to introduce it to schools in four London Boroughs. We are keeping our fingers crossed for a successful outcome. Last year the total income from ticket sales was nearly £13,000 fifty percent of which has been shared with participating squares. Profits from Squares Day 2003 will be used for publication of the Trust's London Inventory of Historic Green Spaces, the fruition of many years' work, most recently by our researcher, Sally Williams. Two Conferences for your DiaryAFTER two "dry" years, the Trust is organising two major conferences in 2003. In April 2003 A London Inventory of Historic Green Spaces, an important new resource, will be launched at Planning London's Green Spaces, a one-day conference to be held at the City of London Guildhall on Thursday April 10th, followed by a day of visits on Friday 11th April. The conference will interest local authority planners, conservation officers, practitioners and all involved in the planning, conservation, research and recording of London's designed landscapes and historic green open spaces. In September 2003 the Trust is hosting the annual residential conference for our 'umbrella' organisation, the Association of Gardens Trust (AGT). The 2003 conference will be held at St Mary's College, Strawberry Hill, Twickenham on the appropriate topic of Twickenhamshire. Speakers will include Mavis Batey, Michael Symes, Susannah Fleming and Chris Sumner; with visits to Richmond Hill, York House, Pope's Grotto, Garrick's Villa and many more riverside gardens. Twickenhamshire will run from the evening of Friday 5th to Sunday 7th September and includes the conference dinner in the Waldegrave dining room in Walpole's Strawberry Hill. On 5th September there will be workshops on (i) Funding and Fundraising and (ii) the Parks and Gardens Data Partnership (PGDP), the garden recording project recently funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund. The Trust is very keen to promote activities and events with other organisations, such as the AGT and the Garden History Society, with whom we are sharing visits to historic gardens in Essex. Details of all these events are included in our magazine, London Landscapes. Barbara Simms. |
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