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Green spaces review
recommends City sets up a Parks Trust
A Parks Trust should be set up to
safeguard the future of Liverpool's parks and green spaces, a new report
recommends. The Strategic Green and Open Spaces Review Board was set up by the
Mayor of Liverpool, Joe Anderson, to investigate alternative funding
arrangements for green spaces in light of continuing cuts in Government funding.
The review started in January 2015 and included public meetings and stakeholder
workshops; reviewing information and submissions to the Board's website;
surveying and mapping 1253 green and open spaces across the City and meeting
with a range of key local, regional and national organisations to gather
evidence, research best practice and consider alternative financial and
operational models for green spaces.
An interim report was then published in December 2015.
As well as financial issues the review looked at the contribution of green and
open spaces to health and wellbeing; the opportunities they offer for education
and the resilience they provide to future environmental challenges. The
report can be read in full now
online.
Among the main recommendations in the review's final
report are:-
► The setting up of a Parks Trust should be
explored. This would maintain, preserve and enhance parks and green spaces which
would remain in the City Council's ownership. If a trust was established it
would free the open spaces from financial constraints the City Council faces. It is suggested that
clusters, each containing a large park and other green spaces, could be
established under a single Charitable Federal Parks Trust
► Revenue generated by assets within the parks should be ring-fenced for future
maintenance of them
► External funding sources should be used to
attract the capital and investment needed in green spaces. An application to bid
for Heritage Lottery funding of between £100,000 and £250,000 to build capacity,
achieve significant strategic change and develop a new framework for parks
should be considered. The report also endorses the City Council's recent work to develop an EU horizon funding
bid which could attract funding support for research and investment in
developing green corridors in urban City locations.
► A proposed 'Green Web' – a network of linking green corridors, should be taken
forward in the 'Local Plan' and a number of projects should be explored and
fast tracked.
The Board was chaired by actor, TV presenter and environmentalist Simon O'Brien.
He said:- "The release of the final report concludes a fascinating journey
of discovery for me around a City I love. This unique, independent review will,
I sincerely hope, help the City Of Liverpool continue to maintain and enhance
its incredible un-built environment. It has been drawn up with three questions
constantly running through my mind. How do we look after our precious green
spaces as Central Government ruthlessly slashes local Council budgets? How do we
better protect our public parks and wild areas? How do we better use these
amazing places in the future? I hope that the final report is not the end but
the start of a journey which can answer these questions. This is not a local
issue, this is a subject of national importance and Liverpool can, as it has so
many times in the past, lead the way on into the 21st century. I have met people
whose wish is to walk on water, some who take horseplay seriously and others who
dream of flying over the City on a green carpet. Just some of the many voices in
the final report of the Strategic Green and Open Spaces Review."
Mayor Anderson said:- "This report is an extremely valuable contribution
on how we address the challenges facing us on our green spaces. Liverpool is
extremely well served by the number and quality of parks and open spaces and
they are highly valued by the public. However, maintaining them comes at a high
cost and as the Government intends to reduce its funding by another £90m by 2020
we have to find different ways of doing things. I asked Simon and the other
board members to look at how we can fund our parks in the future and make the
best use of them; it is a review independent of the City Council. The
review sets out a number of possibilities including exploring the Parks Trust
model. It is a very interesting option to meet the challenge how our parks and
green spaces can not only be maintained but improved and it is a proposal we
will actively consider. The interim report contained many interesting ideas and
we have already taken forward some of the proposals. For example, we are using
£1m of funding from developers to invest in refurbishment and provision of play
areas, we have launched a new Environmental Initiative Fund and identified a
site for a new park in Kirkdale. Now we have this final report which is the 1st
major report of my 2nd term of office and we will look to see how the Council
can take its findings forward over the next 4 years. I would like to thank Simon
and the other Board members for producing such a thorough and thought-provoking
report."
In total the report contains 38 recommendations. Other
proposals include:-
► Maintenance of the City's green and open spaces should be reduced to 50% to
70% of its current levels if transitional funding cannot be secured before
2017/8 until a sustainable form of financing becomes available.
► A review of the commercial opportunities for the
City's green and open spaces
be undertaken to identify sites where activities and/or businesses can be
promoted to increase revenue.
► All commercial for-profit events held in the
City's green spaces are charged
appropriate licensing fees that cover the reinstatement costs and make a
financial contribution to ongoing site maintenance.
► A 'Green and Open Spaces
Ambassadors Programme'
should be created.
► A series of interventions to make more effective and visible links between the
City's green and open spaces and improve the health of the City's population
should be introduced.
► The City Council should work with partners to identify and energise
'A Forest School For Every School' starting with the newly created public
woodland, at Woolton Woods being developed as a Forest School. |
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Charity seeking hundreds of
"heroes against hunger" this Christmas
FOOD redistribution charity, 'FareShare
Merseyside' are searching for hundreds of "heroes against hunger" to
volunteer for 3 hours during the next Neighbourhood Food Collection, which
takes place at Tesco stores across the UK, from Thursday, 1 December 2016 to Saturday,
3 December 2016.
Volunteers will spread Christmas cheer as they encourage shoppers to donate 1
or 2 long life items such as packets of pasta, boxes of breakfast cereal, and
tins of tomatoes. FareShare will redistribute the donated food to local
charities including homeless shelters, children's breakfast clubs, women's
refuges, and older people's lunch clubs, alongside a wide range of fresh produce
that it receives from the food and drink industry.
Mark Hall, Development Manager at FareShare Merseyside, says:- "You don't
need any special skills or superpowers to be a hero against hunger this
Christmas, you just need to stand in your local supermarket for a few hours,
chat to shoppers and encourage them to give a little something if they can. In
just three hours, you could collect enough tins, cans and packets to provide 500
meals for people in need, so it's a quick and easy way to make a practical
difference, and it can be a lot of fun too, especially if you round up your
friends, family, colleagues, neighbours, members of your book group… the more
the merrier!"
Tesco stores collecting food donations on be½ of FareShare during the
Neighbourhood Food Collection include: Edge Hill Metro, Aigburgh Metro,
Liverpool Metro, Newton-Le-Willows, Haydock Church Road, Liverpool One, St
Helens Metro, Walton Liverpool Metro.
Other Tesco stores will be collecting food donations for food bank charity, The
Trussell Trust.
During the last Neighbourhood Food Collection, held in July, Tesco shoppers
donated enough food to provide 2.8 million meals for hungry and vulnerable
people across the UK.
People interested in volunteering for the event can sign up either as an
individual or as a team
online.
Calling all craft lovers!
NOW that autumn is upon us and the evenings are going
longer, it's a great opportunity to try out new crafts and hobbies or to
re-ignite an existing interest. Port Sunlight Village Trust are excited to be
hosting a series of artist led craft workshops for adults in the atmospheric
setting of Bridge Cottage, the home of William H Lever, the village founder.
The 1st of the series will held be on Sunday, 16 October 2016, from 1.30pm to 4.30pm with Gina
Couch, who will be running a crochet workshop. Gina is an experienced crochet
teacher and this workshop is ideal for a complete beginner or someone who would
like to refresh their crochet skills. The workshop will include basic techniques
such as how to hold the hook and yarn and how to make basic crochet stitches,
which will be used to create a decorative coaster. An ideal starting point for
anyone interested in taking up this relaxing craft or keen to move their skill
on to new crochet patterns and designs.
Port Sunlight Village Trust's November workshop will be hosted by Rachel Brewster of Little Vintage
Photography, on Thursday, 17 November 2016, from 1.30pm to 4.30pm. 'Intro to Analogue'
is a chance to re-visit a forgotten craft and join Rachel on a mini photowalk in
Port Sunlight. Working in pairs and using a selection of traditional analogue
cameras and processes, participants will shoot a roll of black and white film and
hand develop the negatives to take home.
If you'd like to buy an unusual gift for Christmas, the Port Sunlight Village
Trust are running 2 workshops at the start of 2017 which would fit the bill
perfectly. On Thursday, 26
January 2016, they will be offering the chance to join artist Juliet Staines to create a
beautiful miniature textile, stitch and collage piece of artwork. Our final
workshop in this series will be led by Claire Bates, of Landbaby and Co, a talented
artist and Port Sunlight resident, on Saturday, 25 February 2016, join Claire to create
vintage inspired accessories, which will be an eye catching addition to any
outfit.
All our workshops run from 1.30pm to 4.30pm at Bridge Cottage (23 Park Road, Port
Sunlight, CH62 4US) and include tea or coffee and locally hand baked cake. All the
equipment and materials are provided and you can take home your artwork at the
end of the workshop. These workshops would be lovely for a group of friends or
as a perfect gift for a crafty friend. Workshops cost £30 per person to attend.
Spaces are limited so booking is essential. Contact Port Sunlight Museum Gift
Shop on:- 0151 644 6466 or send them an
email.
Southport flats will remain closed in North
West's longest closure order
ON Thursday, 6 October 2016, following a hearing at South
Sefton Magistrates Court, an extension to a closure order that was granted, for
8 flats, on Talbot Street, Southport early this year (2016). The flats will now
remain in place until 8 January 2017. The orders were originally applied for in
July by the local Neighbourhood Policing team in response to community
intelligence in relation to the supply of drugs. Neighbourhood Inspector Graham
Fisher said:- "I am delighted that this order has been extended, which is
the biggest of its kind in the North West. We will continue to make every effort
to identify and take action against premises linked to drug supply, which can
have such a devastating effect on the lives of those living in the area. I would
encourage any members of the community who have any further information on drug
dealing and other crime to call us via the:- 101 number or through Crimestoppers
anonymously on:- 0800 555 111." |
