Friends of Victoria Park first meeting
6:00pm- Monday 5th March
- Civic Centre,
Tannery Lane,TN23 1LP
Ashford Borough Council have secured initial funding to develop a £3.7m restoration and improvement project for Victoria Park and Watercress Fields, thanks to support from the National Lottery through the Heritage Lottery Fund and Big Lottery Fund. The Council are working with a number of specialists who will help us to undertake historic research about the park, explore ideas for activities, events, schools resources and training, as well as developing designs for restoration and improvement works.
As part of the project The Council are setting up a Friends of Victoria Park group. Please do come along to this first no commitment evening, you can find out more about what a friends group does and how you can get involved.
Dear sir or madam what a load off crap this is you say you got 3.7 million for the Victoria park where is that money have you had a good look at the park today 29th june it is a disgusting long grass every where has not has grass cut for at least two weeks or more i live right opposite it in jemmett road i have never seen this park so neglected i have lived here for about 15 years it is disgusting and find that money what was meant for the park not happy with this council we voted you in get it fixed thanking you D woodham
Douglas
Thank you for your comment.
Please allow us to firstly explain that it is not South Ashford Community Forum, an organisation independent of the Council, that have applied for or received any funding for Victoria Park.
The post does state that Ashford Borough Council received initial funding to develop the proposals; they have not received the funds to impliment them. If you followed this website you will have seen that a number of consultation events took place last summer which have lead to proposals being included in a bid to the National Lottery Heritage Fund for the funding for implimentation. The result of this bid is expected in late summer and, if successful, the agreement to proceed in September/October. It is unlikely that works will commence, in the Park, before next year.
We have to say that, despite your assertion that the Park is neglected, the maintenance has improved vastly since Ashford Borough Council’s in house landscape management organisation, Aspire, took over the maintenance from the, previously employed, external contractor. Considering that, due to the reduction in central government funding and pressure on funds from other priorities, many Councils are divesting themselves of their parks and open spaces, we are fortunate that Ashford Borough Council has included reference to parks and open spaces in two of the priorities in its current five year plan.
The Friends of Victoria Park are now fully constituted and are holding meetings at the Indoor Bowls Centre in the Park. Their next meeting will take place next Thursday, 4th July at 7.30pm. You are welcome to attend.