Is Ravenscourt Park the Best in the UK?
Vote for Hammersmith's 'precious community resource' to win national competition
Ravenscourt Park is seeking support as the UK’s Best Park in a nationwide competition organised by green space charity, Fields in Trust.
The Fields in Trust UK’s Best Park, 2019 is now open for a public vote.
A total of 364 public nominations for parks and green spaces across the UK have been made – including 44 in London - each one a much-loved part of its local community.
Now it is time to choose the winners via an online public vote which runs until noon on Monday 19 August.
The nominees for Ravenscourt Park said: "It's a precious community resource, with something for all ages. Ravenscourt Park has tennis courts, quiet spaces, sports pitches, spectacular trees, a lake with waterfowl, children's playgrounds, a Victorian viaduct, a paddling pool, a walled garden, archaeological sites and wild spaces. No wonder we all love it!"
Fields in Trust is a UK-wide charity that legally protects parks and green spaces in perpetuity. The UK’s Best Park Award recognises the role that parks play in our communities, supporting mental and physical health and bringing people together.
The charity is concerned that many parks and green spaces are under threat and are at risk of being lost to development or a cycle of decline and disappearance. Last month Fields in Trust published research which revealed that over 2.5 million people across Great Britain live more than ten-minutes’ walk from a park or green space, including over 10,500 people in London.
With public sector cuts leading to pressure on parks and green spaces, there is the risk that a lack of legal protection could lead to more being sold off or developed.
Fields in Trust Chief Executive Helen Griffiths said: "Our parks and green spaces are a vital part of UK community infrastructure. We know that they provide benefits to the physical health, mental wellbeing and community connections for people that use them, so we are delighted to see a record number of nominations for the UK’s Best Park award.
" Fields in Trust is committed to protecting these valuable and much-loved parks and green spaces for future generations to enjoy."
When the public vote closes, the park with the most votes in each of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland will be shortlisted, with the UK’s Best Park 2019 announced in mid-September.
July 19, 2019