Knights Gardens Management Plan
Knights Gardens
Management Plan 2014 – 2018
Green Spaces Team - London Borough of Hillingdon
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Contents
Page Number
1. Introduction to Knights Gardens 3
2. Plan of Knights Gardens 6
3. Visions for Knights Gardens 10
4. Aims and objectives 10
5. Main management operations 17
6. New management actions 19
Appendix 1: Introduction to the London Borough of Hillingdon 22
Appendix 2: Green Spaces Team Structure 24
Appendix 3: Summary of Grounds Maintenance 25
Appendix 4: Marketing 25
Appendix 5: Tree Survey 2013 26
Appendix 6: Species list of plants etc 34
Appendix 7: Miscellaneous 35
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1. Introduction to Knights Gardens
Title Details
Name: Knights Gardens Uxbridge Road/Hewens Road Hayes End Middlesex
Telephone: 01895 556000 www.hillingdon.gov.uk
Ownership: London Borough of Hillingdon
Site contact (and author of this Management Plan on behalf of the Green Spaces Team): Jamie Bell
Area: 1.6 Hectares
Status: Urban Park (Pocket Park)
Byelaws: The local byelaws for parks and open spaces apply to this site.
Location and description
Knights Gardens acquired its name from Mr Knight of Knights nurseries which up until recently still traded as Knights Florists which was situated at the western side of the park. This site has since been sold to developers and a block of apartments now stands in its place. Mr Knight sold the Land to the London Borough of Hillingdon in September 1955, for the sum of seven thousand one hundred and fifty seven pounds two shillings and eleven pence.
Knights Gardens is Located on the North East side of the Uxbridge Road and South West side of Hewens Road , Hayes End. It is in the southern part of the London Borough of Hillingdon, The closest major towns are Hayes (about 2miles), Hounslow (7miles) and Uxbridge (3miles).
Knights Gardens is a medium-sized urban pocket park offering relaxation and recreation. It contains several dozen trees, shrubs & a hedgerow.
The main entrance is on The Uxbridge Road, on the southern side of the park. To the North is Hewens Road, where there are two other entrances. Also to the north is Hewens College,
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Access
Most users of Knights Gardens are local residents who walk to the park and school children who walk through to Hewens College. Pedestrian entrances are offered at Uxbridge Road, and Hewens Road.
Road access is superb; Uxbridge Road links from the A40 (Uxbridge Junction) through to the A412 & M4 (Hayes By-Pass) and from Heathrow Airport. Parking is restricted on the Uxbridge Road side of the park, however the North entrance in Hewens Road, is unrestricted.
Bus route 427 (between Uxbridge through to Shepherds Bush, stopping at Hillingdon and Hayes) stops directly outside Knights Gardens on the Uxbridge road entrance next to the car showroom. The nearest railway stations are Hayes and Harlington (National Rail), which is about 2miles and Uxbridge tube station about 3miles .
Present use of Knights Gardens
Knights Gardens is a small urban pocket park used predominantly by people who live locally or who use Hewens College., there are open areas that can be used for picnics and quiet relaxation away from the busy road, and a small section where wildlife thrives. There are good pathway links through the park that can be used by all.
Management Arrangements
The site is managed by the Green Spaces team at the London Borough of Hillingdon, and maintained regularly by the grounds maintenance team and via contractors on an ad-hoc basis.
Regular work: the grass is cut every 2-3 weeks between March and November inclusive. The hedge running alongside the car showroom is pruned once a year, in the autumn. Other growing features are managed as necessary, according to good horticultural and arboricultural practice.
Enhancement works and projects are also led by the Green Spaces Officer in partnership with members of the public, local politicians, contractors, other members of the Green Spaces Team and other groups as appropriate.
Interested parties
Local Member of Parliament Sir John Randall
Local ward councillors (Hillingdon East) Pat Jackson, Wayne Bridges, Tim Barker
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2. Plan of Knights Gardens (highlighted in red, showing its location within the surrounding area)
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These views show improvements to pathways where desire lines used to be; now a tarmac path exists to make the park accessible to all.
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These views show the fencing improvements from the old wooden post & rail, to the new ornate railings and entrance archways .
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3. Visions for Knights Gardens
Our vision for Knights Gardens is to maintain it as a public open space and recreation ground by the people of Hillingdon and its visitors
1. Design the ground maintenance specification to suits the needs of the area 2. Ensure that the pocket park is accessible for everyone to enjoy; 3. Maintain and enhance the existing facilities; 4. Encourage a close working relationship with local groups to create a genuine sense of ownership and involvement in the open space.
4. Aims and objectives
1. A welcoming site. 2. Healthy, safe and secure. 3. Clean and well maintained. 4. Sustainable management of resources. 5. Management of conservation and heritage features. 6. Community involvement. 7. Marketing. 8. Management strategies.
These aims and objectives form the basis for the main management operations on the site, and will provide a foundation for projects and development in the five-year period of the Management Plan.
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A welcoming site
“The overall impression for any member of the community approaching and entering the park should be positive and inviting”.
The situation of the park from the main road makes it inviting to visitors, and it is also quite prominent in the landscape. Its open aspect provides views over the main road and allows people to walk freely around it to escape the busy traffic. There is a variety of features to welcome all visitors. The open areas are suitable for picnics, informal play etc.
The sign above welcomes people to the park; the main entrance is nearby.
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Healthy, safe and secure
‘The park must be a healthy, safe and secure place for all members of the community to use’ (ISPAL).
The site lends itself well to promoting a healthy lifestyle. It offers areas for walking, exercise and relaxation, and is popular with dog walkers. The boundaries of the park are robust and secure, with well maintained hedges, fences and bollards. .
The perimeter of the Park is secure from vehicular intrusion
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Clean and well maintained
‘For aesthetic as well as health and safety reasons issues of cleanliness and maintenance must be adequately addressed’ (ISPAL).
Knights Gardens is a popular site. The borough’s grounds maintenance team maintains the growing features. Work is carried out in line with a flexible maintenance specification that varies according to local conditions and weather. The Park is litter-picked once a week. A more rapid or frequent response to individual problems can be arranged if necessary. There is one dog-waste bin, which is emptied once a week by a specialist waste contractor. Arrangements are in place with fencing contractors to deal quickly with any problems that may arise with the, fences and gates.
The Park is tidy and maintained to a suitably high standard
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Sustainable management of resources
‘Methods used in maintaining the park should be environmentally sound’ (ISPAL).
The London Borough of Hillingdon recognises the need to minimise adverse impact on the environment, and agrees with the principles of waste minimisation as defined in Local Agenda 21. LBH actively pursues ways of delivering sustainable development, and ensuring environmental sustainability is a vital part of this. The Council has signed up to the peat charter, and discourages the use of peat-based products in its horticultural work. All green waste created by maintenance and horticultural operations is taken to the borough’s Green Waste facility for recycling at New Year’s Green Lane in Harefield. Tree trimmings are also recycled by the boroughs term tree maintenance contractor. The litter collected from the site is not sorted and therefore not recycled. However there is a facility in the borough for recycling, at New Years Green Lane, where the borough’s main amenity site is situated. Information on recycling in Hillingdon can be found on the LBH web-pages.
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Management of conservation and heritage features
‘Particular attention should be paid to the conservation and appropriate management of natural features, wildlife and fauna, landscape features, buildings and structural features’ (ISPAL).
Conservation of the heritage of the site involves conservation of its purpose, as public open space. It is for this reason that we are committed to attracting people to use the meadow, as explained in our vision for the site. An assessment of the trees in the park will be carried out to produce a schedule of works to ensure that the tree stock is in optimum condition. There are 35 trees, of which 7 have been planted recently (2011- 2012). We plan to create a wildlife meadow area to the Northern side of the park which is set out in our new management actions. We hope this will encourage more wildlife to the park. A more detailed survey is planned for 2013-2014.
Picture of proposed area for wild flower meadow.
A wild flower meadow will be created near the entrance to the park in Hewens Road.
There is a beech hedge bordering the eastern side of the path, which is maintained in accordance with our grounds maintenance programme (generally cut once a year in the autumn).
There are three large shrub beds which are maintained monthly during the spring, summer and autumn to ensure that they remain attractive and predominantly free of weeds.
A full list of species can be found in Appendix 6
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Community involvement
‘Management should actively pursue the involvement of members of the community who represent as many of the park user groups as possible’ (ISPAL).
The park is well used by the local community. It is an important cut-through for schoolchildren going to and from school, many of whom use the park for lunchtime and after-school relaxation and informal games. It is also popular with families for low-key relaxation. It is hoped to use the park in the future for Christmas carol concerts in association with Hewens College, which is close by. Knights Gardens is also popular with dog walkers. There is currently no formal user-group or Friends group involved with Knights Gardens, although we are keen to establish one in conjunction with ward councillor and local resident Pat Jackson, who is passionate about the appropriate use and development of the park.
Marketing
In order that the local community and general park users are aware of what is going on at Knights gardens, it is desirable for information to be provided. The site is quite small and there is very limited opportunity for formal events, so the marketing strategy will reflect this. It is hoped that the park will be marketed to ensure that the site is used in appropriate ways by the community and local schools.
Management strategies
‘A Green Flag Park must have a management plan or strategy in place which reflects the aspirations of agenda 21 and clearly and adequately addresses all the above criteria’ (ISPAL).
Objectives have been outlined and management operations are designed to achieve them. Regular maintenance is carried out by reputable, well-established contractors who have demonstrated an ability and capacity to deliver a good and reliable service. The London Borough of Hillingdon has a strong management team that works closely with the contractor’s managers, producing a fruitful working relationship.
The management strategy has been developed using the valuable input of all parties. A key element of this is the Partnering Board, which seeks to improve services through regular dialogue between council officers, residents, politicians, contractors and user groups.
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The London Borough of Hillingdon also provides a range of opportunities for comments – good and bad – to be submitted. The Hillingdon Contact Centre is the focus for these comments, which can be made by telephone, by letter, via e-mail, in person or through the LBH website. Comments are officially registered and passed on to the relevant party for investigation and action.
The Green Flag assessment process itself also ensures further enhancement. It is a useful means for reviewing the management of Knights Gardens and is used to encourage new thinking and to guide dynamic and adaptable management.
It is most important that we are seen to ‘practice what we preach’ and maintain high standards of sustainable management that demonstrate our awareness of environmental, conservation and resource issues. We therefore seek to actively research and promote new initiatives in the field of sustainable resource management. The London Borough of Hillingdon recognises and agrees with the principles of waste minimisation as defined in Local Agenda 21 and actively pursues ways of delivering sustainable development. The council has signed up to the peat charter, and discourages the use of peat-based products in its horticultural work.
Objectives
1. Encourage the use of physical or cultural forms of weed control. 2. Carry out regular reviews of all management operations and projects. 3. Identify potential sources of appropriate funding.
5. Main management operations
A welcoming park
Knights Gardens has a welcoming and friendly feel, enhanced by the variety of people who use it.
Health, safe and security
Litter is normally removed once a week, although additional accumulations of litter, broken glass, graffiti etc are dealt with on a responsive basis (normally on the day that the problem is reported, and often within a few minutes).
We carry out maintenance of the boundaries and access points - including the hedges, fences, bollards and gates – to ensure that the park remains welcoming to all visitors.
Health and safety policies will continue to be implemented on site and will be reviewed and revised as necessary.
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Users of the park are made aware of the relevant byelaws at appropriate times (either by reference in signage or by face-to-face education).
We will continue to encourage users to value the park.
Co-operation between the Green Spaces Officer, the Anti-Social Behaviour Team, police, businesses, schools and the local community is extremely important in tackling crime and anti-social behaviour.
Cleanliness and maintenance
We will continue with current maintenance arrangements, but we will review them regularly to ensure that they are appropriate, and make changes to the regimes and frequencies if necessary.
We welcome the involvement of the local community and their organised groups. A whole host of mutual benefits have been gained from the regular, friendly and fruitful dialogue that exists between council officers and local people. Sometimes this may mean no more than a simple phone call to advise the council of a problem,
By carrying through a programme of improvements on the meadow, the council will raise the aspirations of local people, generate interest, and facilitate involvement in the management of the park.
Sustainable management of resources
We will continue to promote waste minimisation. Grass cuttings and “arisings” from pruning are composted within the borough for re-use as soil conditioners and/or soil ameliorants.
We promote alternatives to weed-killers wherever appropriate, such as manual removal of weeds.
We try our utmost to use our resources efficiently and effectively.
We will develop and promote resource conservation and sustainable development.
Appropriate management of conservation and heritage features.
A schedule of tree works will be produced to reflect the outcomes of the tree survey as shown in Appendix 5. We intend to create a wild flower meadow near the Hewens Road entrance, initially with a golden coreopsis mix.
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Encourage community involvement.
We will facilitate the establishment of a Friends group in which local people will be encouraged to organise themselves in a group that cares for Knights gardens, offers practical help, and works alongside the council and other agencies to maintain high standards and recommend improvements.
Ensure effective marketing of the facility.
We are considering interpretative materials for the park such as one that describes the wildlife that may be seen. Knights Gardens needs to be better promoted as a community resource. The Green Spaces Team will continue to explore the possibility of suitable low-key events for local people including the adjacent school.
Implement effective management strategies.
Although we currently use chemical, we will encourage the use of cultural forms of weed control.
We will continue to recycle and re-use organic matter generated on site for soil- ameliorants; mulches etc.
We will carry out regular reviews of all management operations and projects.
The mechanisms of service delivery will be monitored and reviewed as necessary, to ensure the highest possible level of service delivery at a local level.
Potential sources of funding will be frequently explored to improve the infrastructure and maintenance of the park.
6. New management actions
Project: Information Board/sign
Summary: To install an information board or sign
Rationale: To promote the site and provide information
Constraints: None
Who will do Contractors it?
Budget TBC Estimate:
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Project: Conservation improvements
Summary: Create an area of wildflower meadow
Rationale: To improve biodiversity and promote a more natural appearance.
Constraints: None
Who will do Grounds maintenance team it?
Budget £200 Estimate:
Status In process
Project: New benches
Summary: To install new benches
Rationale: The site requires more benches for people to be bale to use when visiting the site
Constraints: None
Who will do Council contractors it?
Budget £2000 Estimate:
Status In process
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7. Appendices
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Appendix 1: Introduction to the London Borough of Hillingdon
Description Hillingdon, situated on the western edge of Greater London, is the second largest London borough, covering a total area of about 42 square miles. It is just 14 miles from central London and bounded by the counties of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Surrey and the London Boroughs of Hounslow, Ealing and Harrow.
Hillingdon is home to Heathrow, the world's busiest airport which caters for more than 60 million passengers a year.
The borough has eight leisure centres and 2 swimming pools, 17 libraries, three theatres and over 170 green spaces including Ruislip Woods Natural Nature Reserve and Lido.
History The London Borough of Hillingdon was one of the 32 London Boroughs created by the London Government Act 1963. It was formed by the amalgamation of the Borough of Uxbridge and the Urban Districts of Hayes and Harlington, Ruislip/Northwood and Yiewsley and West Drayton.
The new borough came into existence on 1 April 1965 when the new council started work. As well as taking on the work of the four previous district authorities the council became responsible for local services such as education, libraries and children's services. These had previously been run by the Middlesex County Council, which ceased to exist on 1 April 1965.
Workforce The council employs approximately 3,359 staff.
People Hillingdon has a population of 273,936 according to the 2011 Census There is a growing proportion of young people, particularly school-age children. Around 39.4% of the borough's residents are from ethnic minority groups (mainly Indian, Pakistani, other Asian and Black Caribbean). There is an active voluntary sector, and a wide variety of community groups, tenants' and residents' associations.
Leisure
Hillingdon is rich in wildlife and wildlife habitat including waterways, lakes, meadows and nature reserves. Ruislip Woods have been designated London's first National Nature Reserve, while nearby Ruislip Lido boasts 40 acres of water. The borough
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also offers a host of sporting activities, including six sports centres, many with newly refurbished gyms, and four exceptional 18-hole golf courses, including a championship standard course at Stockley Park. The arts and entertainment thrive, with The Beck professional theatre in Hayes, the Compass Theatre, Ickenham, the Winston Churchill Theatre in Ruislip and various other venues. There is a major shopping centre, The Chimes, in Uxbridge.
The Residents Services Group
Residents Services Group of the London Borough of Hillingdon has the responsibility for the environmental development and sustainability of Hillingdon’s Green Spaces. Within this Group, the Green Spaces Team oversees the management and development of all public green spaces within the London Borough of Hillingdon, which include parks, allotments, sports pitches and woodlands. Amongst other responsibilities, it provides events and promotes outdoor activities in the borough’s parks and other green spaces.
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Appendix 2: Green Spaces Team Structure (January 2014)
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Appendix 3: Summary of Grounds Maintenance
The area of amenity grass is normally cut every 2-3 weeks between March and November inclusive. Grass cutting is sometimes accompanied by strimming to ensure that bollards and furniture remain free from overgrowing grass. During the spring, care is taken to ensure that areas of bulbs are avoided and allowed to naturalise without cutting for six weeks after flowering.
The hedges along the northern side need to be managed regularly to ensure the safety of passing pedestrians. They are normally pruned once a year, in the autumn along with the shrub beds.
Although it is our policy to minimise the usage of herbicide in our public open spaces, herbicide is used at Knights Gardens (generally three times a year) to keep weeds under control around bollards and other obstructions.
A maintenance plan for the trees at Knights gardens will be drawn up when the trees are surveyed in more detail. This survey will identify what type of maintenance is recommended for each individual tree, and for the site as a whole.
Frequencies and timings are occasionally subject to change, according to local conditions, the weather, and agreement with stakeholders and contractors.
Appendix 4: Marketing
Knights Gardens lies in the Hillingdon East ward, surrounded by other open spaces, housing, and a school.
The key market segments for Knights Gardens are its immediate neighbours; people living within walking distance; local schools and community groups, and people living in the area with local history or conservation interests.
Contact with residents over the age of 65 promotes Knights Gardens and ensures feedback is obtained from potentially less mobile users. Similarly, liaison with younger users is important to encourage responsible behaviour and engender a long-standing, positive relationship between the community and the open space. With this in mind, local schools are encouraged to get involved with projects relating to the park to aid understanding, appreciation and awareness.
Green Flag standards are explained to users and neighbours whenever appropriate, to help raise the profile and understanding of Knights Gardens and the Green Flag Award scheme itself.
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Appendix 5: Tree Survey 2013
Key to survey
Species BS 5837 2012 Tree/Group No. (Common) DBH band Age Class Catorgory Work Priority Notes Any arboriculture The Diameter at Breast Age is Categorisatio work deemed Height (1.5m) of the relevant to n of the trees necessary for Any relevant trunk. In 20cm the species as set out in Health and The approximate comments about Commonly increments, as used in and is not BS 5837 2012 Safety, timescale for any the trees' used name LBH's Tree section's defined in Table 1 (see Nuisance or necessary work to conditions or their G = Group in English Schedule of Rates. set years. attachment). good practice. take place. surroundings. Urgent = Sap = Immediately to one H = Hedge Sapling week. S = Shrub (not High = One week to usually included) Y = Young six months. Medium = Six SM = Semi months to two T = Tree Mature years. Low = Two years M = Mature plus. LM = Late Mature A/V = Ancient and / or Veteran
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Tree/Group Species DBH Age BS 5837 Crown No. (Common) band Class Catagory spread Work Priority Notes Minor deadwood. Silver 20- Broken T1 Birch 40cm M 10 B3 No Work NA branches. Apple Remove T2 ''Rudolph'' <20cm Sapling 1 C1 stakes L C. 20 x multi stemmed trees. Maintained H3 Beech <20cm SM 3 C2 No Work NA hedge. Remove T4 Cherry <20cm Sapling 1 C1 stakes L Remove and T5 Cherry <20cm Sapling 1 U replace H Dying
T6 Cherry <20cm Sapling 1 C1 Restake H
T7 Cherry <20cm Sapling 2 C1 Restake H Poor condition.
T8 Cherry <20cm Sapling 3 C1 Restake H Basal decay. Kanzan Unbalanced T9 Cherry <20cm M 3 C1 No Work NA crown.
T10 Cherry <20cm Sapling 1 C1 Restake H
T11 Cherry <20cm Sapling 1 C1 Restake H Short remaining contribution. Consider removal. Bark necrosis. Bleeding Horse 20- cankers. Trunk T12 Chestnut 40cm SM 7 C1/U No Work NA decay. 1 x Measurements Tamarix, 5 are averaged. G13 x <20cm M 5 C2 No Work NA Multi
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Laburnum, stemmed. various shrubs 20- Mulit stemmed T14 Hornbeam 40cm SM 8 B2 No Work NA at c. 0.5m. Twin leaders. Minor included bark. Minor Bird 20- Crown lift lean. Exposed T15 Cherry 40cm M 9 C2 to 2.5m M roots. Minor 40- deadwood. T16 Ash 60cm M 12 B1 No Work NA Low vigour. 20- T17 Hornbeam 40cm SM 11 B12 No Work NA Exposed roots. 20- Poor structure. T18 Hornbeam 40cm SM 9 B2 No Work NA Twin leaders. Twin stems. Basal Silk Tassel 2 x epicormic S19 Bush <20cm M 7 NA No Work NA growth. Twin leaders at c. 1m. Minor 20- included bark. T20 Hornbeam 40cm SM 8 B2 No Work NA Exposed roots. Large pruning 20- wounds on T21 Hornbeam 40cm SM 11 B2 No Work NA trunk. 1 x Twin stems. <20cm, Minor 1 x 20- unbalanced T22 Sycamore 40cm SM 7 C1 No Work NA crown. 4 x Crown lift S23 Firethorn <20cm M 8 NA to 2.5m M 20- Minor bark T24 Sycamore 40cm SM 6 C1 No Work NA wound. Bark necrosis. Fell and Trunk decay. Grind (x 6 Deadwood. units in Short Horse 40- soft remaining T25 Chestnut 60cm SM 9 U lanscaping) M contribution. Exposed roots. Minor compaction. Poor structure. Norway 40- Minor T26 Maple 60cm M 12 B1 No Work NA deadwood.
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Horse Chestnut - as Horse T25. Mulit chestunut stemmed. - as T25. Regrown 1 x Horse Ring ivy. coppice. Chestnut, Cut back Measurements 6 x 20- property are an average G27 Sycamore 40cm M 8 B2 side by 2m M of the group. Horse chestnut - larger than 1 x Horse group average, Chestnut, bleeding 2 x Beech, cankers. 3 x Measurements Lawson's are an average Cypress, of the group. various 20- Provides good G28 shrubs 40cm SM/M 10 B2 No Work NA screening. 60- T29 Red Oak 80cm M 22 A1 No Work NA Compaction. Exposed roots with minor Silver 60- Crown lift damage. T30 Maple 80cm M 14 A2 to 2.5m L Compaction. Twin leaders at c. 0.5m. Included bark. Crown lift Minor to 3m over deadwood. Wild 40- access High habitat T31 Cherry 60cm M 15 B1 road M value. Minor lean. Silver 20- Unbalanced T32 Birch 40cm SM 5 C1 No Work NA crown.
T33 Pear <20cm SM 6 C1 No Work NA 20- Crown lift Minor trunk T34 Pear 40cm M 10 C1 to 2.5m M decay. Minor deadwood. Visually prominent. Broken branch. Exposed roots. High habitat value. Minor 60- disturbance to T35 Ash 80cm M 15 A2 Mulch M access road.
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Minor deadwood. Visually prominent. Broken branch. Exposed roots. High habitat value. Minor 40- disturbance to T36 Ash 60cm M 12 A2 Mulch M access road. Highly visible. Good condition. 60- Good example T37 Red Oak 80cm M 20 A12 Mulch M of the species.
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BS 5837 Category
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Map of tree/ group number
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Tree Officer notes:
Mild compaction around the base of the trees on the South Western boundary with Uxbridge Road. Mulching would be beneficial. Line of mature trees, mainly Horse Chestnut, outside of the Park boundary along Uxbridge Road. Several new plantings, generally in poor condition or dead. They should be replaced where applicable. Generally, trees are in reasonable condition. Little or no vandalism. Two exceptionally good quality Red Oaks. T35, T36 and T37 are highly visible and provide good screening. More planting and along the North Western boundary (near T24) to screen new building would be beneficial. Good mix of age and size classes. Good amount of native species.
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Appendix 6: Species list of plants, butterflies, bees and birds
Plants Daisy Dandelion Clover Thistle Cow parsley Cleavers Buttercup Dead nettle Ground Ivy Herb Robert Garlic mustard Nettles Dock Broad Leaved plantain Variagated Ivy Bluebells Daffodils
Butterflies Peacock Small white Holly Blue Small Tortoiseshell
Bees Various Bee and Hover fly species
Birds Ring necked parakeet Robin Goldfinch Starling Pigeon Great Tits Sparrow Green Woodpecker
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Appendix 7 Miscellaneous
Commitment to Green Flags
Hillingdon’s commitment to achieving many Green Flag sites is demonstrated by this page from the council’s website, added in July 2012
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Knights Gardens was entered into the London in Bloom Awards 2013 for the Small Park category and achieved a Silver Gilt award, the judges comments/feedback is below.
“Championed by a local Councillor this park shows the signs of having been very much improved in recent years with bespoke entrance signs and a new path to replace desire line.
Local residents use the park for local informal events and this should be encouraged as it suits the site.
One section of tarmac path could do with resurfacing and there is a bin that does not match the others in the park.
Apart from this the only other improvements the judge could consider were to think about encouraging wildlife/biodiversity with bird feeders/meadow areas.
A bench in the shade looking into the park would also be good.
That said care must be taken in not adding too much and making the park to busy”.
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