Newtown Amenity Space Strategy

NEWTOWN AMENITY SPACE STRATEGY

“Green space is a vital part of the public realm. Attractive, safe and accessible parks and green spaces contribute positive social, economic and environmental benefits, improving public health, well-being and quality of life.”1

“The standard of a local authority’s management and upkeep of the green spaces in its care is a very public indicator of its broader performance.

A piecemeal, reactive approach to providing and maintaining green space will deliver few, if any, benefits. High quality, well-used spaces are possible only if those responsible for their planning, management and improvement think strategically.”2

1.1 Introduction

1 Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment. (2004) Reprinted in 2006 by the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20110118095356/http:/www.cabe.org.uk/publications/green- space-strategies

2 ibid

1 Newtown Town Council is developing a strategy for its amenity space. This is to guide and inform its actions in developing and improving public access and engagement with the open spaces and amenity provision in the town.

The intention is to provide a framework that can be used to efficiently manage, maintain and enhance the amenity spaces available to the community of Newtown.

Responsibility for the amenity spaces is shared between the town council and Powys County Council, and is further shared within the county council by different departments. The river frontage is the responsibility of the canal and waterways trust. However this document considers the potential for the spaces from the town users experience.

This strategy is developed following guidance from the following Technical Advice Notes: 5 (Nature Conservation and Planning) 12 (Design) 16 (Sport, Recreation and Open Space).

It also considers prompts from the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE), guidance from Planning Policy Guidance 17: Planning for open space, sport and recreation, and discussion with stakeholders and community members. Furthermore it recognises the intentions of Welsh Government Environment Minister John Griffiths following his statement “…joint working with local authorities on the management of parks and other public green spaces…” on a Pollinator Action Plan. 3

This document is in 3 sections: 1. an analysis of the current situation,

2. opportunities for appropriate development, 3. how this might be achieved.

It is intended as a document to demonstrate intention, and to elicit response. Therefore it will be revisited and updated as appropriate.

1.2 Where we are:

Mapping the open space resource available to the population of Newtown illustrates that:

3 http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/2012/07/23/welsh-government-makes-a-beeline-for-action-plan-to- help-pollinators-91466-31450871/#ixzz2LcOG5m7c

2  Newtown boasts a significant quantity of green space amenity area, but this is predominantly for sports style recreation such as football pitches, or open grass areas such as the Park Grounds, and therefore limits the use for either community access, engagement or biodiversity.

 The Dolerw park is given over for informal public use, but again is mainly a swathe of grass with the associated problems as above.

 There are a number of small flower garden style planting areas within the town centre which are well maintained and present a high colour planting scheme, however these have little ongoing wildlife or pollinator value, and present little opportunity for town users to engage with this public park space.

 Pre school and young junior ages are well catered for with a number of playground areas, and there is an excellent skate board park for older young people. However there is no sense of cohesion or strategic planning in activity space provision and little opportunity for unstructured social play amongst this older age group. Also provision of the high quality skatepark has the potential to exclude other non skating youngsters. In addition although the skatepark is very usable and well built, there has been no work on providing a sense of place for the users. This may have implications for ownership and long term management.

 The Trehafren Hill, which sits between the Trehafren housing estate and the main road, is a 20+ acre site which despite being on the edge of a major residential area appears to be little used for recreation. There is a community orchard on the southern side.

 The Youth Centre at Maesyrhandir abuts a large green space area with a small number of trees planted. However this area has been fenced off, so is not available to the general public.

 The centrally located castle mound is well used as a recreation space for stump jumper style bicycles but there are concerns from CADW regarding this use, and subsequent ongoing lack of maintenance. No alternative provision, such as a bmx track, has been planned as an alternative to this resource.

 The space surrounding the Castle mound is used to accommodate dance troupes and such like during the carnival, but gets little or no use for the rest of the year. This is an area which at one time hosted the bandstand.

 There is an excellent Art Gallery and café on the town park edge, with outdoor seating space. However this looks across a flat green area with little to inspire, and is approached from one side by a multi user path which does not follow any clear desire line. Between this path and the car park is a wooden fence which

3 suffers from kicked off wooden panels, and there is no planting to soften the aspect, provide shade or habitat.

 The town is protected from the river by a flood defence earthwork, which prevents easy access to the river. However the one area which does provide an opportunity for riverside seating and access, which is adjacent to the post office, lacks pathways, interesting planting schemes or appropriate friendship stop style seating.

 There are benches adjacent to the river path between the Elephant and Castle and The Gravel Car Park, but these have fallen into disrepair, and are unusable.

 There is little in the way of public art or sculpture to provide a sense of culture or place. As an example, the Dolerw park at one time had an owl carved from a dead tree, and this was a popular meeting place for young people, as in “meet at the owl”. Likewise some tree trunks adjacent to the Oriel Gallery were friendship stop seating for young people who would be sheltered from the elements by virtue of tree cover, but these are now removed.

 There is provision of an all weather court adjacent to the Flying Shuttle public house, which is between the residential estates of Trehafre and Vaynor, known as the “trenor”. Also there is a wide area of tarmac adjacent to this site. The area appears unused and uninspiring. It does however hold a great potential for future amenity space development.

1.3 Where we can go:

4  Tree planting following the cycle lane through the playing fields and the pathway through the Dolerw Park. Tree planting between the Trehafren Hill and the football club, adjacent to the loose surface pathway.

 Tree planting and other green space improvements around the skateboard park, as an attempt to offset the carbon used in this concrete facility.

 Management plans for the pocket parks, and flower beds to include sustainable pollen rich planting and achieve maximum community engagement potential.

 Further youth focussed amenity provision, such as:

a. mountain bike track on the Trehafren Hill – An option for management of this open space may be to be party to a community asset transfer of the hill into town council control, then work with a user group to undertake management plans for the space.

b. naturalistic climbing pyramid on the town park, possibly where the railway track area is, as a means of enhancing this area and providing additional play resources. This would be a logical addition to the nearby infants play area, as it would allow for skill and independence progression.

c. ascertain ownership of the trenor space, and develop appropriate leisure infrastructure.

d. bmx circuit. Where this is sited is crucial. There needs to be an alternative to the skatepark, but if it is too close to the skatepark, the worry from users is that mud and stones will get dragged onto the park surface, as it has to be recognised that bmx-ers will take their bikes onto the skate park. One option may be to site it as part of a community art earthwork to the side of the castle mound. This could be a way of protecting the castle mound, providing a bmx facility on an edge of town site for user security, and an artbased earth sculpture / amphitheatre rolled into one. A second option would be to construct a bmx track as a redevelopment of the trenor site. e. consider the further development of the skatepark site. Ideas coming from current users are for skate-able seating, a graffiti wall and a weather sail park cover. Photo Voltaic lighting is also an option for consideration. Looking at other parks, the Newtown provision does lack a sense of place or individuality, in effect it doesn’t look finished. Also there is no sense of ownership or soul.

 Enter discussion with CADW about a forwards plan for the opening up and management of the castle mound. Bearing in mind the type of use the mound

5 currently receives, it seems to make sense that this is considered in line with bmx and mtb developments.

 Explore the potential for removal of the fence around the Youth Centre grass area, and return to community use as growing space and parkland

 Tree planting along side of main car park and multi user path, with short cut provision for the desire lines.

 Pathway to innovative seating area on the flood defence site and then on towards the Macdonalds fast food outlet, combined with planting scheme and seating.

 Replace the broken seating on flood defence path with themed benches.

 Trim Trail: These are becoming popular fitness trail enhancements, featuring various exercise stations sited around a jogging route. It would be possible to create such a route incorporating both the Trehafren Hill and the Dolerw Park, using the riverside trail as a linking corridor.

 Dialogue with Powys County Council senior arts officer regarding possible partners and funding opportunities regarding a public arts work, and appropriate placement.

 Ensure green space and tree cover as a green barrier between the proposed bypass and residential areas.

6 How to get there:

Newtown Town Council has responsibility for some of the areas mentioned above. The County Council through either the Outdoor Leisure and Recreation Department or the Highways Department has responsibility for other areas and the Canal and River trust for yet more areas. Clearly there is need for a cohesive approach to the amenity space available if the town council is to promote a strategic vision for improvements to the outdoor spaces available to the community.

It is hoped that this document goes some way towards promoting cohesion, by setting out an overarching agenda of action.

The council will draw up management plans for all the growing spaces in collaboration with its grounds staff. It will draw on local garden design experience to make the planting schemes and seating opportunities fit for the changing needs of the town. The council will support the development of an Open Space User Group. This can build on the personalities currently involved with the Skateboard Park, to widen out into management and fundraising for Trehafren Hill development, bmx trail, enhancements to the skatepark, the Trim Trail and potential Trenor redevelopment. It is hoped that this will promote community ownership and provide a platform for open communication. It would be anticipated that members would be drawn from the Town Council, County Council, Youth and Leisure Department, Housing Associations, as well as 3rd sector and community stakeholders. The anticipation is that as more resources are embedded within the community, there will be more community members who will make themselves available for the management and future development of this provision.

This will enable the County Council Outdoor Leisure and Recreation department and Youth Service, and Town Council to plan its work within a coherent overarching strategy which puts the community at the centre.

The Canal and River trust and the Town Council will be able to work together in promoting the river and Montgomeryshire canal as an integral asset to the town.

Eleanor Wright and Tom Chandler – Nov 2012

7 REFERENCES:

Open space strategies, best practice guidance. Published in 2009 by the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment and the Greater London Authority.

ISBN: 978-1-84633-022-3 Planning Policy Guidance 17: Planning for open space, sport and recreation. www.communities.gov.uk Green Space Strategies, a good practice guide. Published in 2004 by the Commission for

Architecture and the Built Environment. (reprinted 2006) Technical Advice Notes 5, 12, 16. http://wales.gov.uk/topics/planning/policy/ tans

CABE Cadw, Welsh Government

1 Kemble Street Plas Carew, Unit 5 / 7 Cefn Coed London WC2B 4AN Parc Nantgarw

T 020 7070 6700 Cardiff CF 15 7QQ F 020 7070 6777 Tel: 01443 336 000

E [email protected]. Email: [email protected]