Parks and Gardens

Waveney Open Space Needs Assessment | July 2015 | Parks and Gardens Parks and Gardens Important areas for recreation and leisure, contributing significantly to the immediate surroundings and the wider townscape. www.waveney.gov.uk/planningpolicy 109 Waveney Open Space Needs Assessment | July 2015 | Parks and Gardens www.waveney.gov.uk/planningpolicy 110 Waveney Open Space Needs Assessment | July 2015 | Parks and Gardens What are parks and gardens? Parks and gardens provide accessible, high quality open space to be enjoyed by the general public. Characteristically they are enclosed, designed, constructed and maintained to be used by all sections of the community and catering for a range of formal and informal activities. Being multi-functional open spaces they are more likely to be destinations for people to use compared to smaller open spaces closer to home. With a greater number of activities and designed space they function as important social venues for individuals and small groups. Parks and gardens are high value spaces and can be an important focal point in a community that contribute towards the identity of an area assist with creating a sense of place. Parks and gardens of high quality and high value can have many positive attributes that improve an area. By creating attractive environments they are a contrast to the built up area, as well as improve well-being and mental health. Offering a wide range of sports and physical activities can encourage people to participate in physical activity that will have positive fitness and physical health benefits. By removing toxins from the air and creating ecological buffers that reduce noise they provide an antidote to the stresses of urban living. Economically an area will benefit from parks and gardens. A good positive image of an area can attract visitors, inward investment, assist with retaining existing businesses and providing facilities in employment areas. The location, distribution and size of parks have generally been decided in times past as development came forward. Many of these reflect the historic patterns of urban growth in the District. This is particularly the case for centrally located parks and gardens. There are different types of parks that have different roles in the community. Larger parks can have a more important focus at the neighbourhood scale while small parks can have a more local focus. Fen Park, Lowestoft www.waveney.gov.uk/planningpolicy 111 Waveney Open Space Needs Assessment | July 2015 | Parks and Gardens The Open Space Needs Assessment (2006) consulted the public to ascertain their views of parks and gardens in the District. A summary of the key findings are set out in Figure 4.1. Figure 4.1: Summary of key points in 2006 consultation General Over half people in Lowestoft, Kessingland and Halesworth use a park more than once a month while in Beccles and Bungay less than a third of people use a park more than once a month. In Southwold & Reydon less than a fifth of people use a park regularly. Quantity 58% of people said the amount of park space was adequate while 20% were unhappy with provision. Contentment was highest in North Lowestoft and Halesworth and lowest in Bungay and Southwold & Reydon. Quality 60% of people rated park at good or excellent in appearance and said there was a good variety of parks in their area (most positive feedback from North Lowestoft residents). Accessibility A quarter of people do not use parks because they are too far away (particularly in Beccles, Bungay and Kessingland). About half of people access local parks on foot while about 39% use the car which may indicate a shortfall of local provision or that high quality parks are worth driving to. Use of public transport to access a park was negligible. Accessibility patterns reflect geographic distribution of parks and gardens. People with disabilities and mobility issues use parks less regularly and lack of ancillary facilities such as toilets further limits their value. Use of beaches fulfils shortfall of some park provision but is more likely to be used by people living closer to the sea. www.waveney.gov.uk/planningpolicy 112 Waveney Open Space Needs Assessment | July 2015 | Parks and Gardens Existing recommended standards The Open Space Needs Assessment found that levels of park provision do not meet the expectations of the local community in Beccles, Bungay or Southwold. People living in Halesworth (0.28ha per 1000 people) and North Lowestoft (0.41ha per 1000 people) were broadly satisfied with existing park provision. As people in North Lowestoft have access to the beach for some of their informal recreational needs the level of provision in this area was considered to be the minimum necessary for that District as a whole. A standard of 0.4 hectares of park space per 1000 population was recommended. Kensington Gardens, Lowestoft www.waveney.gov.uk/planningpolicy 113 Waveney Open Space Needs Assessment | July 2015 | Parks and Gardens Provision of parks and gardens Parks and gardens contribute 30% towards the total open space provision in the District. Bungay, Kessingland and Southwold & Reydon do not have any Parks and Gardens. With the exception of Southwold & Reydon these areas also suffer from a deficit of other forms of open space in both quantity and quality. Table 4.1: Total area of parks and gardens in the District Sub area Total area of Area of parks and Total open space that is parks and open space (ha) gardens (ha) gardens (%) Beccles 15.06 7.27 48 Bungay 4.49 0 0 Halesworth 5.13 1.25 24 Kessingland 3.63 0 0 North Lowestoft 59.53 16.77 28 South Lowestoft 45.29 22.78 50 Southwold & Reydon 8.63 0 0 Rural 19.13 0 0 District 160.89 48.07 30 Figure 4.2: Total area of parks and gardens in the District 1ha Halesworth 7ha Beccles 23ha South Lowestoft 17ha North Lowestoft www.waveney.gov.uk/planningpolicy 114 Waveney Open Space Needs Assessment | July 2015 | Parks and Gardens Hierarchy of parks Different types are parks can fulfil different roles in the community depending on their characteristics. Across Waveney there are several park typologies. These are set out in Table 4.2. Table 4.2: Type of parks Type of park and primary function Size and accessibility Characteristics Destination park Weekend and occasional visits Park greater than 4.4ha Open space with varied landscape and general mainly on foot but also by car and in size. facilities for active and passive recreation. serves as an attraction to visitors. Catchment distance Children’s play space with a good of over 1km. equipment for all age groups. Car parking provision, toilets, and possibly catering facilities. Local park For pedestrian visitors including Park greater than 2.5ha Children’s play area, sitting out areas and residents and workers. but less than 4.4ha in some outdoor recreation. size. Between 400m and 1000m walking distance from home (10-15 minutes). Satellite park Pedestrian visits especially by the Park less than 2.5ha in Small children’s play area, sitting out areas, elderly and parents with children. size and within 400m grass and shrubbery planting. Most useful in areas or high walking distance from density housing and for workers in home (5 minutes). employment areas. Provision of parks and gardens in the Beccles area Parks constitute a little under half of the open space in the Beccles sub area. Of the four parks in the Beccles area three are located in Worlingham and just one is in the larger urban area of Beccles town (Figure 4.3). The Quay is on the periphery of the urban area and is isolated from much of the residential population. However, with its location on the Waveney River, the Quay presents itself as a destination, supporting a variety of activities both residents and visitors alike. With parking for vehicles, boat traffic, tourist information centre and an open space that provides for both play and amenity there may be opportunities to increase the park as a destination through additional ancillary and cultural facilities appropriate to its setting. The south of Beccles has poor access to parks and gardens. Multi-functional open spaces in Worlingham are suitable for nearby residents but are unlikely to attract residents from Beccles. The www.waveney.gov.uk/planningpolicy 115 Waveney Open Space Needs Assessment | July 2015 | Parks and Gardens Quay in north Beccles is a local park in an attractive location on the river with variety of facilities and which will support a wider catchment area, however, it is unlikely to be of high enough quality or value to encourage people to travel to it as a destination in its own right. Table 4.3: Parks and gardens in the Beccles area Park Type of park Area (ha) The Quay Local 4.38 All Saints Green Satellite 0.86 Werel’s Loke Satellite 0.82 Woodfield Park Satellite 1.21 Total area 7.27 Figure 4.3: Parks and gardens in Beccles Reproduced under license SLA100042052. from the Ordnance Survey mapping with the permission of the Controller of Her Majesty's Stationery Office © Crown copyright 2015. Unauthorised reproduction infringes Crown copyright and may lead to prosecution or civil proceedings. Local parks and gardens Satellite parks and gardens 600m catchment radius (1000m walk) 240m catchment radius (400m walk) www.waveney.gov.uk/planningpolicy 116 Waveney Open Space Needs Assessment | July 2015 | Parks and Gardens Provision of parks and gardens in the Halesworth area Halesworth has a solitary park located close to the town centre, Town Park (Figure 4.4). Centrally located this provides an important focal point for the town and supports a variety of recreational activities for people of all ages.

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