Cassiobury Park Summary of Activity and Business Planning V1
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Cassiobury Park Stage C Review Summary of Activity & Business Planning Issue number: 1 Status: DRAFT Date: 04 July 2013 Prepared by: Mike Anderson Authorised by: Adrian Spray Report prepared by: CFP • The Coach House • 143 - 145 Worcester Road • Hagley • Worcestershire • DY9 0NW t: 01562 887884 • f: 01562 887087 • e: [email protected] • w: cfpuk.co.uk Cassiobury Park Summary of Activity & Business Planning Contents 2. Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 1 2.1. How the Cassiobury Park restoration project meets the 5 Places for People outcomes. ....... 2 2.1.1. Outcome 1 – Increasing the range of audiences ............................................................ 2 2.1.2. Outcome 2 – Conserving and improving the heritage value ........................................... 5 2.1.3. Outcome 3 – Increasing the range of volunteers involved .............................................. 6 2.1.4. Outcome 4 – Improving skills & knowledge through training .......................................... 8 2.1.5. Outcome 5 – Improving management & maintenance ................................................... 9 3. Barriers and mitigating measures for target audiences ................................................................. 11 4. The Need for a new Park Hub Building ......................................................................................... 14 4.1. Key issues and needs on-site ............................................................................................... 15 4.2. Benefits ................................................................................................................................. 15 5. Budgets ......................................................................................................................................... 16 6. Activity Plan Contents Framework ...................................................................... 18 1. Introduction To make Cassiobury Park1 a more successful space which is accessible, engaging and sociable then it needs to happen in a structured way, built on a sound evidence base and flexible enough to respond to a changing environment. The Activity Plan provides the framework to make this happen; it will present, in effect, a step-by-step process which develops the learning and participation activities from the outlines in the first-round Parks for People application submitted by Watford Borough Council (WBC) to the detail required in the delivery phase of the project. The Activity Plan is being developed as part of the development work to support a Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) Round Two Parks for People application to regenerate Cassiobury Park. It therefore needs to not only help people value and enjoy the park but also understand and value its heritage. The Activity Plan is being prepared with input from the following people: • Debbie Brady (Cassiobury Park Ranger, WBC): consultation and awareness raising • Matt Hill (Cassiobury Project Officer) • Adrian Spray (Consultant, CFP): Co-ordination of consultation and awareness raising, vision and aims, action planning, monitoring and evaluation & business planning. • Mike Anderson (Consultant, CFP): Consultation with target audiences, organisational fit, policy context, barriers and constraints, national research and best practices, action planning. • Neil Eccles (Consultant, CFP): Visitor surveys, map making, general data handling and analysis • Andrew Tempany and Alex Massey (LUC) ; leads on design team. There has been a considerable amount of consultation with Council staff, members of the public, stakeholders, community groups, Third Sector organisations and special interest groups (as evidenced in the supporting document) in order to get a good understanding of the views of the people of Watford; the social, environmental and economic issues; and, what’s being done to improve the quality of people’s lives. Their views have had a significant influence on the development of the Activity Plan to date, including the development of target audiences and action planning. This will continue post Stage C review to help refine the details and confirm the programme of activity in the action plan. There is also initial support from some of the organisations to get involved or help to deliver some of the activities. 1 We use the word Cassiobury Park to refer to Cassiobury Park and Whippendell Wood 1 As well as meeting WBC corporate aims, the activities in the action plan will need to contribute towards meeting the five Parks for People outcomes, and how we are intending to achieve this is set out in the next section. 1.1. How the Cassiobury Park restoration project meets the 5 Parks for People outcomes. These summary statements demonstrate the progress the project team have made on this exciting project, depict the outcomes so far, and the intentions for each of the above plans. 1.1.1. Outcome 1 – Increasing the range of audiences Demographic analysis of the catchment of the site has been carried out. As a strategically important green space, Cassiobury Park has a significant catchment, with over 135,000 people resident within 3 kilometres of the park boundary. The population of the catchment area are typically older than the Borough average and whilst the proportion of White residents is lower than the Borough average, the catchment is more diverse than England and Wales as a whole, with a significant Pakistani community in West Watford. The proportion of economically active residents is similar to the average for Watford and levels of car ownership are generally higher than elsewhere in the Borough. The Indices of Deprivation for 2007 shows that, overall, the population within the catchment are not subject to high levels of multiple deprivation, but there are three of the Lower Level Super Output Areas (LSOAs) that are in the top 25% most deprived nationally (and these all lie in Watford Borough). A picture of the current users has begun to be identified through a visitor survey, visitor observation and other consultation. Visitor Counters have recently been installed within the park (operational from 11 April 2013) and data to 1 July 2013 over 82 days shows an average of 5,033 daily person visits. If this is scaled up, the data suggests annual person visits in the region of 1.8 million. On a note of caution the data has been gathered over a period when the park is likely to be busier and ongoing data collection over autumn and winter will provide more robust data for the Round 2 submission. Earlier estimates suggest annual visitor numbers are in the region of 800,000 to 1 million with visitors to the paddling pools being in the region of 100,000 annually. The 2013 Visitor Survey found that of 640 visitors nearly one third (31.4%) travel up to 2 Km to visit the park (21.1% travel up to 3 Km). Earlier market research carried out with 500 park visitors in 2006 found that 49% of visitors lived more than 3 Km from Cassiobury Park. The difference in results is likely to be attributable to differences in methodology with the 2013 data being based on postcode and the 2006 data relying on respondents to estimate distance travelled. 2 Anecdotal evidence from the café and paddling pools operators indicate that regular visitors to the park are drawn from adjacent Boroughs (including Three Rivers, Hertmere and north and west London). People attending events such as the annual Bonfire & Fireworks Display (c. 40000 people) and sporting events such as the Watford Half Marathon come from even further afield. This suggests the potential catchment for Cassiobury Park is significantly wider than just Watford Borough. Within 3 Km of Cassiobury Park there is a potential resident population of 136,962 which is greater than the Watford Borough population of 90,301 (Source : Census 2011). This potential catchment is diverse, with above average numbers of young people and minority ethnic groups than the wider region and nationally. Three of the Lower Level Super Output Areas (LSOAs) within the potential catchment of Cassiobury Park are in the top 25% most deprived nationally (and these all lie in Watford Borough). Residential areas immediately to the north of Cassiobury Park are among the most affluent in the country. Around 14% of those resident within 3 Km of the park have some form of Limiting Long Term Illness. The 2013 Visitor Survey found that the most popular reasons for use are: To take a form of exercise (44.5%), To relax (44.0%), To meet friends (32.3%), To use the play areas (30.3%) & To walk the dog (28.5%). The 2006 survey found that the most popular reasons for visiting Cassiobury Park are: to use the play areas & pools (61%); to relax (33%); to exercise (31%); dog walking (27%); meet friends (25%). Around one in seven visitors to the park 15%) come to enjoy and observe wildlife. Cycling in the park is a common activity and there is demand to improve routes through the park and linkages to the wider cycle network. Frequently cited barriers to greater use of the park and woods include: the need for better toilet provision; better café and catering; improved entrances and access; improvements to the pools area; better dog control; and measures to support wildlife. Some more vulnerable users are concerned about personal safety (although recorded levels of crime are relatively low).. The Round One bid recognised the need to develop new audiences and set out initial ideas on potential audiences including: