Royal Parks 2002-2003
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The Royal Parks Old Police House, Hyde Park London W2 2UH Telephone 020 7298 2000 www.royalparks.gov.uk Published by TSO (The Stationery Office) and available from: Online www.tso.co.uk/bookshop Mail,Telephone, Fax & E-mail TSO PO Box 29, Norwich NR3 1GN Te lephone orders/General enquiries 0870 600 5522 Fax orders 0870 600 5533 Order through the Parliamentary Hotline Lo-call 0845 7 023474 E-mail [email protected] Textphone 0870 240 3701 TSO Shops 123 Kingsway, London WC2B 6PQ 020 7242 6393 Fax 020 7242 6394 68-69 Bull Street, Birmingham B4 6AD 0121 236 9696 Fax 0121 236 9699 9-21 Princess Street, Manchester M60 8AS 0161 834 7201 Fax 0161 833 0634 16 Arthur Street, Belfast BT1 4GD 028 9023 8451 Fax 028 9023 5401 18-19 High Street, Cardiff CF10 1PT 029 2039 5548 Fax 029 2038 4347 71 Lothian Road, Edinburgh EH3 9AZ 0870 606 5566 Fax 0870 606 5588 The Parliamentary Bookshop 12 Bridge Street, Parliament Square, London SW1A 2JX Te lephone orders/General enquiries 020 7219 3890 Fax orders 020 7219 3866 TSO Accredited Agents (see Yellow Pages) and through good booksellers Annual Report & Accounts 2002-2003 London’s personal space The Royal Parks are unique. Contents 5,000 acres of carefully conserved parkland, Chief Executive’s statement 2 in prime locations, in one of the world’s greatest cities, Managing The Royal Parks 4 offer a safe space for our guests to enjoy Hospitality 5 however they wish. Diversity 8 Nature, history, spectacle, entertainment, Sustainability 11 sport, relaxation – the choice is yours. Beauty 14 Respect 16 Performance against key targets 18 London’s personal space. The year ahead 20 Foreword to the accounts 21 We hope you’ll make it your own. Accounts 22 Bushy Park The Green Park Greenwich Park Hyde Park The Royal Parks Annual Report & Accounts 2002-2003 1 Annual Report & Accounts 2002-2003 The Royal Parks is an Executive Agency of the Department for Culture, Media and Sports (DCMS). Presented to the House of Commons pursuant to section 7 of The Government Resources & Accounts Act 2000. Ordered by the House of Commons to be printed on the 16th July 2003. London: The Stationery Office Ltd 726, £12 Kensington Gardens The Regent’s Park Richmond Park St James’s Park 2 The Royal Parks Annual Report & Accounts 2002-2003 From the Chief Executive Every day, tens of thousands of people jog, cycle, rollerblade, swim, rest and play in the eight Royal Parks. Other visitors prefer horse riding, bird watching, picnicking, playing hockey and tennis, or participating in living history walks or nature treks. Each visitor relates to the Parks in their own individual way, but leaves feeling physically and mentally refreshed by the moments they have spent away from the city hubbub. For all these people, the Parks are ‘London’s personal space’. What very few recognise, however, is the painstaking amount of work that goes on behind the scenes to make the Parks’ 5,000 acres such clean, safe and beautiful spaces for everyone to enjoy. Managing the Parks is all about balancing There was a great team spirit in July 2002, We make a significant a mammoth schedule of daily tasks with when the Parks’ staff toiled through the a desire to explore new ideas and the night to ensure that the Golden Jubilee contribution to the need to deal quickly and confidently with celebrations would be safe and memorable. many different challenges. At any one The Mall, Green Park and St James’s quality of life in the time we may be de-silting rivers, cleaning welcomed huge crowds, Bushy Park monuments or designing spring bedding. hosted a royal pageant, and Her Majesty capital as well as to We may be developing our volunteer The Queen helped plant a new avenue strategy for the coming years, or of chestnuts on Rotten Row. organising a 21-gun royal salute, whilst the national economy. Later in the year, the Parks achieved simultaneously coping with storm the hard-won environmental standard damage and a last-minute request for ISO14001. We also passed the £2 million a horticultural tour by a delegation from fundraising mark for our flagship sports China. This year, the Parks’ juggling act project in Regent’s Park. In addition, has been as pressured as ever but, thanks we have again met key targets and increased to the dedication of our Park Managers, our self-generated revenue by nearly 15%. staff and The Royal Parks Constabulary, we have achieved many successes. The Parks are a treasure chest of opportunities and resources. We aim A lot of the things we feel are important to be pro-active in creating new – young people, local communities, the programmes of activity and improving economy and efficient delivery – echo performance, particularly in areas the priorities of our sponsor department, of our work where people matter. We the Department for Culture, Media & have, therefore, invested in new staff Sport. Over 6,000 children a year use our and devoted time and energy to community education facilities at Bushy, Hyde, sport, education, ecology and catering. Greenwich and Richmond Parks. Similar numbers visit the Diana playground in We have worked more closely with Kensington Gardens every day. our stakeholders, consulted widely Amongst our community activities, and tried to listen more. The ‘Friends’ we have recently hosted a Bangladeshi and residents groups associated with our Mela in Regent’s Park, and generated parks are very involved with our work, money for ourselves and the UK and I would like to thank them for their by providing locations for British and continued support. Our relationships international film-makers. with our neighbouring local authorities have developed strongly. I am particularly The Royal Parks Annual Report & Accounts 2002-2003 3 The Parks are London’s ‘personal space’ pleased that community and education profile, advancing our flagship projects The Royal Parks vision partnerships like the ‘Wildlife for All’ and generating new income. We make Our vision is to try to achieve the project, where we have forged relationships a significant contribution to the quality perfect balance, where everyone with the RSPB and the Black Environment of life in the capital as well as to the understands and values the Parks, Network, will enable us to reach out national economy, and we will soon where everyone finds something in and involve many more people. We are be starting to quantify and promote the Parks for them, and where no-one’s currently researching ways to improve these benefits. enjoyment of the Parks is at the expense our knowledge about our visitors During 2002-03 we took a hard look of others, now or in the future. and the results will help inform our at how we see ourselves, how others see future activities. us, and what kind of organisation we During this past year, we joined the want to be. We are committed to the values bigger debate about the future nature of of hospitality, diversity, respect, beauty urban living. With the Mayor for London, and sustainability, which reflect our desire the GLA, the Central London Partnership, to entertain, welcome and provide local interest groups and many others we spiritual sustenance to the widest have been debating the Parks’ role in possible community. planning and have contributed to the Improving our performance year on year, Mayor’s Spatial Strategy. We strongly across all our targets, aims and objectives, support the conservation of key views, has become an increasingly demanding such as the long distance view from King challenge. The enormous motivation, Henry’s Mound in Richmond Park to St purpose and pride shown by our staff Paul’s Cathedral, which have been at risk. over the past twelve months gives me In February 2003, we welcomed the great confidence in our ability to continue appointment of a new Advisory Board conserving The Royal Parks as a natural under the Chairmanship of Peter Ellwood. haven in the heart of London for We also celebrated the establishment of generations to come. The Royal Parks Foundation as a charity. The Foundation will play an important role in helping us to bring new audiences into the Parks, in promoting education, conserving our heritage, protecting wildlife and increasing bio-diversity. The William Weston Foundation will provide supporters with Chief Executive July 2003 an unprecedented opportunity to become involved with one of Britain’s most glorious green attractions. I am very grateful to my colleagues, Managing the Parks is all about balancing and to our many volunteers, contractors and partners, for their wonderful work. a mammoth schedule of daily tasks with a This year, special thanks also go to The Prince of Wales’ Royal Parks Tree desire to explore new ideas and the need Appeal. Since 1987, it has raised more than £750,000 to support planting projects to deal quickly and confidently with in the Parks. The Appeal will close in 2003, but its valuable work will continue many different challenges. through The Royal Parks Foundation. In the coming year, I shall focus on continuing to modernise the way we manage the Parks, on raising our 4 The Royal Parks Annual Report & Accounts 2002-2003 Managing The Royal Parks The Chief Executive has overall charge of The Royal Parks and reports to the Minister for Media and Heritage and the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport. Ministers and the Chief Executive are supported by an Advisory Board to provide independent advice on strategy, plans and performance, and to help represent The Royal Parks’ interests. A new Advisory Board was appointed in February 2003: Chairman Peter Ellwood CBE, Chairman Designate ICI; Chairman, The Royal Parks Foundation Peter Ellwood Chairman Members The Hon.