A series of summer “picnic and play” parties attracting around 100 visitors each time (adults and children) was funded this year by the local health authority, the Hastings and Rother CCG, as a “healthy living” project. And every Saturday morning, subject to adverse weather, the garden was open to everyone.įour community events have been hosted annually. A “knit and natter” group were meeting most Monday mornings Wednesdays the space hosted a drama group Thursdays there were both pre-school and after-school garden clubs Mallydams (the wildlife establishment in Fairlight) organised pre-school events on some Friday afternoons. It is not open all hours – there remains a problem of random vandalism: tables have been smashed, a Wendy house broken into, the advantage of being tucked away also renders it vulnerable to misuse – but the keyholders have been trying to maximise community use on a daily and weekly basis in spring, summer and autumn. The park received a Level 5 award as “outstanding” under the category “It’s my Neighbourhood” from horticultural campaign group South East in Bloom after a visit from their judges in the summer. The space has been transformed, mostly by volunteer workers, into a vibrant urban garden with an emphasis on children’s outdoor play and education: plant beds are festooned with greenery, walls decorated with colourful murals, the spaces between marked out for play areas and other community activities. Some financial support was obtained from a police fund (diversion of confiscated “ill-gotten gains”, apparently) local college students offered art services and built an oak gazebo local branches of Asda and One Stop have also contributed funding. Three years ago a group of local residents set out to revive the area as a community park. However the local community failed to use it other than as an increasingly wild, graffiti-strewn rubbish tip. The Council had leased the land to neighbourhood environmental charity group Better Braybrooke at a peppercorn rent and provided funds to them to engage an architect, erect walls and fencing, and establish some planting beds. ![]() It’s not the most promising location: an acre of Council-owned ground in the hinterland of Elphinstone Road surrounded by housing and largely concreted over around 13 years ago following the removal of some dilapidated garages.
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