List of Bristol Parks Forum Members >>
Listing of Parks and Park Groups >>
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Bristol Parks Forum
Bristol Parks Forum was established by Bristol Parks as an umbrella organisation for community park groups and organisations in the city with an interest in their local parks and green spaces.
The forum is supported by Bristol City Council but acts independently and is currently the only 'community voice' that is dedicated to all of Bristol's green spaces.
The forum's three main roles are:
- to offer an opportunity to share ideas and experience;
- to act as a consultation body for the Bristol Parks service and other agencies;
- to influence decision-making, including the allocation of resources.
Bristol Parks Forum Terms of Reference
Areas Green Space Plans Consultation 14 June to 29 October 2010
Bristol Parks Forum continues to support the Parks and Green Spaces Strategy. BPF worked with the council for a number
of years on the drawing up of the P&GSS and accepted that the P&GSS would be part
funded by disposals of Low Value land. It was particularly important to us that this 20 year strategy had the support of all three
main parties and that all were committed to the principle that 70% of the money raised
from any sale of 'low value' land would 'ring fenced' for spending on parks. We are
pleased that the current Cabinet is continuing that support.
It is vital that as many Park Groups as possible respond to the consultation on both the investment proposals and the proposals for land disposal. We are aware that some Park Groups have concerns about individual spaces but we believe that these views will be properly considered before any final decisions are made.
www.bristol.gov.uk/agsp
See also:
Important background information in the AGSP Frequently Asked Questions pages
www.bristol.gov.uk/siteallocations - includes list of drop in sessions.
AGSP - Easy Guide by Alison
How will the value of spaces be assessed? - P&GSS Appendix 5
20 Reasons to support P&GSS/AGSP by Rob
Information on the Bristol Neighbourhood Planning Network website.
BPF Letter to Cllr Gary Hopkins 27 July 2010 - AGSP consultation and Cabinet Decision on Land Disposal
BPF Parks & Green Spaces Strategy page - more information and background
Interested in starting a group? Download Bristol Parks Community Action Toolkit
Contact the Bristol Parks Forum:
Post your comments on anything to do with Bristol's Parks & Green Spaces on the Forum at www.troopers-hill.org.uk
To keep up to date with the latest news sign up to our mailing list >>
| Knowle West | Grove Woods | Bristol's Trees | Castle Park | Ashton Vale | Wild City | Stoke Lodge | Stoke Park | National Federation of Parks and Green Spaces |
Knowle West Regeneration Framework
Bristol City Council is consulting on a Knowle West Regeneration Framework to guide the planned regeneration in Knowle West. This regeneration will impact on several parks and green spaces in the area. As a result of this upcoming consultation this area is currently excluded from the AGSP and Site Allocations Consultations which cover the rest of the City.
More information at www.northern-slopes-initiative.co.uk
Knowle West Community Website - www.knowlewest.co.uk
Council's webpage for Knowle West Regeneration Framework
Proposed options for the Kingswear/Novers/Marksbury Road Masterplan
Grove Woods
BPF members The Snuff Mills Action Group are campaigning to ensure that Grove Wood is managed for wildlife, public enjoyment and educational use.
More information at http://snuffmills.blogspot.com
Bristol's Trees
Trees are some of the most important features in our parks and open spaces and Bristol Parks Forum has always also had an interest in street trees. The Bristol Tree Forum (formerly the Bristol Street Tree Forum) discusses issues relating to all trees in Bristol
Bristol Tree Forum Agenda, Minutes, Information >>
Castle Park
Parts of Castle Park have been under threat from development.
More information at www.castlepark.org.uk
St Mary Le Port Redevelopment and Castle Park - An alternative approach
Minutes of Rights of Way & Greens Committee 3rd Aug 2009
Bristol Parks Forum Statement on Castle Park 24 Apr 09
Bristol Parks Forum Press Release 05 Dec 08
St Mary-le-Port developers website
Saving Ashton Vale's Heritage
The Ashton Vale Heritage Group has been set up to campaign to save a privately owned Site of Nature Conservation Interest (SNCI).
More information at www.ashtonvaleheritage.co.uk
Statement from Ashton Vale Heritage Group Jan 2009
BPF Statement Jan 2009
Details of the Planning Application on the Bristol City Council website
AVHG Letter to BPF 16 January 2010 meeting
BPF Letter to Cabinet 20 July 2010
www.saveourgreenspaces.org
Wild City Funding Application
On 29 July 2010 it was announced that Bristol City Council's 'Wild City Project' bid to Natural
England had been successful. The award is for a £250,000 grant towards the total project value of £336,000. Bristol Parks will
now start to set up the project including appointment of a Wild City
Project Officer, which will be a three-year post.
Wild City Consultation Flyer
Wild City Map
Nature in the City Project
BPF letter of support
Bristol Parks Wildlife Page
Stoke Lodge
This is an area of green space that currently has public access but is not included in the Area green Space Plan because it is officially considered to be a school playing field. Plans have emerged to fence the area and 'improve' the playing fields. An internal report to Cabinet raises some important issues around the use of school playing fields.
Briefing note from Friends of Stoke Lodge
Report to Cabinet April 2010
Plans drawn for Bristol City Council
ThisIsBristol report 14 July 2010 - comments include response from BCC
BPF letter following meeting on 17 July 2010
Stoke Park
Bristol City Council Cabinet decided in principle to take Stoke Park into Council ownership at the Cabinet meeting on 2 April 2009. This process is ongoing
Report to Cabinet
Bristol Parks Forum Statement on Stoke Park 24 Feb 2009
National Federation of Parks and Green Spaces
Bristol Parks Forum is a member of the National Federation of Parks and Green Spaces (NFPGS) which is the federation of area forums and networks of local Friends and User groups for Britain's green spaces. Hugh (vice chair of the BPF) is the South West Regional Rep.
More information at www.green-space.org.uk/community/nfpgs
Contacts
Bristol Parks Forum
Bristol Parks Forum Committee:
Chair - Fraser from the Castle Park Users Group
Vice Chair - Hugh from Mina Road Park Group
Both can serve until 2010.
Other committee members:
Alison, Redland & Cotham AS; Rob, Friends of Troopers Hill;
Roland, Mina Rd Park Group; Nancy, Kingfisher Group.
You can email both Fraser and Hugh via . These emails will also be seen by Rob & Alison.
Bristol Parks
Bristol Parks manage all parks and green spaces in the City of Bristol. If you would like more information about the parks or wish to report any problems or issues relating to your park please contact Bristol Parks directly.
Email: or phone 0117 922 3719 - this is available Mon to Fri 8.30am - 5pm (4.30pm Fri).
You can also visit the Bristol Parks website at www.bristol.gov.uk/parks
Bristol Parks or 'Parks and Estates' is part of 'Environment and Leisure'. The management structure for the department with names and contact details can be seen here: A Quick Guide to Environment & Leisure May 2010.
The four administration areas can be seen on this map. Park maintenance in the North and East areas (and also Estates) is carried out directly by Bristol Parks. Details of the structure of the teams responsible are here. Parks in the South and Central areas are maintained by external contractors. The South Contract is run by Quadron; the Central area by English Landscapes. Our Listing of Parks and Park Groups shows which area each park is in.
For general enquiries relating to the organisation of Park Groups and the support available from Bristol Parks contact Rraquib Khandker, Community Development Officer.
Bristol Parks Promise 2009 - Bristol Parks' staff will all be signing up to this promise to park users about the way that they will conduct themselves in the new organisation.
Meetings
The forum meets at least four times a year. In addition the BPF committee meet senior managers at Bristol Parks prior to each meeting and at other times if it is considered necessary.
Our meetings are organised by the BPF, with the support of Bristol Parks. The meetings are for
representatives of member groups, they are not public meetings.
If you have not been to one of our meetings before any of our members will be pleased to
welcome you and to explain the format and who is who. Please do introduce yourself to
anyone in the room when you arrive.
Last meeting:
Saturday 17 July - at Netham Pavilion
Minutes here soon - Agenda here
The main subject of discussion was the Area Green Space Plans.
Other meeting for 2010 (venue to be confirmed):
Saturday 9 October
Previous meetings:
Saturday 10th April - Minutes here.
The following papers give information on topics discussed:
1. Note on Organisational Change
2. List of Park Keepers
3. Events Briefing Note
4. Proposal for Park Group Agreements
5. List of Section 106 money available for Parks
Saturday 16th January 2010 - Vassall Centre, Fishponds BS16 2QQ - Minutes here.
This meeting was followed by a very interesting visit to Snuff Mills hosted by the Snuff Mills Action Group.
Saturday 31st October - at Windmill Hill City Farm - Minutes; Events Workshop Notes; Play Pathfinder Display (4.5 MB);
Saturday 25th July - at Windmill Hill City Farm - Minutes; Appendix 1 - Events; Appendix 2 - Parks' Support to BPF
Saturday 16th May - at Windmill Hill City Farm - Minutes here
BPF Saturday 24th January - at Windmill Hill City Farm - Minutes here
BPF Saturday 11th October - at Windmill Hill City Farm - Minutes here
Meeting with Bristol Parks 7th October 2008: Notes of meeting
BPF Saturday 12th July 2008 - at Windmill Hill City Farm - Minutes here
BPF Saturday 19th April 2008 - at Windmill Hill City Farm - Minutes here
BPF Saturday 19th January 2008 - at Windmill Hill City Farm - Minutes here
Email List
Between meetings we keep Park Groups informed of issues of interest via email.
Please email if you would like to be added to our mailing list or use the link below.
Sign up to our mailing list >>
We are happy to have more than one email address for your group - we will not publish these addresses or pass them to anyone else.
There is also a separate list of Park Groups kept by Bristol Parks which includes postal addresses and is used to send out meeting agendas and minutes.
The content of previous email messages can be seen via the links below, each pdf file contains all the messages sent that month - note it may take sometime for emails to be posted here, join our mailing list if you want to keep upto date!
May/June 2008 - July 2008 - August 2008 - September 2008 - October 2008 - November 2008 - December 2008
January 2009 - February 2009 - March 2009 - April 2009 - May 2009 - June 2009 - July 2009 - August 2009 - September 2009 - October 2009 - November 2009 - December 2009
January 2010 - February 2010 - March 2010 - April 2010 - May 2010 - June 2010 - July 2010
Membership
Membership is open to all community park groups and similar organisations with an interest in protecting and enhancing green space in Bristol. New groups are always welcome to join us, membership is free but groups must comply with the criteria set out in the Bristol Parks Forum Terms of Reference.
The current list of groups that are official members of the BPF together with information about the groups can be seen via the link below.
List of Bristol Parks Forum Members >>
Groups wanting to become members of the BPF should complete our Membership Record Form. These can be downloaded from the links below in pdf or in Word format so that it can be filled in and emailed back to us. The form is also used to give us details to be published in the 'Bristol Parks Forum Directory'.
Membership Record Form in pdf format
Membership Record Form in Word format
The 2010 version of the BPF Directory can be downloaded here: Bristol Parks Forum Directory 2010.
We also have a list of all Bristol's parks and park groups.
The current list can be found here: Listing of Parks and Park Groups >>
Information for Park Groups
The following information and links are provided as a resource for Park Groups but may also be useful to anyone who uses Bristol's parks.
Who to contact:
For general issues relating to your park or green space contact Bristol Parks by email to or phone 0117 922 3719 Mon to Fri 8.30am - 5pm (4.30pm Fri). Alternatively you can contact Bristol Parks by text on 0771 039 6713.
For removal of drug and sex related litter call the rapid clean up hotline on 0117 922 2100 - this is available Monday to Friday between 8.30am and 8.00pm. You will need to tell them the location and the type of litter.
If you witness anti social behaviour in a park or green space in Bristol, please report it to either the 'It's Your Call' action line on 0845 605 2222 or the non-emergency police line on 0845 456 7000. Whilst a police response will not always be possible, these calls will help build up a picture of hotspots and issues in your area and are extremely valuable in helping reduce antisocial behaviour.
For general enquiries relating to the organisation of Park Groups and the support available from Bristol Parks contact Rraquib Khandker, Community Development Officer.
In our experience Bristol Parks generally respond to queries promptly and try to help where they can, however, if you are not satisfied with the response you receive from Bristol Parks please contact us via and we will try to help resolve your problem.
You can also contact your local councillors and discuss local problems with them, many councillors attend meetings of local park groups.
Community Action Toolkit
Bristol Parks have produced this very informative document which is available for download from their website via the link below. The toolkit is mainly aimed at new groups but contains information that all groups will find helpful.
Download Bristol Parks Community Action Toolkit
Parks Monitoring Forms
Bristol Parks have produced these forms to encourage park groups to monitor the quality of maintenance of their parks. The forms can be printed and the completed forms sent to the freepost post address shown at the end of the form.
Parks Monitoring form.
Management and Maintenance Standards
The standards that Bristol Parks aims to achieve for management and maintenance are described on the Bristol Parks website and can be seen here: Bristol Parks Management and Maintenance Standards.
Other items of general interest relating to parks & green spaces
(please let us know if there is anything you think should be posted here).
More information at http://snuffmills.blogspot.com
Bristol Tree Forum Agenda, Minutes, Information >>
More information at www.castlepark.org.uk
St Mary Le Port Redevelopment and Castle Park - An alternative approach
Minutes of Rights of Way & Greens Committee 3rd Aug 2009
Bristol Parks Forum Statement on Castle Park 24 Apr 09
Bristol Parks Forum Press Release 05 Dec 08
St Mary-le-Port developers website
More information at www.ashtonvaleheritage.co.uk
Statement from Ashton Vale Heritage Group Jan 2009
BPF Statement Jan 2009
Details of the Planning Application on the Bristol City Council website
AVHG Letter to BPF 16 January 2010 meeting
BPF Letter to Cabinet 20 July 2010
www.saveourgreenspaces.org
Wild City Consultation Flyer
Wild City Map
Nature in the City Project
BPF letter of support
Bristol Parks Wildlife Page
Briefing note from Friends of Stoke Lodge
Report to Cabinet April 2010
Plans drawn for Bristol City Council
ThisIsBristol report 14 July 2010 - comments include response from BCC
BPF letter following meeting on 17 July 2010
Report to Cabinet
Bristol Parks Forum Statement on Stoke Park 24 Feb 2009
More information at www.green-space.org.uk/community/nfpgs
Chair - Fraser from the Castle Park Users Group
Vice Chair - Hugh from Mina Road Park Group
Both can serve until 2010.
Other committee members:
Alison, Redland & Cotham AS; Rob, Friends of Troopers Hill; Roland, Mina Rd Park Group; Nancy, Kingfisher Group.
You can email both Fraser and Hugh via . These emails will also be seen by Rob & Alison.
Bristol Parks
Bristol Parks manage all parks and green spaces in the City of Bristol. If you would like more information about the parks or wish to report any problems or issues relating to your park please contact Bristol Parks directly.
Email: or phone 0117 922 3719 - this is available Mon to Fri 8.30am - 5pm (4.30pm Fri).
You can also visit the Bristol Parks website at www.bristol.gov.uk/parks
Bristol Parks or 'Parks and Estates' is part of 'Environment and Leisure'. The management structure for the department with names and contact details can be seen here: A Quick Guide to Environment & Leisure May 2010.
The four administration areas can be seen on this map. Park maintenance in the North and East areas (and also Estates) is carried out directly by Bristol Parks. Details of the structure of the teams responsible are here. Parks in the South and Central areas are maintained by external contractors. The South Contract is run by Quadron; the Central area by English Landscapes. Our Listing of Parks and Park Groups shows which area each park is in.
For general enquiries relating to the organisation of Park Groups and the support available from Bristol Parks contact Rraquib Khandker, Community Development Officer.
Bristol Parks Promise 2009 - Bristol Parks' staff will all be signing up to this promise to park users about the way that they will conduct themselves in the new organisation.
Meetings
The forum meets at least four times a year. In addition the BPF committee meet senior managers at Bristol Parks prior to each meeting and at other times if it is considered necessary.
Our meetings are organised by the BPF, with the support of Bristol Parks. The meetings are for
representatives of member groups, they are not public meetings.
If you have not been to one of our meetings before any of our members will be pleased to
welcome you and to explain the format and who is who. Please do introduce yourself to
anyone in the room when you arrive.
Last meeting:
Saturday 17 July - at Netham Pavilion
Minutes here soon - Agenda here
The main subject of discussion was the Area Green Space Plans.
Other meeting for 2010 (venue to be confirmed):
Saturday 9 October
Previous meetings:
Saturday 10th April - Minutes here.
The following papers give information on topics discussed:
1. Note on Organisational Change
2. List of Park Keepers
3. Events Briefing Note
4. Proposal for Park Group Agreements
5. List of Section 106 money available for Parks
Saturday 16th January 2010 - Vassall Centre, Fishponds BS16 2QQ - Minutes here.
This meeting was followed by a very interesting visit to Snuff Mills hosted by the Snuff Mills Action Group.
Saturday 31st October - at Windmill Hill City Farm - Minutes; Events Workshop Notes; Play Pathfinder Display (4.5 MB);
Saturday 25th July - at Windmill Hill City Farm - Minutes; Appendix 1 - Events; Appendix 2 - Parks' Support to BPF
Saturday 16th May - at Windmill Hill City Farm - Minutes here
BPF Saturday 24th January - at Windmill Hill City Farm - Minutes here
BPF Saturday 11th October - at Windmill Hill City Farm - Minutes here
Meeting with Bristol Parks 7th October 2008: Notes of meeting
BPF Saturday 12th July 2008 - at Windmill Hill City Farm - Minutes here
BPF Saturday 19th April 2008 - at Windmill Hill City Farm - Minutes here
BPF Saturday 19th January 2008 - at Windmill Hill City Farm - Minutes here
Email List
Between meetings we keep Park Groups informed of issues of interest via email.
Please email if you would like to be added to our mailing list or use the link below.
Sign up to our mailing list >>
We are happy to have more than one email address for your group - we will not publish these addresses or pass them to anyone else.
There is also a separate list of Park Groups kept by Bristol Parks which includes postal addresses and is used to send out meeting agendas and minutes.
The content of previous email messages can be seen via the links below, each pdf file contains all the messages sent that month - note it may take sometime for emails to be posted here, join our mailing list if you want to keep upto date!
May/June 2008 - July 2008 - August 2008 - September 2008 - October 2008 - November 2008 - December 2008
January 2009 - February 2009 - March 2009 - April 2009 - May 2009 - June 2009 - July 2009 - August 2009 - September 2009 - October 2009 - November 2009 - December 2009
January 2010 - February 2010 - March 2010 - April 2010 - May 2010 - June 2010 - July 2010
Membership
Membership is open to all community park groups and similar organisations with an interest in protecting and enhancing green space in Bristol. New groups are always welcome to join us, membership is free but groups must comply with the criteria set out in the Bristol Parks Forum Terms of Reference.
The current list of groups that are official members of the BPF together with information about the groups can be seen via the link below.
List of Bristol Parks Forum Members >>
Groups wanting to become members of the BPF should complete our Membership Record Form. These can be downloaded from the links below in pdf or in Word format so that it can be filled in and emailed back to us. The form is also used to give us details to be published in the 'Bristol Parks Forum Directory'.
Membership Record Form in pdf format
Membership Record Form in Word format
The 2010 version of the BPF Directory can be downloaded here: Bristol Parks Forum Directory 2010.
We also have a list of all Bristol's parks and park groups.
The current list can be found here: Listing of Parks and Park Groups >>
Information for Park Groups
The following information and links are provided as a resource for Park Groups but may also be useful to anyone who uses Bristol's parks.
Who to contact:
For general issues relating to your park or green space contact Bristol Parks by email to or phone 0117 922 3719 Mon to Fri 8.30am - 5pm (4.30pm Fri). Alternatively you can contact Bristol Parks by text on 0771 039 6713.
For removal of drug and sex related litter call the rapid clean up hotline on 0117 922 2100 - this is available Monday to Friday between 8.30am and 8.00pm. You will need to tell them the location and the type of litter.
If you witness anti social behaviour in a park or green space in Bristol, please report it to either the 'It's Your Call' action line on 0845 605 2222 or the non-emergency police line on 0845 456 7000. Whilst a police response will not always be possible, these calls will help build up a picture of hotspots and issues in your area and are extremely valuable in helping reduce antisocial behaviour.
For general enquiries relating to the organisation of Park Groups and the support available from Bristol Parks contact Rraquib Khandker, Community Development Officer.
In our experience Bristol Parks generally respond to queries promptly and try to help where they can, however, if you are not satisfied with the response you receive from Bristol Parks please contact us via and we will try to help resolve your problem.
You can also contact your local councillors and discuss local problems with them, many councillors attend meetings of local park groups.
Community Action Toolkit
Bristol Parks have produced this very informative document which is available for download from their website via the link below. The toolkit is mainly aimed at new groups but contains information that all groups will find helpful.
Download Bristol Parks Community Action Toolkit
Parks Monitoring Forms
Bristol Parks have produced these forms to encourage park groups to monitor the quality of maintenance of their parks. The forms can be printed and the completed forms sent to the freepost post address shown at the end of the form.
Parks Monitoring form.
Management and Maintenance Standards
The standards that Bristol Parks aims to achieve for management and maintenance are described on the Bristol Parks website and can be seen here: Bristol Parks Management and Maintenance Standards.
Other items of general interest relating to parks & green spaces
(please let us know if there is anything you think should be posted here).
There is a very comprehensve list of relevant websites on the Bristol Parks website. |
Bristol Parks |
What land does Bristol City Council own? The 'pinpoint' mapping system on the Council's website will show you; the link to the right takes you to Castle Park as an example. |
Bristol City Council |
'If you haven't seen the attached report before, I hope you will be as thrilled as I am with its contents.'
|
Philadelphia Park Value Report |
'Good quality, well-designed parks and green spaces make a critical contribution to our neighbourhoods, towns and cities and to people's quality of life and play an important role in creating a sense of place.'
|
Communities & Local Government |
GreenSpace a registered charity which works to improve parks and green spaces. There is lots of information on their site, the 'Community' pages are of particular interest to park groups. |
GreenSpace |
There are also three research papers about the management of urban green spaces. |
GreenSpace |
Planning Finder - find planning applications near your park. Make an instant search or register for email alerts. |
www.planningfinder.co.uk |
Town and Village Greens - information on the Department of Environment Food and Rural Affairs website about the registration of land that has been used by local people for recreation ‘as of right’ (i.e. without permission, force or secrecy) for at least 20 years. |
defra - Town & Village Greens information |
symbol and then on the map to get details of each parcel of land. 
