Walmer Road Rec is a long established and well-loved park right in the middle of Chyngton.
Friends of Walmer Road Rec aim to help everyone get the most from this precious green space, by bringing together the local community with the various voluntary and statutory groups which use and maintain it to work together to improve the facilities and biodiversity of the park.
The Friends of Group has 6 key objectives:
- Improve the biodiversity of the park.
Much of the space at the park is laid out for football. The pitches are really important, but it does mean that apart from our lovely new trees along the road side of the park, most of the space is mown grass. However, there is still a lot of room around the pitches and the children’s playground which could be great spaces for growing pollinator and wildlife friendly native species. The long hedge at the back of the park, which is home to many birds and other creatures, could also be enriched with some more diverse planting.
- Improve the safety and accessibility of the park and surrounding areas for park users of all ages and abilities.
The park is on a busy road and bus route, which is great as its easy to get to by road or public transport. However, there is currently no road safety crossing across Walmer Road to link the park to the homes on the east side of the estate. Furthermore, the is no disabled access for people using wheelchairs or mobility aids to walk into the park. Our vision includes a path suitable for users of mobility aids, and road safety crossing and picnic benches suitable for wheelchair users.
- Make use of some space for food growing
There has been an enormous growth in interest in food growing locally. With the changes to the climate and the environment, we know that food insecurity is becoming a problem for everyone. Many people are also struggling to feed their families good nutritious food due the cost of living crisis and predominance of ultra-processed foods in supermarkets. We hope to have some demonstrator beds to show that good food can be grown cheaply and easily and that doing it can be fun for young and old! Our first project with Brighton Permaculture Trust is to plant a community orchard next spring. It’s very exciting and we’ll be looking for volunteers to help with the planting and tree care afterwards.
- Improve sports and recreational facilities for users of all ages and abilities
There are 3 football pitches which are well used by a whole range of local clubs but especially Seaford Town Youth, and a great playpark too, but local people have told us there is more they’d like to see. The first priority is to replace the basketball hoop, and then missing play equipment, but we would also like to see the park used by more groups for example, exercise classes, and for the play equipment to cater for older children and also those with sensory needs.
- Build community ownership
By inviting local people to get involved and have a say about what happens in their park we hope to build a greater sense of community ownership, so people are proud of their park and feel supported to care for it. We feel that this will help combat problems of anti-social behaviour, vandalism and dog-fouling.
- Provide a space for people to meet up and for community events
The park is currently under used for events and meeting up. With the provision of more social seating, and possibly a refreshments kiosk in time, the park has the potential to become a place for local people to meet, and do things together. From tree planting to picnics, from family fun days to litter picks – there are endless possibilities!
If you would like to find out more about Friends of Walmer Road Rec please email friendsofwalmerroadrec@gmail.com or go to our Facebook page Friends of Walmer Road Rec | Facebook
