Agenda item

Report of the Superintendent of Hampstead Heath (copy attached)

The Superintendent took the opportunity to note that the past few months had been difficult due to the Queen’s Park Manager being on secondment to West Ham Park on a two to three day per week basis, in order to assist the Superintendent of City Gardens and West Ham Park until the vacant West Ham Park Manager position was filled.

 

The Queen’s Park Manager then updated those present on the following issues:

 

Background

 

·         He noted that the Park had been busy since the last meeting of the Group, seeing over one million visits. He further noted that, whilst it was not made explicit in his written update, the Park’s popularity needed to be seen in the context of the recent City of London report The Value of Green Space to London and Londoners. Moreover within the Park the Children’s Play area and the Children’s Zoo remained popular with consistent visitor numbers.

 

Ecology and Environment 

        

·         Lawn maintenance in the Quiet Garden would be carried out, with an outside contractor coming in to spray for weed, worms and moss. Staff would carry out in-house maintenance, including scarification and aeration, with support being provided by staff within the wider North London Open Spaces division.

 

·         Summer bedding was being removed from the Quiet Garden and would lie fallow until spring 2014.

 

·         Maintenance work would be carried out on the shrub border between the main body of the Park and the Quiet Garden.

 

·         A variety of new grasses had been planted around the pond in the Children’s Zoo at the suggestion of the visiting vet. The area had been ‘goat proofed’ to prevent the planting being damaged.

 

·         New wooden planters had been installed next to the Children’s Paddling Pool.

 

·         Hazel trees and hedges would be planted in the new Children’s Playing Area and would potentially involve volunteers.

 

Sports and Recreation

 

·         The tennis courts would be sprayed for moss over the winter, and this process would now take place annually as part of the Annual Work Programme.

 

·         Tennis coaching sessions over the summer had been a success and also a source of £3,157 in additional income. Additional marketing for children to increase representation was carried out using mobile stands, and further marketing for 2014 would be reviewed.

 

·         Annual maintenance on the Pitch and Putt course would be carried out over winter. It would remain open with the use of temporary greens.

 

·         Queen’s Park Rangers had decided it was not cost-effective for them to hold soccer camps in the Park during school holidays. The Park Manager would approach them to see if they wish to reconsider their decision in time for 2014.

 

·         The Spice Time Credits scheme had not seen much take-up within the Park, with only eight sessions on the Pitch and Putt or tennis courts being claimed. The Park Manager noted he would work with Spice to promote the scheme further.

 

·         The Tennis courts and the Pitch and Putt course had been very popular during 2013, with £46,000 in income being generated by both, with a further £1,600 from tennis coaching sessions.

 

·         No local schools had made arrangements to use the Park during 2013 for their sports days, but it had been noted some had used the Park informally.

 

In response to questions from the Chairman and members of the Group, the Park Manager confirmed that due to the poor take-up of children’s tennis sessions he would look at reducing the number of these on offer. He clarified the dual arrangement for tennis sessions, noting that the half-term sessions saw the coach benefiting from all of the income whereas the City of London earned the income for sessions between May and September, part of which was paid to the coach in fees. The Superintendent confirmed that due to poor take-up it would be sensible to move away from this dual arrangement provided the value that a dedicated tennis coach offered to the Park was taken into account when formalising any future arrangements. Lastly, and in response to a member querying whether this was another example of an individual profiting from the use of City of London facilities, the Superintendent noted that the tennis coach was licensed given this was within the legal power of the City of London to do so.

 

Conservation and Heritage

 

·         The Park Manager highlighted that due to his recent secondment to West Ham Park, progress on bringing a report on the revised Conservation Management Plan to the Group had been delayed and he hoped to bring the report to the Group at its June 2014 meeting instead. He noted that consultation had taken place on the CMP in September 2013 and a further round of consultation would take place in spring 2014.

 

·         The Park Manager noted that the Park had retained its Green Flag in 2013 and had now received one each year since the scheme’s inception in 1996.

 

Landscape Management

 

·         The Conservation Manager updated the Group on the impact on the Park of the St Jude Storm on 28 October. He remarked that the Park had come off lightly overall, and had been closed for one day whilst trees were inspected for damage. These inspections had, as well as identifying short-term damage, also given staff the opportunity to consider longer term tree management works for the coming months.

 

·         He noted that the incident of Oak Processionary Moth (OPM) at the nearby King Edward VII Sports Ground had been sprayed and eradicated, but that the situation was being closely monitored.

 

·         Massaria continued to be an issue within the Park given the presence of one hundred Plane trees. Branches at risk of failure continued to be removed to ensure public safety.

 

·         The Ash tree near the café had been removed and was likely to be replaced by a Wild Service Tree.

 

·         Two weeping willows near the Pitch and Putt course were due for repollarding.

 

In response to a question from a member the Conservation Manager confirmed that tree inspections were taking place on a regular basis, with the Tree Team visiting the park bimonthly.

 

In response to a request from a member the Conservation Manager confirmed he would look at opening up Woodland Walk to allow for the growth of smaller species, and that this could potentially form part of the overall management plan for the Park.

 

In response to a question from a member, the Conservation Manager confirmed that some of the horse chestnuts in the Park were due to be removed for safety reasons. He noted that whilst the canker affecting them could be treated, the treatment in question was expensive and arguably not value for money overall.

 

In response to a query from a member, the Conservation Manager confirmed that part of the relocated Ash branches had been attached to another tree using cables. As well as preserving the ecological value of the existing nest, the deadwood would also prove beneficial for bats. The Park Manager agreed to provide some photographs.

 

Operational Management

 

·         The City Surveyor’s Department had been instructed to carry out repairs to notice boards prior to new signage being installed in spring 2014.

 

·         A new enclosure had been added to the Children’s Zoo which would become home to three giant rabbits. The enclosure would be fox-proof.

 

·         Seven new chickens and four ducks had been added to the Zoo over the summer.

 

·         The Animal Attendant has spent some time with the Hampstead Heath Education Team with a view to developing formal education sessions for children visiting the Zoo. Local schools would be invited to participate at a cost of around £1-£2 per child.

 

·         A member of staff had been verbally abused and grabbed when requesting a football team to leave the Park at closing time. The Police were informally advised of the incident.

 

Visitors and Community

 

·         The Park hosted four outdoor films over the summer. Despite inclement weather the events attracted 500 visitors and raised £3,200 in income.

 

·         Hiring of the bandstand had raised £1,900 in income.

 

·         Queen’s Park Day was held on 15 September 2013 and saw 7,000 people visit the Park.

 

·         The Queen’s Park Residents’ Association may reintroduce the Book Festival in 2014.

 

A City of London member of the Group commented that she had attended the Queen’s Park Day in September and wished to place on record her thanks for the organisation and hard work put into the event by the Queen’s Park Residents’ Association. She added that she had helped carry out consultation on the Conservation Management Plan on the day in question and had only had positive comments about both the Plan and the management of the Park overall.

 

At the request of the Chairman, it was decided to formally record the thanks of the Group for all of the hard work and dedication shown by the members of the Queen’s Park Residents’ Association in the organisation and delivery of Queen’s Park Day 2013.

 

At the direction of the Chairman, the Group confirmed it was happy in principle for a further four films to be screened in the Park during 2014.

 

In response to a query from a member over why the City of London had the power to charge for film screenings, but not for personal trainers, the Superintendent replied that this was due to the films being in a static location and therefore covered by existing legislation. The Chairman requested that a report on the statutory powers available to regulate activity in the Park be brought to the Group’s next meeting in June 2014.

 

A City of London member of the Group voiced her appreciation for receiving an invitation to Queen’s Park Day by post.

 

In response to a question from a member, the Park Manager confirmed that bookings for the Children’s Zoo would follow a similar system in operation at Hampstead Heath, in that scanned applications could be submitted by email. Free taster sessions would be offered initially to encourage uptake.

 

RESOLVED, that –

 

·         The Group record its thanks for the hard work of the Queen’s Park Residents’ Association in organising Queen’s Park Day 2013.

 

·         A report of the Comptroller and City Solicitor summarising the statutory powers to regulate activities in Queen’s Park come to the next meeting of the Group in June 2014.