Hackney,
19
October
2021
|
15:45
Europe/London

Record 28 green flags for Hackney’s parks

Hackney’s parks and green spaces have been awarded their highest-ever number of green flags, the award given to the very best parks in the UK.

Twenty-eight parks - up from 27 last year - now meet the tough criteria set out by the Green Flag Award, with maintenance, biodiversity, community involvement and management all part of the judging process.

Shore Gardens by Devonshire Hall on the Frampton Park Estate is the newest addition to Hackney’s group of green-flagged parks, with Mayor Philip Glanville, and Cabinet Member for Families, Early Years, Parks and Play, Cllr Caroline Woodley, joining park staff there this month to celebrate the landmark achievement. 

Cllr Caroline Woodley, Cabinet Member for Families, Early Years, Parks and Play
For so many of us, Hackney’s beautiful parks are a lifeline, where we can explore, play and relax. 

I’m so proud that we’ve reached our highest-ever number of green flags, which shows our commitment to maintaining excellent green spaces for the whole community - and is testament to the hard work of brilliant staff and volunteers.
Cllr Caroline Woodley, Cabinet Member for Families, Early Years, Parks and Play

Commenting on the announcement of this year’s winners, Keep Britain Tidy Chief Executive Allison Ogden-Newton OBE said: “As Green Flag Award celebrates 25 years of raising thestandard, Keep Britain Tidy is delighted to be the custodian of a scheme that does so much to ensure our parks and green spaces go from strength to strength. 

"At a time when parks have been at the heart of every community across the country it is perhaps not surprising that 95% of the public thinks that their local parks and green spaces need to be protected.

“This is why the Green Flag Award is so important. It ensures that parks and green spaces are managed to the highest standards and are safe and accessible for everyone to enjoy and we look forward to the next 25 years.”

The Council is committed to continuous improvement of its parks and green spaces, with hundreds of new trees planted in its parks this year, refurbished toilet facilities in London Fields and Clissold Park, and significant improvement projects being delivered in Daubeney Fields, Shoreditch Park, Abney Park, Springfield Park and a number of play areas across the borough.

The Green Flag Award scheme, managed by environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy under licence from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, recognises and rewards well-managed parks and green spaces, setting the benchmark standard for the management of recreational outdoor spaces across the United Kingdom and around the world.

Research carried out by YouGov for Keep Britain Tidy over the summer shows just how important parks are to the British public.

It reveals that having access to a quality park or green space helped improve people’s mental health with almost six in ten (59%) saying they felt less stressed when using the park and 55% saying they felt more positive in general. That’s why it’s important that parks are managed to the Green Flag Award standard

The survey also showed that more than half of people (53%) visit a park or green space at least once a week and more than nine in ten (93%) think that parks and green spaces are important to their local community.

A full list of Hackney’s Green Flag Award winning parks can be found at https://hackney.gov.uk/parks-a-z.