Minutes of 20 April 2024 Friends of Gladstone Park Public Meeting 2pm – 4pm Cosmos Rugby Clubhouse
Present
Trustees: Hazel Glenister, Francine Lawrence, Helen Goodsell, Cllr Liz Dixon, Gill Close (minutes), Paul Hurst, Cllr Tariq Dar, Mark Cummins, Sajjad Dar, David McClements
Kelly Eaton and roughly 30 attendees, some of whom did not sign in
Kelly Eaton, Brent Council’s Head of Parks, Leisure and Cemeteries, gave a presentation. She said the team worked in over 100 parks and open spaces in Brent, including allotments, cemeteries and highway verges and roundabouts. The parks team consisted of three project officers, three administrative staff and six wardens, whose role included opening and closing pavilions when sports pitches were hired. The team also worked with friends of parks groups.
Kelly said that an increase in litter was a problem across parks, with 45 tonnes collected by Continental Landscapes since its park maintenance contract started in August 2023. She wants to encourage people to take litter home.
For Gladstone Park, the team worked closely with Friends of Gladstone Park and the Gladstone Gardening Group, and met regularly with the Kilburn Cosmos Rugby Club and both cafés. It also worked with George Irvin who holds an annual funfair. It has supported and submitted to Natural England the Local Nature Reserve application for the copse. Kelly celebrated the range of features of Gladstone Park, including the walled garden, Dollis Hill House footprint and historical display, peace grove, cherry trees, circle of 50 trees, prisoners of war memorial sculptures, and the flower bed and signboard memorial to the slave trade. She also said that the resurfacing of the steep path was now underway.
Kelly summarised the prohibitions in the Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO) for parks in place until April 2025. She said the main Gladstone Park concerns passed on to her were about mopeds and dogs. She said enforcement was a challenge. The council’s enforcement team was separate from the parks team and would attend at relevant times and locations if a number of PSPO breaches had previously been reported via www.brent.gov.uk/PSPO or the QR code on the PSPO notices. They would enforce but not be available to circulate and provide education. If community members see ongoing breaches, such as barbecues, during 9-5 working hours, they can phone the parks service on 020 8937 5619, as shown on their website, and a warden can then attend www.brent.gov.uk/parks-leisure-and-healthy-living/parks-and-open-spaces/about-our-parks Police deal with drugs and dangerous dogs. Vandalism is a PSPO prohibition and a concern. The five stolen park benches would be replaced by the council and be welded in. The council will repair the fencing around the pleasure ground which people keep bending.
The council funds a free healthy walks programme, with no need to book. Every Tuesday 1pm from the Stables Café. Further walks are being added at 5pm on Wednesdays and 1.30pm on Fridays. There are also walks in other parks.
www.brent.gov.uk/events-in-brent/2024/regular-events/walking-for-health—gladstone-park
www.brent.gov.uk/events-in-brent/2024/regular-events/walking-for-health—roundwood-park
www.brent.gov.uk/events-in-brent/2024/regular-events/walking-for-health—welsh-harp
www.brent.gov.uk/events-in-brent/2024/regular-events/walking-for-health—-willesden-sports-centre
They will be advertised in the FoGP newsletter.
A walk in the walled garden followed by tea and a chat will also be offered on Thursday 27 June from 10-11.30am.
Helen Goodsell summarised the upcoming walks and litter picks listed on the agenda and invited people to visit the gardening club in the walled garden on Mondays and Wednesdays from 10am to 12 noon and the copse group on Fridays from 10am to 12 noon. Information: gladstoneflowersNW@gmail.com, gpwoodlandproject@gmail.com
Walks
- Children & parents: discovery walk in the woodland with David McClements
1.30-3pm Saturday 1 June and 1.30-3pm Saturday 26 October, meet at entrance opposite Gladstone Park Gardens
- Gladstone Park: history & myth 6.30pm Monday 10 June with Cathy Mercer, meet at green railway bridge
- Nature walk: the acid grassland 11am Sunday 23 June with John Wells, naturalist, meet at green railway bridge
- Butterfly walk 11am Sunday 14 July with Paul Busby, Herts & Middx Butterfly Conservation, meet at green bridge
- Bat strolls: when weather is suitable, see FoGP Facebook or email gladstoneflowersNW@gmail.com
Litter picks
- 10am – 12 noon Sunday 26 May from Anson Road entrance
- 10am – 12 noon Saturday 22 June from Dollis Hill House footprint
After the break, Kelly Eaton took questions and provided responses.
Details are in the table below, grouped into themes
| Questions and concerns | Response from Kelly Eaton |
| Litter | |
| Bins are not fit for purpose, break and are not fox proof. Royal parks have some fox-proof bins. Can there be more bins? | Continental Landscapes is contracted to clear a fixed number of bins. In Roundwood Park, where there are 30 bins in a busy area, people still leave bags next to bins. More encouragement to use bins is needed, but the council also wants to encourage people to take their litter home. Will check on fox-proof bins and those in royal parks and try to replace bins that need it, although costs can be up to £500. |
| No bins on the busy path between Olive Road and Anson Road | No new bins being purchased but can look at moving bins. Separate dog waste bins were no longer needed as dog waste can be placed in the main waste bins. |
| Could there be a competition to design stickers and notices? | Friends of Gladstone Park had already designed the fox sticker that is on the bins. |
| Could wardens circulate during busy picnic times, from 5pm to 7pm at weekends, to speak to families about why not to leave litter, asking them to take litter home and perhaps hand them a bag? | Looking at that approach |
| Suggestions: education feature in Brent Magazine, leaflet in different languages to give to picnic groups, a litter sculpture made from bottles placed on the MUGA where many bottles are left. | |
| Plans to clear litter along the railway lines | No information about that |
| Cafés | |
| Could the Stables Café open later and on Bank Holidays? | Difficult for a family business that opens early in the morning and cooks what it sells to stay open after everything has been sold and on 7 days per week. The two cafés could open at different times to give more coverage. Property Services handles the contracts. |
| Gladstone Centre | |
| Community access is needed. It is a historical building initially built as World War II Air Raid Precaution (ARP) | Will raise with property services how community access can be enabled |
| Any plans to redevelop the Gladstone Centre | Property services was discussing potential opportunities |
| Park maintenance | |
| The steep path up from the green railway bridge is being resurfaced now. Will other paths be resurfaced? | The path will be finished next week but there is currently no funding for further resurfacing. |
| Flooding and blocked gulleys | Looking to clear gulleys on the main thoroughfare; no funding available to raise the path as a solution |
| The litter and weeds in the pond need regular clearing | Continental Landscapes have waders and will do this regularly |
| Only one toilet and no baby changing facilities in the toilet | Cost can be up to £30000 to purchase and fit securely. She could look for funding sources |
| How is noise in the park dealt with – it is not in the parks PSPO? | Dealt with the by council’s noise pollution team. The renewal of PSPOs in April 2025 will be consulted on. |
| Why is it no longer possible to purchase memorial trees? | Costs are prohibitive for the required 3-year watering scheme at £1000 per year. Looking at other memorials in addition to benches. Can buy roses through FoGP. |
| How does the parks service communicate to the community its upcoming plans for the park. | Through ward councillors and FoGP. Not through social media. |
| How could the parks service attract more young women into parks, including through upgrading the MUGA for netball for which some funding could be available? | Will work with the council’s community safety team about these. |
| Funding | |
| Could we encourage more people responding to planning applications to ask for the section 106 money to go straight to the parks department? | The Parks Service receives quarterly notification of s106 allocation to parks. The large development must be near to the park to be specified in its s106 agreement. |
| Can we apply for charity grants for the park? | Yes. Details are on the council website |
| Drinking fountains | |
| Can the Mayor of London’s office be asked if its drinking fountain funding would be available again so the cancelled fountain opposite the end Cullingworth Road scoped by Thames Water could be funded? | Will check if a similar funding stream is coming up again |
| When will the drinking fountain south of the tennis courts be ready for use? | Will be connected to the water supply as part of the work on the tennis court office and toilet which is due this summer |
Closing remarks
Thanks to Kelly Eaton for her presentation and responses.
Thanks to the rugby club for hosting the meeting.
Thanks to everyone for coming to the meeting.