Our plans for this year’s AGM have been scuppered so we are just going to update you on news of the park and leave the Management Committee the same for now: Sandra Bauer, Paul Buckley, Alan Deacon, Kris Inglis, Sonja O’Sullivan, Ron Senkus, Irene Telfer and Iris White. If you would like to join the committee and get more involved, there is a link to use later in this email. New members are always welcome.
Arising from the 2019 AGM:
- Fundraising from grants has gone quiet (for permanent iron site signage, path maintenance of Dothill etc.) If anyone would like to help with grant applications please contact us!
- Path maintenance from the carpark was carried out this month. It’s a good job and when I enquired I was told that plans to continue the upgrade (at least patching holes) around and down the hill were in the works
- Take-litter-home signage supplied by RBG went up just as the committee was about to make more of our own in early lockdown
- Mowing and major path clearing schedule confirmed with Parks and Open Spaces in July
- Hedgerow project going ahead – in safe form – starting 12 December. Details to follow
- Plumcroft School Orchard progressing, with guidance and support of RBG. Lots of work done by Tamasin and her team in preparation for December (tbc)
Summary of past year…
We held a successful 2019 Quiz night with Shrewsbury House in November that proved a fun time and a good fundraiser. A member alerted us to the Celebrate National Lottery 25 Grant and turned the application around to meet the deadline. This gave us £775 for wildlife monitoring equipment, a decision based on last year’s AGM discussion of habitats. We have materials for hedgehog surveying, a nature cam and two bat detectors so far and look forward to working parties being able to carry out investigations. Many thanks to Les for all his efforts on this application.
After cancelling the March Bird Walk it became clear that every visit to the park would have to be self-directed for the foreseeable future. No Summer Festival, just walks for exercise, play, reflection and running around madly became the main focus. Thank you to everyone who continued to encourage social distancing, responsible picnicking and considerate dog walking during the most stressful times. Many people discovered the pleasure of this open space and experienced the natural world on our doorstep.
Have you seen the video showcasing FSP and the park? Or taken a turn on the swing that appeared in April?
Thankyous
We’ve had help with habitat management this summer. One was a survey done by Joe Beale, local environmentalist, who walked the park with a few members to identify habitat diversity and make suggestions as to how we can appropriately support and manage the space.
The Royal Borough of Greenwich Parks and Open Spaces were very cooperative when approached with FSP meadow care concerns: when they met myself and Les Clark they had already mapped out the next two years’ mowing from the same environmental criteria. There is a lot of expertise and experience we can draw on in P and OS.
Thanks to Michelle for providing several months of hedgehog news and guidance posted on the website. And to Les and Liz for establishing watering stations for wildlife throughout the summer and now. Thanks also to Sandra for providing the impetus and editing of the above mentioned video. And thanks to Anthony Hurren who shared his lockdown nature video and won the cover place on the 2021 calendar.
The Lockdown Gallery on the website started in March was a huge success – thanks for kicking it off, John! And of course this fed naturally into the 2021 calendar with voting online that went surprisingly well. The sale of the 2021 calendar was very successful and thanks for spreading the resulting product far and wide. The price increased to £6.50 this year and we sold about half in just one of those glorious weekends in the park in July. Results in the Treasurer’s report THERE ARE STILL 3 LEFT! Contact werfsp@gmail.com to get one.
May the new year bring more activities back to the park and keep all those positive ones that you’ve discovered in 2020. Feel free to send any suggestions or concerns via the email address.
See you in the Park
Kris Inglis, Chair