A trio of parks in Lambeth have won a prestigious international award celebrating their excellence.
Lambeth celebrated last month’s awards for three of its green open spaces: Larkhall Park, Ufford Street Gardens and Wyck Gardens. Colleticvely they won the Green Flag award, the international mark of quality for parks and green spaces.
The purpose of the award is to ensure that parks and other outdoor areas are appropriately managed and meet the needs of the communities that they serve, to promote good practice amongst the green space sector and to recognize the precious work of managers, staff and volunteers.
From the first Green Flag won by Ufford Street Park in 2007, Lambeth has been raising more flags in more sites each year, bringing the total of officially-recognized great open spaces up to 22.
This is testament to the work of Lambeth staff, volunteers, friends of park groups and residents for their care and stewardship of the parks and green spaces.
Cllr Claire Holland, Leader of Lambeth Council, said: “Lambeth’s parks and green spaces are some of the things that Lambeth residents love most about our borough.
“The covid pandemic and the ongoing impacts of climate change have shown us more than ever how vital these spaces are, particularly to families without gardens or outside space.
“That’s why investing in our parks to make them even better is a key priority for our administration – and I’m pleased to see that work alongside the community recognised in this record number of Green Flags.”
Like all Green Flag winners, the three new awarded green spaces have to keep their quality standards high to renew their award status each year.
The Green Flag Award scheme, managed by environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy under license from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, recognises and rewards well-managed parks and green spaces, and aims to raise the standards across the United Kingdom and around the world.
Any green space freely accessible to the public is eligible to enter for a Green Flag Award. Alongside the main Award, the Green Flag Community Award recognises quality sites managed by voluntary and community groups and the Green Heritage Site Accreditation is judged on the treatment of the site’s historic features and the standard of conservation.
A full list of the UK’s Green Flag Award-winning parks and green spaces can be found at www.keepbritaintidy.org.
