We decided action was needed to keep our park a safe and beautiful environment. We recruited an enthusiastic group of volunteers to open the park gates in the mornings, and applied for ward committee funding so a security firm could close them at night (a harder job in such a big and woodsy park). For a year this trial initiative has been working brilliantly. The reduction in vandalism has meant we could invest effort and money in things like the wildlife area and new pond, planting new orchards and maintaining old ones. It keeps our playgrounds in good condition, so we are now making plans to improve them too. But in September the ward funding will run out, and as everyone knows, the council has limited funds. We know this is the right thing to do. We need to look elsewhere and every pound we raise through crowd-funding will help us raise more match funding.
