Newcastle Council has announced that it is considering handing over the responsibility for running its parks to a charity. Doing so could be a cost-saving measure and could also mean extra funding for its 32 parks due to the fact a charity could be eligible for special grants.
The council will still own the land, which will be free to enter. However, this proposal has led to some concerns that volunteers will not maintain the parks as well.
Greg Stone, Liberal Democrat councillor for Heaton, said "I am open minded about the principle of having the parks transferred to a trust, but I do have concerns about the financial figures and how they will stack up. There's always going to be a cost in maintaining parks. I can see there is an important role for volunteers, but I can't see volunteers taking on the task of doing everything the council does in terms of looking after parks."
The council has started a public consultation on the plan. A council statement said "Parks are so much more than just a place to feed the ducks and have a kick-about. They play a vital role in the leisure, recreational, health and wellbeing of the local community."
This announcement has come at the same time as a Communities and Local Government committee report, which states that public parks are facing a number of challenges including reduced spending. According to the report, the contribution that parks make to public health, community integration and climate change mitigation needs more recognition.
Clive Betts, chair of the committee, said "Every local authority should have a strategic plan, recognising that parks are much more than just grass and tulips and bringing in resources from outside the traditional budgets. Parks make vital contributions to physical and mental health and bring significant community benefits. They also contribute to biodiversity and climate change mitigation and can assist in local economic growth."
One of the recommendations of the committee report is that the public parks should remain under local authority ownership.
