Green Flag Award for Victoria Park

‘Brilliant facilities for the local community’, ‘Something for all ages and abilities’, ‘A real community hub’, ‘The whole site was looking excellent’……not our words, but those of the Green Flag Award Feedback Report on Victoria Park in Ashford.

Victoria Park has this week, received the Green Flag Award. This is an incredible achievement for everyone who worked so hard to make the park a really outstanding public asset to the borough.

As set out in our Borough Plan, we want to make Ashford a place where people, business and nature can collectively thrive. We understand the importance of beautiful green spaces to our residents and seek to create places that offer spaces to be active, to relax and to build community, while also making space for nature.

The Green Flag Award assessment included desk research and a site visit in May this year. It assessed presentation, safety and security, maintenance of equipment, buildings and landscaping, litter and cleanliness and general promotion of the area and facilities on offer. 

The site is one of 2,250 in the UK to achieve the award, which is the international quality mark for parks and green spaces.

The news that Victoria Park has met the standards required for the accreditation is testament to the hard work and dedication of the team that care for the green space so that visitors and residents alike can enjoy it.

Other specific areas picked out for praise were:

• Biodiversity Landscape & Heritage:

The river area and marginal areas along the river were managed excellently demonstrating a good working relationship with the Kentish Stour project.

• Community Involvement:

Excellent all over the park. The activators have done a great job, and Roger demonstrated a real passion for the community. The friends of group seem to be helpful and constructive and a good asset to the park. Good programme of events, including Park Run and yoga.

• Overall management of the park:

Excellent, the whole site was in a great condition and an asset to the local area.

The report concluded with the following glowing endorsement: 

‘This was a joy to judge and to award their first Green Flag. The staff we met were passionate and engaged about the site and local community and it showed through on the ground.  

‘It was clear that the community were at the heart of the park and the potential for the park foundation to seize on this moving forward is very exciting. The site was in an excellent condition.’

Cllr Kate Walder, Cabinet Member for Parks & Recreation, said: “I am extremely proud of the Victoria Park team and the local community who have worked hard to look after this wonderful asset – it truly is a lovely place to spend time with the family, enjoy leisure activities on offer or view the beautiful wildlife and nature around.

“This is an incredible achievement for everyone who worked so hard to make Victoria Park a really outstanding public asset to the borough.”

Flying the flag for well managed parks and green spaces

The Green Flag Award® scheme recognises and rewards well managed parks and green spaces, setting the benchmark standard for the management of recreational outdoor spaces across the United Kingdom and around the world.

The Green Flag Award is managed by Keep Britain Tidy under license from the UK Government Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government.

Green Flag Award Scheme Manager, Paul Todd MBE, said: “Congratulations to everyone involved in Victoria Park, Ashford who have worked tirelessly to ensure that it achieves the high standards required for the Green Flag Award. Quality parks and green spaces like Victoria Park make the country a heathier place to live and work in, and a stronger place in which to invest.

“Crucially, Victoria Park is a vital green space for communities in Ashford to enjoy nature, and during the ongoing cost of living crisis it is a free and safe space for families to socialise. It also provides important opportunities for local people and visitors to reap the physical and mental health benefits of green space.”

The Green Flag Award scheme, managed by environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy under licence from the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government, recognises and rewards well-managed parks and green spaces, setting the benchmark standard for the management of green spaces across the United Kingdom and around the world.

New and improved facilities at Victoria Park

The Victoria Park and Watercress Fields Project is a £5m+ project delivered by Ashford Borough Council and the National Lottery Heritage Fund to improve and protect Victoria Park for the local community. The park’s new and improved facilities include:

Community Building – A new café with purpose-built outside seating, a room available to hire for events, clubs or classes, modern toilets, including a Changing Places facility, alongside a refurbished nursery.

Flagship new playground - A huge new playground with climbing frame, swing, trampolines, a zip-wire and more.

Sensory Garden - A colourful and fragrant garden in the heart of a woodland meadow setting to create a space perfect for mindfulness.

Seasonal Wetland Area - The creation of an entirely new seasonal wetland area in the heart of the park to allow the Stour to breathe and people to enjoy nature.

River Corridor - Opening up the riverbank and natural woodland to allow users to enjoy the Stour from a new picnic area and viewing platform.

Fountain Piazza - A better space for people at the fountain with new access and seating, improved surfacing and lighting, and new formal planting.

Community Spaces - A new secure compound for the growing volunteer groups to store materials and get trained, and a freshly surfaced multi-use games area.

Pump Track - A new hard-surface track for BMXers, skaters, and all other mini-wheels users. Designed and built by the team behind the London 2012 Olympic BMX track and with input from Ska8side users.

A small flag raising ceremony with the Deputy Mayor is planned to celebrate this milestone with the local community on Wednesday 30th July at 11am. This coincides with the next Eat Well Spend Less Roadshow at Victoria Park from 10am and 2pm. More information on that can be found on our website.