For the purposes of this statement
parks, amenity grasslands and city squares are those areas
of open space which are, by and large, publicly accessible
or managed primarily for formal recreation. Formal parks,
sports pitches, landscaped areas around institutions, and
school playing fields are some examples. This audit excludes
golf courses, as many of these will include habitats covered
by woodland, grassland and heathland audits.
In this audit parks are defined
as those amenity open spaces which are formal, managed landscapes
consisting of extensive mown grassland, avenues of trees,
copses, shrubberies, flower beds and formal water features.
This category includes the larger city squares. Some parks
may also support quite large areas of semi-natural habitat
such as woodland. This audit does not include ‘parkland’
such as old deer parks, wood pasture or ‘old’
parks with many mature trees (e.g. Greenwich Park). These
parkland areas are covered by audit HA2: Open Landscapes
with Ancient/Old Trees.
There have not been any London-wide
surveys of this resource and therefore there are no comprehensive
figures for the extent of parks, playing fields, sports
pitches and other amenity grassland.
An approximate figure is available
for the amount of this habitat present in London as a whole.
A sample of aerial photographs of Greater London which was
analysed by the London Ecology Unit in 1992, suggested that
‘parks’ as defined by this audit comprise 8% (12,500ha)
of London’s total land area. ‘Sports pitches’
cover approximately 3% (4,700 ha) of the total land area,
‘grounds of schools & other institutions’
1.5% (2,400 ha) and ‘common green spaces around flats’
a further 1.1 % (1,700 ha). Therefore,
the total figure for the extent of parks and amenity grasslands
in London is approximately 21,000 ha - 13% of Greater London’s
surface area.
The
most significant threat to the biodiversity of formal parks,
playing fields and amenity open space is unsympathetic management.
Intensive management is required to maintain recreational
areas, attractive flower beds, sports pitches and other
amenity features. However, a more integrated approach to
the management, which pays attention to the needs of wildlife
and which regards the maintenance of biodiversity as a key
management aim, could be introduced in many parks.
Even though the vast majority
of playing fields, parks and other amenity open spaces are
protected through open space policies in boroughs’
Unitary Development Plans (UDPs) there has been a tendency
in recent years to dispose of parts of playing fields (especially
school playing fields) for development. In addition, there
has been a trend of replacing grass sports pitches with
artificial turf.
The extensive area of playing
fields, formal parks and amenity open space provides enormous
potential for habitat enhancement and habitat creation within
the limits imposed by the needs of formal recreational and
amenity areas. Many parks have been created on areas of
open space that once supported semi-natural habitat and
this habitat may still survive in certain areas. These relic
features can provide the resource from which more extensive
areas of grassland or woodland habitats can be restored
or recreated. Where there are no remnants of former habitats,
habitat creation techniques can be applied to make new habitats
(such as ponds or wildflower meadows). Alternatively the
existing park maintenance regime can be amended to allow
greater structural diversity. Relaxing mowing regimes, cutting
hedges less frequently or delaying the removal of accumulated
leaf litter are some options.
Many formal parks and playing
fields are an important part of open space corridors connecting
extant areas of semi-natural habitat. Appreciation of the
formal open spaces’ context within a corridor can inform
decisions about its management that in turn will enhance
its value as a green corridor for wildlife.
A significant opportunity for
awareness-raising arises as a result of the popularity of
parks ands open spaces. A far greater number of people are
likely to visit their local park or playing field than their
local nature reserve. Providing information about the biodiversity
of the local park is the first step in promoting a greater
appreciation of biodiversity generally.
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the full audit - this is only a summary
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