Category: The Park

  • Queen’s Park update

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    Christmas tree collection point

    Brent Local Authority has agreed to use Queen’s Park as a collection point for Christmas trees. Drop off  trees at the park staff yard on Kingswood Avenue from 9th – 15th January 2017. Other options for disposal include the Reuse and Recycle Centre in Abbey Road or by using the garden waste service offered by Brent.

    Tennis court booking

    Tennis courts can be booked via playtenniscityoflondon.com.

    The courts must be paid for throughout the year.  The LTA have met with the City of London in regard to part funding the redevelopment of the tennis courts.  The Park Manager is preparing a tennis development plan, which will support the application for funding from the LTA.  A Great British Tennis Weekend event is planned in May 2017, dates will be confirmed.

    Park Café Consulation

    The City of London are currently carrying out consultation to make sure the café meets with the needs of users, residents and stakeholders. To help in any future tender process, they need to gather as much information as possible about how people use the café, what people are looking for in a café in Queen’s Park and how the catering offer could be improved through the tender process. An online survey is be available until 27 January 2017. http://www.surveygizmo.com/s3/3257541/Queen-s-Park-Cafe-Consultation 

    Sandpit play area

    A consultation event in September gave feedback on the proposed improvements in this area. Users would like more natural play equipment, to encourage use of the underused grass area within the sand pit towards the park entrance ‘Harvist Rd’ and a water/sand play feature.  Access to the toilet was also considered.  Further consultation with a small stakeholder group will help shape a final design with costings and the appointment of a contractor to complete the works. The Queen’s Park Joint Consultative Group will meet in mid-January to discuss the plans further.

    Toilet refurbishment

    On the 9th January 2017 improvement works will take place at the toilets outside the café. The disabled toilet furniture will be replaced and doors to the toilets replaced.  The walls will be painted and the flooring and wall tiles replaced.

    Other projects

    A number of projects to be delivered within the current financial year include updating and replacing signage at the park entrances, replacement and new benches, tree and hedge works and minor improvement in the Children’s Farm.

    Online survey for feedback on the Park

    https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/OSsnapshot201617.

  • Annual bird walk report

    Fortunately the birds in the park were undeterred by overcast and windy weather that greeted the smaller than usual number of walkers that joined us on 21st May. The birds were active everywhere and altogether the five walkers spotted 17 species. It was good to see a pair of Blue Tits flying to and from a nest entered via a tiny hole in the soffit board above the café. Less surprising were another pair in a purpose-built suspended nest box in the woodland walk, close by a hole in a tree from which Parakeets were coming and going. The pitch and putt course yielded three handsome Mistle Thrushes, two Goldfinches and a Great Spotted Woodpecker which seemed to have been using the cut-off section of a newly pruned willow branch for drilling practice. Finally a quick recce of Chevening Road east produced the hoped for Swift. Here is a full list of the birds spotted.

    Name Number
    Blackbird 4 male and female
    Chaffinch 4
    Crow 4
    Goldfinch 2
    Blackbird 4 male and female
    Chaffinch 4
    Crow 4
    Goldfinch 2
    Gull, Herring (Black-Headed) 2
    Magpie 2
    Parakeet 4
    Pigeon, Feral Many
    Pigeon, Wood 1
    Robin 2
    Starling Many
    Swift 1
    Thrush, Mistle 5
    Tit, Blue 4
    Tit, Great 2
    Woodpecker, Great Spotted 1 female
    Wren 2

     

  • Join the annual QPARA bird-walk in Queen’s Park on Saturday 21st May

    Please join us for a stroll through Queen’s Park and Paddington Cemetery. Meet at the park café at 9.30am. The walk will take about 90 minutes, but people can join or leave at any time. We will be looking out especially for Green and Great Spotted Woodpeckers and Swifts. Bring binoculars if you have them, but if not, just bring yourself!

    Male Great Spotted Woodpecker
    Male Great Spotted Woodpecker