Project Case Studies
Productive Landscapes in Preston
Partners:
- The Wildlife Trust for Lancashire, Manchester and North Merseyside
- Places for People
Summary
As part of Places for People Green Spaces Strategy it was recognised that there was an opportunity to encourage the use of Green Space by our communities, and at the same time improve the quality of the spaces through potential grant funding streams. Because of Places for People Landscape manager's links with the Wildlife Trust it was decide to approach the local wildlife trust with a view to funding one of their officers to assist with this initiative rather than recruiting a member of staff to work in house. It was felt that the Wildlife Trust had the expertise in habitat management and creation as well as community consultation skills. They had also been working in the area with their Productive Landscaptes in Preston (PLiP) project.The PLiP Project was developed by the Wildlife Trust for Lancashire, Manchester and North Merseyside in 2003. The aim of the project is to connect communities with their local public spaces through a programme of initiatives that turn derelict, neglected and underused land into "productive landscapes" and make local open spaces better places for people and wildlife.
PLiP has worked in partnership with Preston City Council and more recently with Places for People, one of the largest providers of social housing in the country, who own a number of estates in Preston.
Places for People is the UK's largest housing and regeneration group, which works in 225 local authorities and is responsible for around 60,000 properties. As well as being a major housebuilder and developer it offers a range of services including affordable childcare, financial and banking services and support for elderly people.
Description
The Wildlife Trust and Places for People partnership was set up in 2006 to develop a Productive Landscapes pilot project to improve Places for Peoples' greenspaces for local people and wildlife.The partnership has identified potential sites in Preston and the local community are currently being consulted within the pilot areas to identify issues, concerns and suggestions for improvement of their greenspaces.
Raising peoples awareness of their environment and local wildlife is being developed by carrying out events, education sessions and workshops with local schools, youth groups, community organisations and residents.
One of the first projects to be targeted is the management of an overgrown and flytipped pond. Funding is currently being applied for to clean up the area and remove some of the vegetation from the pond. Planting wildflowers and bulbs around the woodland and pond will brighten up the area and the development of a gate in the fencing and a pond dipping banking will enable local groups to access the area for environmental education to spot the frogs and minibeasts. Volunteers will be recruited to help with some of the tasks. Environmental education sessions and art workshops for the site interpretation will also be carried out with people from the local community. This will all help create a sense of ownership and make it once again an attractive and inviting space for local people to use and enjoy.
In the future the Productive Landscapes project will be extended to other Places for People areas in partnership with other Wildlife Trusts. A regional conference is planned for September 2007 for all interested organisations to meet and discuss how to improve the green areas around social housing.
Process
Networking and consultation with all levels of the local communities has occurred in the two main sites of Preston identified for the pilot, Ingol and Ribbleton. Becoming involved in the Neighbourhood Management Partnerships for the areas has been very useful, has facilitated the networking and consultation process and been a source of some funding for the project.Funding has been obtained from various sources and includes contributions from Places for People, Neighbourhood Regeneration Fund, European Regional Development Fund, Safer Stronger Communities Fund, Lancashire Environment Fund and Lancashire County Council.
The project is funded for 3 years and ongoing management of the sites will be carried out by Places for People in collaboration with community members who have developed an interest in becoming involved in the care and management of the sites.
Evaluation
Formal evaluation of the PLiP and Places for People partnership has not yet been carried out because the project is still in its infancy. An evaluation is planned for Summer 2007, a year into the project, and this will help identify future improvements of the project for the pilot area and for when the project is rolled out to other areas.Resources
Places for People: www.placesforpeople.co.uk/The Wildlife Trusts:www.wildlifetrusts.org/
