The Association of Gardens Trusts is pleased to respond to this inquiry. The Association was founded as a national movement in 1992, it is a registered educational charity formed to promote gardens trusts and through them the recognition, interest, education, appreciation and involvement of the public in matters connected with the arts and sciences of garden land and cultural landscapes.

  There are now gardens trusts in 32 English counties, a London Historic Parks and Gardens Trust, eight in Wales under the auspices of the Welsh Historic Gardens Trust and strong interest in several of the remaining English counties and in Northern Ireland. Our collective membership is over 7,000 and growing. We aim to involve volunteers from local communities, of all ages, and all walks of life, in the understanding, care and enrichment of designed landscape. All the established trusts are registered, educational charities in their own right.

  The gardens trusts share a common interest in working with the government agencies, local authorities, national and local amenity societies, educational trusts and local communities in the care and conservation of the historic and natural heritage. We are concerned with the conservation of historic gardens and landscapes with town and country parks and in the creation of new gardens in towns and cities. We are interested in all green spaces as all land has a history which contributes to its character and natural heritage and, in particular, for getting gardens and good design into school grounds as the first step towards understanding and managing landscape; as an effective means of contributing to numeracy, literacy targets and a broadly based curriculum; for providing opportunities to discover and interpret local history and the local historic environment, for encouraging creative art and local distinctiveness and to ensuring that gardens and parks make a contribution to the well being of the community.

  Our work with schools is a direct link into their communities; our work in helping with the conservation and creation of gardens and parks with local authority, commercial and private owners and with local communities contributes to tourism, to economic regeneration, to social inclusion and to access.

  We firmly believe that once other essential needs have been met, health, housing, education and employment, it is the quality of landscape that contributes most to the quality of life. We therefore have the following comments to make:

1. THE SOCIAL, ECONOMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFITS OF PUBLIC PARKS

  Member trusts of the Association of Gardens Trusts have considerable experience of helping to initiate and develop an awareness of the value of town and country parks, particularly in the urban areas. The process of involving local people in the research, recording, repair, restoration, management and maintenance or urban parks, together with the opportunity to participate in the creation or recreation of new gardens or parks or features within gardens, provides a series of learning curves. These include an awareness of local history, working as a team with individuals and other organisations, most often in partnership with local authorities, and a real opportunity to develop a sense of place and to participate in responsibility for the local environment. Gardens and parks appeal to all sectors of society, they are a positive and enjoyable means of bringing about social inclusion, they contribute to lifelong learning and their history and the elements they contain are, for most people, their most accessible heritage.

  Local authorities who work in partnership with local people, often called "The Friends of . . . " are able together to provide a far higher quality of provision and maintenance for gardens and parks. The process of repair, restoration or the making of new gardens and parks makes a significant contribution to local and national tourism; it is a source of pride to the community and is of economic benefit to the locality.

  Local communities take far greater care of their local environment if they have the opportunity to participate in its care and management.

  An example of this is the restoration and rejuvenation of The Crescent Garden at Alverstoke in Hampshire. The Hampshire Gardens Trust encouraged a partnership to be set up between Gosport Borough Council and the Friends of the Crescent Garden, which also included youngsters from a nearby housing estate who call themselves "The Garden Guardians". The result was the recreation of a Regency Flower Garden to complement the finest surviving classical crescent in the County, on a previous low-maintenance area of "open space". There is a great deal of local participation in the garden and it is now a much cherished local tourist attraction.

  Hereford and Worcester Gardens Trust were instrumental in setting up partnerships attracting European funding, in the area which the EEC designated as being eligible for 5b grants.

  Local town and country gardens and parks are highly valued for their wildlife. Preliminary research of a garden, park or "open space" area which involves the local community should include habitat surveys. These provide the base line data for informed decisions on sustainability and Local Agenda 21 objectives. The history of the landscape adds an appreciation and understanding of the existing wildlife and of particular features such as surviving hedgerows, trees or remnants of designed landscape.

2. THE CONDITION OF PUBLIC TOWN AND COUNTRY PARKS

  This is a matter of considerable concern. Capital funding can be found for public parks of significant historical importance from a variety of sources, mainly the Heritage Lottery Fund's excellent Urban Parks Programme. However, it is the local park, possibly rundown and unrecognised as being of historic and ecological value, that is for most people their most accessible green space—the "Breathing Place needed for the Metropolis and for country towns and villages" in J C Loudon's article of 1829. Constant cuts in revenue funding can result in these local parks becoming almost derelict "open space" which is then constantly vandalised. These areas all too often become the target for sport, leisure or housing development or become further degraded by being used as extensions for local authority carparks.

  It is the local park which contributes to the quality of life for the greatest number of people. It is essential to find some way of rewarding those local authorities with the imagination and commitment to involve their local communities. This takes patience, good communication and consultation with the local community over a long period before practical solutions emerge which can significantly improve the condition of public parks. Funding should be found for this process. There should also be the encouragement of modest revenue funding for a sufficient period to establish local involvement in the management and maintenance of local parks, possibly in the form of a park keeper from the local authority's park services.

  The interest and vigilance which comes from a caring and knowledgeable local community is invaluable to the public authority and those who manage the resource.

3. THE ROLE AND RESPONSIBILITY OF THE DETR AND OTHER GOVERNMENT DEPARTMENTS, OF LOCAL AUTHORITIES AND OTHER BODIES IN THE MAINTENANCE AND PROTECTION OF PUBLIC PARKS AND PUBLIC POLICY ON PARKS

  We have already emphasised the need for partnerships and local involvement in town and country parks, and the consultation processes which proceed the drawing up of public policy for town and country parks and for their maintenance and protection are likewise extremely important.

  The Association of Gardens Trusts and its individual County Trusts can provide much needed and informed research to government and local authorities to assist them in their policies to identify and protect urban and country parks. For example the consultation procedure for Local Plans allows the whole community to become involved in policy and this then informs the planning system. The Sites and Monuments Records of local authorities have been much enhanced by information received from County Trusts and the Trusts' research and recording of the designed landscape is frequently consulted by local planners. In addition County Trusts work very closely with statutory consultees in the planning process.

  We believe that it is essential that adequate training and awareness of the historic and ecological backgrounds to town and country parks should be given to those who formulate policy as well as to those charged with maintaining town and country parks. Policy makers need to know the contribution that parks make to the community, their evolution and development, their historical features and contents and to be aware of the necessary skills required to compile and carry out management plans for their care and conservation. Training for both officers and elected members would redress this.

  The concentration to date on the conservation of buildings often means that local conservation officers are unfamiliar with local landscapes unless these are designated by English Heritage, the Countryside Agency, English Nature and their equivalents.

  We urge you to consider the establishment of local Landscape Agencies or Fora (Forums). These can co-ordinate the wide number of organisations with a landscape interest and the new initiatives arising from Government. We are particularly thinking of the new Guidance for Local Authorities on Local Cultural Strategies and the new Local Government Bill when it becomes effective. Added to this, there are the new housing objectives for each County. We ask you to consider that new high density housing development should also provide new parks.

4. THE FUNDING OF PUBLIC PARKS, INCLUDING FUNDING FROM NATIONAL LOTTERY DISTRIBUTING BODIES

  Capital and revenue funding from the local authorities have become more and more restricted. The Heritage Lottery Fund, particularly under their excellent Urban Parks Programme, and use of a variety of schemes such as the New Deal programme and training programmes for people with a variety of needs, is, making a significant contribution.

  The Sir George Staunton Country Park at Havant, Hampshire, is surrounded by the third largest housing estate in Europe and is in an area of social need. It has recently received Heritage Lottery funding for capital works and has been restored and rejuvenated for the enjoyment of the local community and as a tourist attraction. The Park is now managed by the local authorities of Hampshire County Council, Portsmouth City Council, East Hampshire District Council and Havant Borough Council, together with the voluntary organisation, the Hampshire Gardens Trust. Revenue resources to develop local involvement are critical to the survival of this one thousand acre green park in an area of high population density.

  The Association applauds the Urban Parks Programme which has received much needed funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund and has made a great impact on the restoration and rejuvenation of our urban parks. However we are very concerned that a number of urban parks which could make a major contribution to the quality of life in certain areas and have the ability to substantially widen interest in the heritage and encourage local participation, will not receive benefit from this programme due to the time limit of the strategic plan period. There are many urban parks of great importance to their local communities, and indeed their regions, providing much needed urban green space which appear to be ineligible for support unless they have made an application within the period of the plan. We trust that funds will be found and made available to carry on this work.

5. OTHER MATTERS WHICH MAY ARISE IN THE COURSE OF QUESTIONING

  The Association would like to make the following points.

(a)  The value of informal recreation is insufficiently addressed by local authorities and is often sacrificed for more formal recreational facilities which are too costly for considerable sections of the local community.

(b)  The educational potential of parks and gardens is an immense resource for schools and it is only a question of time before environmental education receives the formal recognition it deserves.

  We shall be pleased to give further evidence if you require and are grateful to be able to comment to the inquiry.