The Bradley Stoke Journal

The Friends of Jubilee Green (FOJG) are throwing a party on Saturday (24th July) to celebrate the first anniversary of the Jubilee Green Park.

The £160,000 park, next to the Jubilee Centre on Savages Wood Road, was officially opened twelve months ago by the then-Mayor Cllr Mark Forsyth only to be temporarily closed days later to “allow completion of the site”.

The park has since become a favourite with children of all ages and has recently been enhanced by the addition of an avenue of fruit trees and a bed of sensory plants. Sadly, a number of silver birch trees planted around a seating area at the back of the park have been snapped off by vandals, but despite this, the Friends’ Group says it is determined to press on with further planned developments.

On Saturday, a ‘fun in the sun’ session will run in the park from 1pm to 3pm. Buckets and spades, footballs and soft cricket sets will be provided for everyone to enjoy.

The Woodlands Suite of the Jubilee Centre will be open from 1pm to 2pm, where a children’s drawing competition and ‘make a party hat’ craft session will be held. The best pictures will be used as a backdrop for FOJG’s future publicity posters.

Refreshments will be available – for which people will be asked to make a donation, with all monies raised going towards future projects.

Read on for details of the birthday parade with party bags for all »

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Vandals have struck again at the play park on Jubilee Green just days after a large number of  trees and shrubs forming the final phase of the original Beacon Play Scheme project were planted.

Two silver birch birch trees planted behind the staged seating area at the rear of the park were snapped off within a week of being planted at the end of April and a third tree was damaged last weekend.

Plants forming a new hedge around a patio at the nearby Jubilee Centre have also been pulled up, as have plants and grasses in the moat that surrounds the play park.

Michelle Dent of the independent Friends of Jubilee Green volunteer group told The Journal:

“We are naturally very upset that one or two individuals are trying to destroy the trees and plants. But, we remain focused that the park is enjoyed everyday by families, dog walkers, grandparents, teenagers and the wider community.”

“We will continue to work with Bradley Stoke Town Council (BSTC) and the police to try to find solution to this problem and ask the community to help us look after this park, our community park.”

Michelle adds that the hedge has now been re-planted, the silver birch trees smeared with lard to try to hinder any good grip on the trunks and all the swale grass and other plants in the moat replanted.

Users of the park and local residents are being asked to contact the police on 0845 4567000 if they witness any acts of vandalism, bullying or any other worrying behaviour.

Read on for some positive news about the park »

The Friends of Jubilee Green (FOJG) are staging an Easter Fun Day this Sunday (28th March).

The group is hoping for fine weather between 2pm and 3pm , when an Easter egg hunt and Easter bonnet parade will take place around the park.

Refreshments will be available in The Woodlands Suite of the adjacent Jubilee Centre, where craft activities will also be provided.

The event is free but the group will be asking for donations for the refreshments, to raise funds for upcoming projects such as the youth structure (shelter) in the park and the “flying carpet” (a new piece of play  equipment).

Cllr Ben Walker of Bradley Stoke Town Council (BSTC) was recently co-opted to serve as an advisor to the FOJG committee. He will, however, have no voting rights as the group must remain an independent community group in order to be eligible for grant funding from a number of sources.

Michelle Dent of FOJG explained to The Journal:

“We requested this to ensure a smooth working partnership between us and BSTC.”

“We are looking to install new equipment, improving and enriching the park area and want to ensure that BSTC are aware of our intentions and activities at the planning stage as our projects have maintenance cost implications for BSTC.”

“We want to be in a position of working with the council and having their full understanding of our intentions.”

The Friends of Jubilee Green are holding a public meeting on Monday (15th February) to plan their activities for 2010.

The independent group, set up to improve and promote the play park and community space adjacent to the Jubilee Centre in Savages Wood Road, says it will be discussing fund raising and planning family activities for the year.

The main projects in the coming months will be the construction of a ‘youth structure’ (a.k.a. ‘teen shelter’) and the installation of an extra item of play equipment.

The group intends to apply for a grant to fund the projects but will have to find 10% of the costs itself, which it hopes can be raised through community fund raising events.

Family events to be organised during the year are likely to include a repeat of the successful ‘fun in the sun’ play sessions.

Michelle Dent, Chair of the Friends Group, says:

We are hoping that anyone who is interested in either joining our group or helping out on an ad hoc basis will come along and share their ideas and offer help. Without additional support the number of activities we can organise will be limited.

The meeting takes place on Monday 15th February at the Jubilee Centre, Savages Wood Road, starting at 7:30pm.

Related link: Play Areas in Bradley Stoke (The Journal)

The results of a survey of users of the Jubilee Green play park have been published by the Friends of Jubilee Green volunteer group.

89% of the 55 people polled said they would like access to toilets at the park and 71% said they would visit the park more often if they had permanent access to toilets at the Savages Wood Road site.

The news reinforces representations already made to Bradley Stoke Town Council, which does not allow members of the public to use toilets at the nearby Jubilee Centre when any of its rooms are in use by hirers.

36% of users think the park is “great”, with the remaining 64% classifying it as “OK, but could be better”.

The most-mentioned positive feature about the park was the nest swing, named by 47% of respondents.

The park was officially opened in July 2009 following two months of construction funded by the Big Lottery Fund, South Gloucestershire Council and Bradley Stoke Town Council.

The Friends have also updated the Projects page of their website to detail improvements planned for the park, which include a “youth space”, a living willow fence, additional play equipment, an orchard and a community garden.