FAIR PLAY FOR PARK
By Tricia Ross

Residents of Leeds have discovered to their cost the 'benefits' of heritage lottery funding. An £8.2 million project at Roundhay Park kicked off in June 2003 to the sound of chain saws as contractors began felling 350 trees. Residents who contacted Leeds City Council were told that there had been a long consultation process over 4/5 years and that people had had their chance to have their say.

The trouble is most ordinary people had not and the way consultation processes are routinely constituted suggests that this is the last thing local authorities want. Public opinion survey results selectively omit data in order to provide 'proof' of public support for controversial proposals.

BBC reports suggest that Elvaston Country Park, a Grade II* listed park, is the target for an £8 million Heritage Lottery Fund grant to restore its gardens. Residents of Derby need to be aware that lottery funding may not be all good news. Listing, far from safeguarding the park, will mean that its landscape is subjected to the worst strictures of 'heritage' funding criteria.

It is important to establish exactly what stage the bid process has reached. If consultation is still ongoing, try to get involved. Large grants are subject to a two stage process: stage 1 approval is often followed by a grant from HLF to further develop a restoration project. This takes around 12 - 18 months after which the stage 2 bid will be submitted. Approval normally follows after 4 - 6 months.

You are entitled to see the originating application and supporting documentation which will give you some idea what the plans are. It is sometimes difficult to judge tree loss from descriptions in documents and you will need to make specific enquiries. We have a growing list of parks which have been ill served by lottery funding, the latest being Hylands Park, Chelmsford where over 400 trees have been felled revealing views of an industrial estate.

Wildlife and environmental issues are a poor second place and are brushed aside as unimportant compared with 'heritage' conservation. The heavy emphasis on 'heritage' also distorts spending priorities so that areas considered important to greater public use and enjoyment will not be included or will be axed where costs over run whilst projects are in progress.

The trick from any council's viewpoint is to keep people in the dark as much as possible. Having read reports on this site and in the local press I would say residents have every reason to be concerned about any heritage lottery grant for Elvaston. There are concerns in areas too numerous to elaborate here and for further information contact me at Tr1shar@hotmail.com. It may be that you have nothing to worry about and that the restoration will bring significant benefits but if you do nothing you may be in for some nasty surprises.