Friends of Ellington Park
Annual Report
February 2011
The Friends of Ellington Park began its life in February 2010 when Police Community
Support Officers, responding to concerns about anti-social behaviour in the Park, held a public
meeting. Enthused by the strength of public concern about the Park, local residents joined
forces and formed a committee, which later became officially the ‘Friends of Ellington Park’.
The group’s constitution states its aims as being:

To support and encourage the use of Ellington Park

To support and develop an improvement to facilities for recreation and education and to
promote awareness of the history of the Park

To encourage a sense of community around the area of the Park

To provide a safe environment for wildlife and to promote such schemes as will benefit and
nurture wildlife

To keep all members of the Friends informed and consulted regularly and to encourage
Park users to join and become Members

To affiliate with any Body whose objectives may be of benefit to the Park

To raise funds through grants and fundraising activities to support the Park

To represent the interests of the users of the Park in consultation with the Local Authority
and other bodies
Over the last year, the Friends of Ellington Park Management Committee has upheld all of
these aims through delivering a series of events in the Park and through working in
partnership with Thanet District Council, Kent County Council and Kent Police on behalf of its
members.
The ultimate aim is to attain and maintain ‘Green Flag’ status. The Green Flag is a prestigious
award scheme that highlights the best open spaces in Britain. Thanet has never had a green
space with a Green Flag awarded and Friends of Ellington Park hope to make their Park the
first. To achieve this status certain standards have to be in place and Friends of Ellington Park
are using the Green Flag standards to guide them in their activities, ensuring every activity
they undertake upholds the central aims of the organisation.
Green Flag Award Standards
To be eligible for a Green Flag Award®, sites must be freely accessible
to the public and perform well against the following eight criteria:
• A welcoming place
• Healthy, safe and secure
• Clean and well maintained
• Sustainability
• Conservation and heritage
• Community involvement
• Marketing
• Management
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The journey so far
In the first year of its life, Friends of Ellington Park have made great strides and captured the
respect and support of the local community. The group has 110 members and plans to double
that number over the next year.
Public meetings organised by ‘The Friends’ helped to gauge the feelings of local people and
assisted the group in knowing which issues were priorities.
‘The Friends’ quickly developed ways of communicating with its membership through a web
site, facebook group and a quarterly newsletter.
The Events Sub-Committee worked extremely hard in 2010 to deliver a ‘Victorian Fayre’ in May
and a ‘Ghosts and Ghouls’ event in October. Nearly 5000 local people enjoyed both of these
events.
A Community Consultation took place in November and further evidenced what improvements
to the park would encourage increased use by local residents.
Support from members, local Councillors, and local businesses means that the Friends of
Ellington Park has raised enough money to begin to purchase items for the park such as
benches and picnic tables.
Thanks to the enthusiasm of another member, bird nesting boxes are now sited in 7 of the
Park’s trees, encouraging our feathered friends to make Ellington Park their home.
The Management Committee ran fund-raising events such as second hand book sales and
membership drives.
By working together with Thanet District Council ‘The Friends’ have secured a community
notice board, electricity supply to the Bandstand, restocking of the rose beds, repair of the
damaged boundary wall and a lighting survey.
Kent Police reported the Friends of Ellington Park have had a positive impact on crime
reduction in the area. For the first 6 months of 2010 there were 24 calls reporting anti-social
behaviour in the Park and 13 of those were found to be crimes. For the latter 6 months, when
The Friends became more prominent, calls increased to 32 and crimes reduced to 7. This
clearly shows an increase in responsiveness from local residents (‘policing by community’) and
a decrease in actual criminal activity in the Park.
A partnership with East Kent Mencap has meant that their photography group has been
digitally mapping the park so that improvements that ‘The Friends’ make are recorded and the
essence of the changing Park is captured.
Friends of Ellington Park are members of Thanet Compact, National Council of Voluntary
Organisations and British Trust for Conservation Volunteers.
Above: Fundraising at Tesco, the Park Steam Train and Halloween Pumpkin Competition
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The journey to come
The challenge for the next 12 months is to positively build on the foundations that have been
established so far. The Friends of Ellington Park have a strategic plan that assists them in
moving towards attaining Green Flag status. The plan includes:
Increasing Membership
This is essential in not only raising support from the local community but also raising funds.
We plan to double our current membership by February 2012.
Increasing Volunteers
This aim is a priority. Volunteers are needed to help with events and distributing information.
Over the next year, we plan to have a team of ‘Area Coordinators’ in place who will be our
representatives at a very local level.
Building on the consultation results
People who attended the community consultation reported that their dream is to see improved
lighting, better railings and gates, more seating, toilets and a café. The Friends of Ellington
Park will work closely with Thanet District Council to try and make these dreams a reality.
Valuing the Park’s heritage
The Ramsgate Corporation opened Ellington Park as a ‘Park for the People’ nearly 120 years
ago and it has a lively and varied history. This year The Friends hope to create an Ellington
Park Archive. Already, photos and other ephemera have been collected and oral histories are
being recorded for posterity.
Offering events and activities
The Friends of Ellington Park Events Sub-Committee has drafted a calendar of events for the
whole year. There will be arts events and workshops, quizzes, nature walks, Fayres and
Fundays, Summer concerts, heritage talks, planting events and pruning workshops.
Restoring the Bandstand
The Victorian bandstand is the jewel in the crown and ‘The Friends’ have already drawn up
plans to restore it to its former glory. However, rushing in to renovate the bandstand without
building a robust infrastructure around it would be foolhardy. Community involvement, better
lighting, improved facilities and increased security all need to be in place to support this
renovation project before we start any work. Friends of Ellington Park have set up a separate
Bandstand Fund and donations are very welcome.
Building partnerships
The Friends plan to build on our partnership work and involve local schools, community groups
and organisations in the activities, projects and events that run in the Park.
Demonstrating a commitment to conservation
Looking after the environment is paramount for our future and The Friends have plans to
involve as many people as possible in taking care of the Park landscape. Litter picking events
(Dirty Weekends!), pruning workshops, planting parties, bird watching and nature walks will all
help people to not only value and look after the vast array of wild life in the Park but also
encourage more to settle there.
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Financial report
Accounts March 2010 – February 2011
Income
Expenditure
Membership
Donations
Events
FoEP Sales
Christmas Card
Sales
£ 550.00
£ 1,384.52
£ 2,131.33
£ 232.90
Membership Badges (600)
Thanet District Council Fees
Hire of Halls*
Insurance
£
£
£
£
500.55
149.20
285.00
200.63
£
First-Aid
Thanet Concert Band
Premier Flush Port-a-Loos
Stationery**
Photos by Mencap for exibit
Refunds (cancelled stalls)
£
£
£
£
£
£
352.50
50.00
188.00
593.45
15.78
65.00
Total:
£ 4,369.35
70.60
Total:
£ 2,400.11
Balance: £ 1,969.24
* Hire of hall includes £100.00 returnable deposit.
**Stationery includes: FoEP banner, collection buckets, Christmas Cards and
printing.
Acknowledgements
Grateful thanks goes to the following individuals, businesses and groups that have
supported Friends of Ellington Park in its inaugural year.
Cllr Peter Campbell
Cllr Mike Taylor
Cllr Liz Green
Ralph Hoult
Laura Sandys MP
Brian Male
Fujifilm
Wilkinsons
Bygone Days
Waitrose
St Lawrence Bowls Club
Thanet District Council
PCSO Paul Hollier
PCSO Alex Walker
Sue White
David Robinson
Mr & Mrs Barsley
Tesco
Page Mason School of
Dance
Tony Bex
Timothey Shonk
Grace Barker
Alison Curtis
Salvation Army
(Ramsgate Corps)
Tin Tin Chinese Food Takeaway
St Lawrence Tandoori
Delicious Fish Bar
RADMEC
The Ramsgate Society
Catriona Blaker
Peter Scutt
Christopher Scutt
ERA
Josephine Williams
Richard Goffin-Lecar
Paul Cartwright
A vote of thanks goes to all other volunteers and helpers that have enabled
Friends of Ellington Park to grow and bloom.
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Calendar of Events 2011
Inaugural AGM
25th
Wine & Wisdom
26th
February
March
Bulb planting weekend
18th
April
Nature Walk n Talk in the park by
John Hammond, TDC Tree Warden
May
Victorian May Fair
Including Local History talk by Catriona Blaker
21st
June
Art Workshop in the Park
12th
July
Summer Concerts in the Park
5 Sunday concerts at the bandstand
August
8th
Every Sunday afternoon
Ramsgate Arts Festival
Summer workshops in the park
27th – 29th
Nature Walk n Talk in the park by
John Hammond, TDC Tree Warden
9th
Bark in The Park
10th
Halloween event
29th
November
Local History talk by Catriona Blaker
12th
December
Christmas Fair including Grotto, hot chestnuts &
carols on the bandstand
10th
September
October
Please contact 01843 586 936 for details of these events.
Further details can be found on the website: www.friendsofellingtonpark.org.uk
and the Friends of Ellington Park facebook group
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