The big day is approaching... our end-of-summer get-together is approaching fast, and we've put together a huge range of activities, stalls and events for young and old. Please have a look through the list below - if you'd like to help out at all, there is still time to volunteer or organise a stall. Contact us for further details.
After more than 18 months of work, a five-year plan has been drawn up that will see more than £3million being spent on improvements to Victoria Park.
VPAG and Bristol City Council worked on the plan together, consulting with residents to find out what they wanted to see in the park. As a result, a new play area is to be built for 7-to-12-year olds, a natural play area will be constructed and the existing toddler play area will be enlarged and improved.
Footpaths will be improved throughout the park, the wetland area will be removed and the lodge building will be renovated as a café and community space. The skate zone will be extended and improvements will be made to the five-a-side court.
There are a number of other exciting proposals for the park, such as tree-planting and a wildflower meadow. Full details can be found online on the Bristol City Council website.
You may be pleased to know that the water maze in the park is working again after some years of being out of action. Thanks are due to our local councillors Alf and Mark, and to our park manager Gary Ratcliffe for getting all the necessary repairs done to get it back in working order.
If anyone plans to take their children down to have a look at it and have boat races around the maze, please think about taking a floor brush or a scrubbing brush with you, and giving the channels a bit of a clean-out while you are there. There are some bits of stone and broken brick in the maze, and a lot of green gunk which could do with being cleaned out.
Improving the Park
Are you interested in making a practical difference in the park? This summer VPAG volunteers will be working to repair and maintain the wooden benches throughout the park. We have bought new timber slats, paint and other hardware at a cost of £1,000 - all we need now is a few willing hands. No specialist knowledge or skills needed, all tools and guidance supplied. If you can use a paintbrush or some sandpaper, we need your help. Please contact Roger Whiter on 0117 983 5833 or at rogerwhiter@blueyonder.co.uk to put your name down as a volunteer and find out when the next bench repair session will be held.
Event Volunteers
Looking to be a willing helper?
Victoria Park Fun Day (6 September): Judy Mead has volunteered to take the lead in organising the Fun Day, which was such a great success last year. It takes a considerable amount of work to organise! We are hopeful there will be a number of people who are able to support Judy, but at a minimum, we would like to organise a stage for music or local acts/bands to perform on and a bar and some food.
Anyone who can help out or is interested in organising an activity/stall please contact either VPAG or Judy.
Our events in the past have proved very popular; however, we are struggling to find enough volunteers this year to make such events happen.
Historian and writer Barb Drummond has just published a book about the origin and history of Victoria Park and will make a donation to VPAG for every copy sold. "Victoria Park, The People's Park" is available from Mrs Brown's Café in the park, as well as from Circle Books, Grant Bradley Gallery, Bedminster Library, Bloom & Curl Bookshop, Fig1 on St Luke's Rd, Bristol Record Office and branches of Waterstones. It can also be ordered online, or you can send £4 to Barb Drummond at PO Box 2460, Bristol BS3 9WP.
The Annual VPAG Easter Egg Trail was held on Sunday 23rd March, and despite cool weather was a great success.
This year VPAG collaborated with Victoria Park Baptist Church, whose youth club and leaders organised the trail, including clue sheets and signs. About 125 children took part in the trail, which led participants all around the park. There were two sets of clues, one designed for the under 5s, and one for the older children.
Councillors Alf Havvock and Mark Bailey and their team were on hand to raise the marquee, and hungry egg hunters could also choose from a delicious array of cakes and biscuits donated by local people. Thanks to all who contributed to the cake stall and to Lara Robinson, who ran it on the day. The stall raised £36.98 for VPAG.
Many thanks for the Cadbury Creme Eggs prizes which were donated by Alf Havvock, and thanks also to Somerfield for their eggs!
Hot from the newsdesk of Amelia Paul
The Victoria Park spring clean - VPAG's first event of the year - went ahead in glorious sunshine on Feb 23rd.
Local residents turned up to don rubber gloves, wield a litter picker and pack a refuse bag full of whatever detritus they could find. VPAG members, assisted by local park keeper Felicia Jenkins, were on hand to give out equipment and advice. The areas in need of most attention were the woodland area and railway sidings, where rubbish thrown away had gathered amongst brambles and shrubs. Some larger items were pulled out of the bushes by the football pitch, including carpets and bits of furniture.
Residents helped to plant out approximately 2000 bulbs which had been obtained by VPAG in the hope that they will spread in future years, bringing a splash of colour to the winter landscape.
VPAG member Roger Whiter spent the morning mending park benches which had been damaged recently in a spate of vandalism in the park. If anyone would like to assist Roger in the future with this task, please contact VPAG.
Mrs Brown's café made a first appearance of the year, doing a brisk business in hot drinks and much-needed bacon baps to refresh weary litter pickers. The café returns to the park on a more regular basis from mid-March onwards.
By 1pm, 25 rubbish bags had been filled, so a huge pat on the back to all involved - over 50 people turned up in the end. Please help keep the park looking tidy and don't let the litter bugs get away with it!
Story dug out by Amelia Paul
In July/August 2007 a consultation was carried out by VPAG together with Bristol City Council to establish priorities for a five-year Improvement Plan covering all aspects of the park's development and management.
Approximately 2,500 copies of a consultation leaflet were hand-delivered or given out at four consultation days spread over a four-week period. Around 250 replies were received which have been sent to a professional organisation for collation into a formal report.
There is a rough analysis of the first 220 or so responses to the questionnaire, which can be found here. One graph indicates the issues that people marked as their priorities, while the other shows the suggestions ticked as being "good ideas".
The City Council has already started work on some of the issues that came out of the consultation - repairs of the water maze have been ordered and a tree-planting will be held on the weekend of November 10 and 11.
The Council is now drawing up a detailed Improvement Plan, which will be in place before the end of the year.