UK'S BEST PARK: Celebrating the East of England's Best Parks
This summer's UK's Best Park award has seen all-time high numbers of nominations and a record votes tally, with 36,832 park users casting votes to help decide the winner of the UK's Best Park 2019.
In the East of England, you nominated 37 local parks and green spaces which are special to you. These nominations were then championed by park users, communities, Friends of groups, landowners and elected representatives as part of the public vote.
Following close of voting, we are delighted to be able to reveal the overall winner for the East of England region, as well as the parks which your votes mean have received "Much Loved" status. Each will receive a certificate recognising your support, whilst the regional winner joins the shortlist for the title of England's Best Park. The winners and "Much Loved" spaces in the other nations and regions will be announced day-by-day. Make sure you're following @FieldsInTrust on social media to keep right up to date with the winners!
East of England region winner
Lake Meadows
Radford Crescent, Billericay, Essex
Described by its nominator as: "Our amazing forty-acre park is visited daily by hundreds of people of all ages, who value the peace, green spaces, mature trees, lake, statues, and sports. Our Friends group cares for the gardens, runs events, installs exciting projects and promotes wildlife in the ancient woodland, flower meadow and conservation areas."
"Much Loved" spaces
Lake Meadows was one of thirteen spaces in the East of England which placed within the top 20% of all nominations nationally in voting for UK's Best Park 2019. Each of these spaces receives "Much Loved" status, recognising the support they have received this summer from those who use and love them. The other twelve "Much Loved" spaces in the East of England are:
Cassiobury Park
Watford, Hertfordshire
Christchurch Park
Ipswich, Suffolk
Eaton Park
Norwich, Norfolk
Ferry Meadows Country Park
Peterborough, Cambridgeshire
Hadleigh Country Park
Hadleigh, Essex
Halstead Public Gardens
Halstead, Essex
Holywells Park
Ipswich, Suffolk
Leavesden Country Park
Abbots Langley, Hertfordshire
Manford Way Park
Chigwell, Essex
Milton Country Park
Milton, Cambridgeshire
The Walks
King's Lynn, Norfolk
Wigmore Valley Park
Luton, Bedfordshire
Celebrating one long Summer of Parks
This Summer of Parks you've been showing love for your local parks in unprecedented numbers. From a record-breaking Have a Field Day to the biggest UK's Best Park award yet, it is clear how much we all love our local parks. Each "Much Loved" park will receive a certificate denoting its status - we will be in touch with the landowner to arrange delivery of this certificate and discuss celebrations for the newly conferred status. The park's nominator for UK's Best Park 2019 will also receive acknowledgement that their favourite local green space is amongst the nation's favourites.
Our Summer of Parks will conclude on Thursday 12th September with the announcement of the UK's Best Park 2019. This day is also an opportunity to champion those parks to receive "Much Loved" status with their new certificates, as well as celebrate all parks and green spaces across the country which are special in their own ways to those who use and love them.
Green spaces are good and they do good. Your support will help us to protect green spaces for good.
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Green Space Index in the East of England
The Green Space Index is Fields in Trust's barometer of publicly accessible park and green space provision. Our Revaluing Parks and Green Spaces research demonstrates that these spaces across the UK provide people with over £34 billion of health and wellbeing benefits. We believe that green spaces are good, do good and need to be protected for good.
In the East of England, the Green Space Index finds:
of total green space provision in the East of England
of green space provision per person in the East of England
not living within a ten-minute walk of a green space
of legally protected green space provision in the East of England
You can discover more about the Green Space Index and explore provision near you on our interactive map for the region.
About Fields in Trust
Fields in Trust is an independent charity with over 90 years’ experience protecting parks and green spaces. We work with landowners, community groups and policy makers to champion the value of our parks and green spaces to achieve better protection for their future at both local and national level.
You can donate to support our work to protect, support and champion green spaces for good.
Summer of Parks: Join the discussion as we champion our parks and green spaces
Green Space Index: Our new barometer of publicly accessible green space provision
UK's Best Park: Celebrate your favourite local green space - discover the results
Image of Christchurch Park with thanks to Rajashree Talukdar.