Action Plan: Recreational & Amenity Space

For the many people who live in towns, parks and gardens represent the only large area of local accessible green space. Most park areas are municipal and are made available for amenity and recreational functions. They are often neatly landscaped and include introduced species that are not native to this country. The turf of playing areas is regularly mown so it is suitable for a number of sporting activities. Many are however bordered by trees, shrubs and scrub which can be beneficial to wildlife.

Churchyards and cemeteries often contain mature trees and pockets of scrub and tall vegetation. Their walls and gravestones often support many different species of lichens and mosses. The grounds of schools, hospitals, nursing homes and retirement centres often contain extensive areas of vegetation. These can have resulted from neglect or there could be active conservation management in place.

Golf courses are now a common site in urban and rural areas. The practice of managing golf courses involves neat landscaping and can involve removal of pest species such as geese and burrowing animals. There are however, opportunities to incorporate wild areas into course design.