Landscape & A m en it y
June 2023
w w w . l a n d s c a p e a n d a m e n i t y. c o m
Special Feature Play & Activity
New guidance launched to create safer parks for women and girls Practical guidelines which will help to make parks and green spaces safer for women and girls across the UK have been launched at a conference organised by the University of Leeds. It follows a recent study of a cross-section of more than a hundred women and girls from West Yorkshire which found that most believed their local parks to be unsafe. The document is a partnership between Mayor Brabin, the University of Leeds, Make Space for Girls and Keep Britain Tidy, and is aimed at park managers, local authorities, police and community groups. The guidance is primarily aimed at parks managers, landscape architects and other public realm design professionals across the UK, and helps stakeholders understand gendersensitive principles of safety and implement changes at varying scales and budgets. Dr Anna Barker, an Associate Professor in
Criminal Justice & Criminology in the University of Leeds’ School of Law led the original research and has organised today’s conference. She said: “In Britain, women are three times less likely than men to feel safe in a park during the day. “This is worse after dark, when as many as four out of five women in Britain say that they would feel unsafe walking alone in a park, compared to two out of five men. “All these factors mean that women and girls are less likely to use parks than men and boys, a situation which has a significant impact on their lives. Our guidelines, covering ten principles for design and management, can enable decision-makers to enact change.” The guidance will be launched as part of a two-day conference entitled Women and Girls’ Safety
in Parks: Lessons from Research and Practice.
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The opening session will be chaired by Alison Lowe OBE, Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime in West Yorkshire, and the guidance itself will be introduced by the Mayor of West Yorkshire Tracy Brabin, who funded the work as part of her Safety of Women and Girls Strategy Among others attending will be representatives from the Suzy Lamplugh Trust, Women in Sport, Keep Britain Tidy, and Make Space for Girls. Keep Britain Tidy’s Chef Executive, Allison OgdenNewton OBE, said: “It’s critical that we understand what makes women and girls feel safe or unsafe across our green spaces and what needs to change to make them feel able to use their local park.” “Our own research already shows that 70% of people in urban areas do not have access to
A look ahead to the 2023 event
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good quality green space, rising to 75.8% in the most deprived areas. When coupled with women’s concerns about using those few green spaces they have access to, it means there is a real inequality. We must tackle it collectively, and as a priority.” “We are proud to be a part of this important and much needed project.” The organisations behind the new guidelines hope decision-makers will now review all their parks in
partnership with the police and engage with women and girls specifically on safety, ensuring that those who do not currently use the parks are included. They are also calling for the new guidance and the results of their discussions with women and girls to be incorporated into management plans for parks and green spaces and reviewed regularly. The University of Leeds Enquiry 1
Two & Fourwheel Tractors Jane Carley puts the spotlight on machinery Pages 17-19
Key appointment to raise GMA and SALTEX profile
Jen Carter is the new head of communications at the Grounds Management Association, supporting the GMA’s fiveyear strategy which covers all
the sectors of the groundscare industry, including the membership organisation’s flagship event SALTEX, with an expanded communications team.
Jen and her team’s work will focus on supporting the GMA to achieve its three long-term goals: to attract new talent and accelerate the growth of a diverse workforce; to support sustainable business growth and protect the sector’s interests, and to build the industry’s reputation and promote the sector’s contribution to society and the economy, and that cannot be done without the support of SALTEX. The relationship between the GMA and SALTEX is inherently interlinked with the work done for both contributing
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significantly to the growth and success of the industry. The GMA and SALTEX work hand in hand – SALTEX is powered by the GMA and in turn SALTEX feeds into the GMA’s extensive work in supporting, and raising the profile of, the groundscare industry in all its guises. As well as an expanded communications team to support delivery of GMA strategic objectives, the GMA’s Commercial & Events team has been bolstered by the addition of experienced Sales Manager, Jill Rodham who recently
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SALTEX takes place at Birmingham NEC on 1-2 November 2023. GMA
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joined Sarah Cunningham’s team, having previously worked at BIGGA for over 9 years. Jill brings strong trade show experience of the grounds care sector and will support Sarah in building on SALTEX 2022’s success which has already seen a 20 per cent increase in show floor space to accommodate increasing demand for space from exhibitors.
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www.sportsandgrounds.events team@sportsandgrounds.events
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