West Lothian Council delivers

Parks, gardens and open spaces - facilities, information and events

 

Please click here to view details of the 2010 Gardens Competition

NETs and Land Services are responsible for parks, recreation areas, open spaces and sports grounds maintenance as well as administering the garden maintenance scheme, gala grants and private development adoption agreements.

If you would like to do more for a park or a green space near you, why not consider becoming a Friend of your greenspace

Friends of the Park groups: What are they

A Friends group is a collection of local people who come together with the aim of improving the appearance, facilities, conservation value and/or safety of their local park or open space. This could mean anything from planting some bulbs to organising events, to fundraising for new features, inputting into the maintenance of the park or putting together park newsletters. 
 
Why form a group

This can be for any number of reasons, the main one being to do something positive for a park or open space that you care about.  A Friends group is an effective and recognised method of achieving this. Groups will often start off small and attract new members as they go along and start to achieve things.

Why does the council want to encourage groups

One of our long-term aims here at the council is to involve members of the community in the use, design, improvement and management of open spaces throughout West Lothian; helping people to create Friends groups is one way of achieving this.

It is a relatively new initiative for West Lothian, and is quite exciting for those of us involved in parks and green spaces!  We anticipate that such groups will not only actively help to resolve current issues but also look to the long term regeneration and development of their local park, in partnership with the council.
 
Once we have a few groups set up, we will create a Network for Friends Groups, linking these groups together. This will enable local people to share experiences, discuss common issues and exchange ideas about projects, events etc. 

If you would like to do more for a park or an open space near you, contact the Community Green Space Officer, Becky Plunkett at becky.plunkett@westlothian.gov.uk  or phone 01506 776542 for information and advice about joining or setting up a Friends of the Park group.

Friends of the Park start up pack