Designing a park in a day – Snitterfield Parish Council

Snitterfield is a rural parish, close to Stratford-upon-Avon in Warwickshire, which has around 1,200 residents. A mixture of commuters and village locals, the parish has a church, a primary school and a village pub. There are eight parish councillors, three of whom are women, and their annual precept is around £39,000.

Snitterfield Playing Fields are a popular green space, used by multiple sports teams since 1972. Located next to affordable housing, they provide green space to homes who have the least access to private gardens.

In the last 10 years, various projects to transform the playing fields failed to get off the ground. In 2018, a working group was formed to bring the multiple groups together to develop plans for the site. However their plans were going to cost an unaffordable £100,000. The fields were also owned on trust, causing concerns over the long term protection of the parish council’s investment. As a result, the project stalled and residents began to disengage from the plans.

The parish council sought legal advice and support from the Charity Commission to bring the fields into their sole ownership. While this was a lengthy process, it provided the necessary framework for action to occur.

Recognising that the parishioners had disconnected from the plans, the council held a series of engagement events, including a cleaning day and playground maintenance training to improve the current facilities, to reignite residents' interest in the playing fields. This also enabled the council to observe the patterns of behaviour and families’ use of the playing fields.

The parish council then hired a designer to work with residents to redesign the park in a day. Part-funded via a £3,500 grant from the county council, the aim of the day was to bring together local people, whose voices were often not heard, to re-imagine what their park could look like. It also provided a free activity for children during half-term.

To encourage residents’ participation, the council worked with the local nursery to identify parents who were least likely to attend. Councillors knocked on their door to speak to them, and targeted families with hand-delivered flyers. Through this engagement exercise, the council identified sensory needs among local children, which could be incorporated into the plans.

The plans produced by the designer cost £50,000 – around half the cost of the initial plans. Many existing features have been recycled and incorporated into the new design, making it more sustainable. Due to their involvement in the process, the community has not only endorsed the design, but is now excited about the redevelopment project.

The parish council is exploring grants and funding opportunities to make the design become a reality. Residents are engaged, curious, and asking what is next.

The process has sparked further consideration of the environment around Snitterfield by the council following feedback from local people – for instance planting up places which have been liable to flooding. Obtaining seed funding has also inspired the parish council to seek further small funding pots to support wider environmental outcomes.

• Don’t be afraid to spend money or bring in help. The parish council was nervous that seeking legal advice and paying for design expertise would be considered unnecessary. However, they took the time to explain to the community why such actions were necessary and found additional small grants and funds to invest in expertise. That expertise has meant that Snitterfield is now able to act on the engagement responses, as opposed to engaging as the end in itself.
   
• Seek out the quietest voices by going directly to the people. Councillors and officials are well connected to their local area and have the knowledge of where people are. In Snitterfield, local councillors used that knowledge to door knock and speak to people directly in their homes. Without this approach, they would not have learned about the need to include sensory features in the redesign, excluding several children from being able to use and enjoy it. Expecting people to come to the council will not pick up the breadth of voices in the community.
   
• Have courage in convictions. The parish council got creative when facing delay, hosting small-scale one-off events to pique interest and try to keep the community engaged. It paid for expertise which brought a more viable, and more interesting, project. Working in partnership with the local nursery provided access to people whose views may not have otherwise been heard.