Calling all lovers of parks, gardens and open spaces!

The Sussex Gardens Trust is looking for volunteers to take part in a new project to identify, investigate and help conserve designed parks, gardens and open spaces in Hastings.

Everyone knows that a listed building is one of national historic importance; not everyone knows that parks and gardens can also be registered or listed in the same way and that these buildings and sites are included on the National Heritage List. Hastings has two parks of national importance, St Leonard’s Gardens and Alexandra Park – you can search the list (www.english-heritage.org.uk) to find them!  But, there are many other parks, gardens and designed open spaces that are of local, rather than national importance, and which need to be better understood in order to help conserve them

This Wednesday, The Sussex Gardens Trust is running an introductory workshop for potential volunteers on local listing of parks, gardens and historic open spaces.

Workshop details:

Where: Hastings Town Hall

When: Wednesday 16 January 2013

Time: 10 am to 4pm

Run by: The Sussex Gardens Trust (www.sussexgardenstrust.org.uk) and Hastings Borough Council

Cost: None; free tea and coffee provided, bring a packed lunch

New guidance from English Heritage is encouraging local authorities to prepare lists of locally-important heritage assets of all kinds.  This includes buildings, archaeological sites and monuments, as well as parks and gardens, which are of value to local people.   It’s vital to record what is important about them, so that it will be taken into consideration when changes are proposed – usually through changes to planning policy or when planning applications are made. Information collected will be stored on the Historic Environment Record, which is a database of environmental and historic information about the county, managed by East Sussex County Council and Record Office. Hastings Borough Council will also store the information

How is the information on parks and gardens found and presented?  The goal is to carry out research using Ordnance Survey maps and other archive material, such as guidebooks, newspapers, prints, photos, council parks department council records, etc. The Sussex Gardens Trust also undertake visual surveys of a site.  Using the results, they write a description of the site and its history and present it in a report. This becomes a valuable document and source of knowledge for all those who have to make decisions about change – both local planners and owners and developers.

What are the aims of the workshop?

The Trust hopes to sign up volunteers to take an active part in the project. The workshop will introduce potential volunteers to:

• The concept of local listing
• The range of resources in the Borough and County,
• The value of information on sites to the local planning authority and to the county Historic Environment Record and how they use it
• The basics of site research, survey and writing reports

The workshop will be run by the Trust in partnership with Hastings Borough Planners, East Sussex County archaeologists and Record Office and, we hope, Hastings’ Library and Museum. Volunteers from a previous, completed project in Sevenoaks will present their insights – which should be especially illuminating!

It should be a fascinating day and if you think you might be interested in getting involved – especially if you have local knowledge and/or research skills already, please let Sussex Gardens Trust know.  They look forward to hearing from you!

Details for Sussex Gardens Trust here.

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