BACKGROUNDTower Hamlets Cemetery Park is historic urban woodland located in one of London’s most densely populated boroughs.

The thirty-one acre site is rich in biodiversity and one of London’s ‘Magnificent Seven’ cemeteries that include Nunhead and Highgate cemeteries. The Friends of Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park have managed the site for twenty-five years and are now a charity employing three full-time staff.

Located close to Canary Wharf and The City, Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park is committed to offering local people the experience of wild nature, by managing the site as a woodland nature reserve. Kenneth Greenway, Cemetery Park Manager, says: ‘In a borough that lacks green space, having a wild haven offers so much to help people with their mental and physical well-being’.

FUNDINGTower Hamlets Cemetery Park has a service level agreement with London Borough of Tower Hamlets, which funds around 25% of its activities. The rest of their funding comes from grants, corporate donations, general donations, and fees generated from events and courses. They also charge for training and leisure learning, as well as offering the site as a film location.

VOLUNTEERINGTower Hamlets Cemetery Park has developed a workforce of over three thousand volunteers, who help to maintain the site coming from routes including the corporate community; volunteer organisations like The Conservation Volunteers (TCV); plus local people. A committee of eight volunteers manages the charity. Kenneth Greenway, Cemetery Park Manager, says: ‘We depend on volunteers entirely. If they’re willing, we’ll use them!’

ENGAGING THE COMMUNITYInvolving the local community is at the heart of Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park’s activities. They run a diverse programme of talks, events and courses. They work with the local Youth Offending Service; a neighbouring special needs school visits weekly for practical volunteering; they also host a Forest School holiday club and wildlife club.

CHALLENGESAs with many of London’s open spaces, a reduction in local authority funding has impacted on the management of the site in recent years. The site has had very few instances of anti-social behaviour. This is due to daily visible presence of park staff on site and active engagement with visitors. These help to encourage public perception as a safe place to be. Kenneth Greenway, Cemetery Park Manager, says: ‘We know we’re doing well when every day you have lone visitors and people with children using Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park and walking through it.’

ACTIVE WOODLAND MANAGEMENTTower Hamlets Cemetery Park undertakes regular ‘Active Woodland Management’. This means that they regularly thin the mature tree canopy, coppice, plant, seed and weed.

PLANS FOR THE FUTURETower Hamlets Cemetery Park has a management plan and wants to develop their training and leisure learning programme, and generate more income. They also plan to take on the lease of a building on site which will provide the home for green wood working and many other activities. The overall aim is that that Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park is a sustainable resource that remains central to its community.

www.groundwork.org.uk/london