Council deputation
On November 7th, Wandsworth Common Friends and MAC joined forces to make a deputation to the Council with our views on the re-tendering of the Leisure and Culture management contract, currently operated by Enable LC. The contract expires in September 2019 and although it’s been extended by 6 months, a decision on the re-tendering is scheduled by next summer. Our counterparts from Tooting Common and Battersea Park also made deputations, demonstrating strength in numbers. You can read our deputation, which was also supported by the Wandsworth Society, here. We now aim to have detailed discussions with Council officers about the all-important specification of the contract.
Seasonal Tree walks begin
November saw the start of a programme of seasonal walks led by Enable’s tree officers based on Wandsworth Common. Between them they have over 50 years experience and we’re very pleased by their willingness to share their accumulated knowledge. The walks are proving very popular and quickly reach capacity. Jessica Stocks led over 20 of us to some carefully chosen examples of the problems tree officers have to deal with. We learned why, despite every effort, some trees have to be felled, for disease or safety reasons; the criteria for tree planting; the benefits of leaving dead wood to provide habitat for other creatures; the advantages of the London Plane in pollution absorption; the many benefits of street trees. Jess also showed a fascinating internal scan of an ash tree revealing the extent of fungal penetration (not ash dieback, however, which hasn’t reached Wandsworth Common - yet!). Watch out for our next walk soon.
Monthly 'walks & talks' programme
Our Walks and Talks programme has got off to a flying start - literally - with a butterfly walk in August, a bat walk in September, and a photography walk in October. All were very successful, thanks first and foremost to our walk leaders - all experts in their field - who provided their time for free. All the events were a first for us and we’re learning as we go.
We advertise the events to Friends first, then if we still have space, we extend the invite to our wider contact list. However, most of our events so far have been fully subscribed by Friends so if you want to make sure of a place it’s best to join.
We aim to organise an event every month, usually with a nature or activity theme. In November we have another tree walk - these have proved very popular - and a pub quiz. In December we have carol singing and in the New Year a walk to help people walk off the excesses after Christmas. More will be added. Keep an eye on our calendar below for details. And if you have any ideas for a walk theme and/or know someone who might lead one, we’d be only too pleased to hear.
Late Summer Celebration - September 9th
A programme of activities for all ages. Latest schedule here. Most events are free. A few require registration. E-mail us to register interest.
Tree Trail Launched
Wandsworth Common now has its very own self-guided tree trail. Showcasing over 80 of the Common’s 3,000 trees, including 12 specially selected by Enable as particularly fine specimen trees, you can access the trail on your smartphone.
Wandsworth Common now has its very own self-guided tree trail. Showcasing over 80 of the Common’s 3,000 trees, including 12 specially selected by Enable as particularly fine specimen trees, you can access the trail on your smartphone.
Go to your app store and download the TiCL app (it’s free but you have to register). Go to the Common and the app will list nearby trails. Select the Wandsworth Common Tree Trail and you’ll see the trees listed in order of proximity. There’s a ‘direct me’ button to tell you which direction to walk in to find your chosen tree and how far, and it counts down as you approach. A photograph of the tree is a final check that you’re in the right place.
There are still a few trees to add, at the extremities of the Common, with the aim being to include trees on all 12 sections of the Common. Give it a try and marvel at the tree canopy we’re lucky to have on our doorsteps, with all the benefits that brings, particularly in this heatwave.
Our first events a great success
July saw the Friends mount their first events since the May 12th launch.
July saw the Friends mount their first events since the May 12th launch. We wanted our inaugural venture on the Common to have a ‘green’ theme (though the heat wave and parched grass told a different story) but also celebrate what the Common has to offer in the way of light touch activities.
So we timed it to overlap with both Love Parks and London National Park City weeks. We began quietly, with a family ‘quiz trail’ round the Common, a primer for a bigger event in September. Then what proved to be a highlight – a tree walk led by Peter Fiennes, looking at some of the Common’s oldest trees and recalling the folklore of trees and woodlands based on Peter’s book ‘Oak and Ash and Thorn’. Not surprisingly, we ended up in the wildest area of the Common – the Scope. So popular was the walk that we had to turn people away, but decided to put on a second walk, led by Richard Fox, Friends co-chair, which identified some of the ‘specimen’ trees highlighted by the tree team at Enable. We’ll be adding a tree section of the website ready for the autumn, when we hope to schedule another tree walk.
For the slightly more adventurous, Lindsay Burrows of ‘MeSpot’ gave six novices a taste of Nordic Walking. Lindsay holds regular classes on the Common and may well have found some new recruits to judge from the smiles in the photograph. Rose Harley then took people on a ramble, reminding them of when the Scope was just empty heathland, with a football pitch in the middle! We keep finding people who remember when there were rangers patrolling the Common - so-called ‘Parkies’, based in Neal’s Lodge. Those were the days! Last but not least, Billy and Tim from Bellevue Bicycle Workshop came to sort out peoples’ bicycle issues.
The climax of the day came after we’d taken down the gazebo and de-camped to the bowling green, where John Hort and Alan from the Bolingbroke Bowls Club taught us the rudiments of the game. We were very pleased to be joined by several young bystanders, who not only joined in, but wanted us to repeat the event every Sunday evening. Well there’s an idea in anticipation of the club’s centenary in 2019.
Thanks to all who helped plan the event and who helped on the day and for those of you that came along to meet us. That was one of the best parts - meeting those of you who’ve joined the Friends and those who are interested to. We found the same interest and enthusiasm the previous weekend when we took part in the very successful Northcote Road Summer Fete.
We plan a similar dual event in September, with family fun and games on the 9th and a stall at Bellevue Road Fair on the 16th. Get involved in the community who love the Common by helping with the organisation or helping on the day. Many hands make light work.
Friends of Wandsworth Common launched
Despite it being a grey, rainy Saturday evening, May 12 saw over 125 people packed into the Skylark Cafe to launch the Friends of Wandsworth Common.
Despite it being a grey, rainy Saturday evening, May 12 saw over 125 people packed into The Skylark Café to launch the Friends of Wandsworth Common.
They heard Co-Chairs Julia Bott and Richard Fox, residents of the Common for 30 years and members of the MAC since 2015, present their vision for the Friends (see Friends Constitution), and some of the ideas that had been discussed by the Friends working group and the MAC Enhancement Sub-committee before it. Most greenspaces in London now have a Friends group; those that do tend to be better protected from the pressures of overuse and under funding.
Special guests included Emma Passmore, whose mother, Shirley Passmore (who sadly died a year ago), is remembered affectionately by many current and former MAC members for her extensive knowledge and dedication to the conservation and enhancement of the Common over many years.
Other guests included Inspector Stephen Biggs, Head of the Parks and Events Police; representatives of Enable LC, who manage the Common for Wandsworth Borough Council; a number of councillors, both old and new; Anne Davies from the swan sanctuary; and Sarah Garnett, Manager of NatureScope, who the Friends have formed a strong alliance with.
Julia and Richard were formally voted in, as was George Meakin (MAC Chairman), as the Friends Treasurer. There is space for eight more committee members and Julia and Richard strongly encourage people to come forward to share in the running of the organisation at an exciting time for the Common.
Enthusiastic individuals with a love of the Common and skills in admin, communication, IT, fund raising, project and event planning, are especially needed. Those, however, who might simply wish to help bag up swan and duck food, or be co-opted for a specific task, are also very welcome.
Activities that the Friends are considering include: regular litter picks, themed walks, greater use of the bowling green, social events and picnics in July and September. Projects under consideration include: nature and history interpretation boards and leaflets, an oral history of the Common, restoration of the drinking fountain, and many others which people were asked to give opinions on. These will be discussed with Enable in conjunction with the Management and Maintenance Plan currently being formulated.
Thanks were extended to the event sponsors John D Wood and Skylark, Charles and Aviva Walton, who had set the MAC on the road to increased outreach back in 2013, culminating in the Friends formation, Colin Cooper of SWLEN who had been of great general support and helped with the Friends Constitution, Mat Pemberton who has created a highly praised and functional website, and contributing photographers Sharon O’Neill, Lewis More O’Ferrall and others.
Members interested in getting involved, please e-mail us on friends@wandsworthcommon.org with how you would like to help or contribute. Prospective committee members will be invited to a meeting in the early summer to become officers with specific roles. An AGM will be held in Spring 2019.
Neal’s Lodge
The Council has lost it’s legal appeal on this long running planning application.
The Council has lost it’s legal appeal on this long running planning application.
For those of you that haven’t been following the issue, it centres on what can legally happen in that part of Neal’s Lodge not currently occupied by the The Skylark Café.
The Council initially awarded a contract to a commercially operated private chain of fee paying day care centres. This was appealed last year in a Judicial Review (JR) brought by a private resident, Sandy Muir, on the grounds that the use of common land for a commercial venture which had exclusive use of the premises, fell outside the powers of the Council under the legislation governing the use of the Common. The Council lost the JR with the detailed judgement available here and a more digestible summary in The Times.
The appeal court has now upheld that original judgement. In brief, the court found that the Council should provide and maintain recreational facilities for ‘the public’ whereas the lease to the private nursery would restrict public access and be contrary to the statutory provision under which the Common is held in trust for the use and enjoyment of local inhabitants. The High Court judgement also laid down an important principle that the Common is a public resource that must be managed in the interests of its users, and not as a financial asset for the Council. The 12-page appeal court judgement is here. The focus should now turn to what should happen to the premises
Management Plan Draft Expected around August
As many of you know, Wandsworth Council have commissioned a Management and Maintenance Plan for the Common, for completion by the end of the year.
As many of you know, Wandsworth Council have commissioned a Management and Maintenance Plan for the Common, for completion by the end of the year.
It will be the first formal plan in 40 years so it’s important to be engaged. It will be a blueprint for what happens on the Common for the next 10 years and is especially important given that the contract for maintaining the Common, currently with Enable LC, will be re-tendered next year. The public consultation closed in April with over 900 responses, helped by an active campaign by the MAC. Thanks to all who completed the survey. The MAC's submission to the process can be read here
The consultants writing the plan also held a stakeholder meeting in March. They are now preparing a draft plan to be available in August which will be the focus of further public consultation. We’ll give you further details when we have them.
Male Swan Killed
Very sadly, the Common’s male swan (the cob) was found dead by a member of the public on the morning of May 4 2018.
Very sadly, the Common’s male swan (the cob) was found dead by a member of the public on the morning of May 4 2018. The swan was clearly attacked by something, but whether fox, dog or person remains unclear.
The female swan (the pen) remains on its nest at the time of writing and, despite concerns, Ann Davies, the local Swan Sanctuary rep, says it is perfectly capable of rearing any cygnets alone. Let’s hope there are some and they survive.
Ann also notes the fairly chequered history of swans on Wandsworth Common which seem more vulnerable than in neighbouring locations, for whatever reason. Two cobs have been killed by dogs in the past five years and another by a person.
The Swan Sanctuary will try to respond to any incident involving injured waterfowl – not just swans.
You can contact Ann on 07984 201854 or the Swan Sanctuary emergency number is 01932 240790. In the meantime, help by keeping dogs away from the island. Remember that according to the bye-laws, dogs must be on a lead by the lake and are not allowed in the water.
Walking Wandsworth Common
On April 12 2018, a group of us set off from Wandsworth Common station and spent 3 hours walking across the Common, accompanied by Dom Dalston of Wandsworth Radio’s ‘Walking Wandsworth’.
On April 12 2018, a group of us set off from Wandsworth Common station and spent 3 hours walking across the Common, accompanied by Dom Dalston of Wandsworth Radio’s ‘Walking Wandsworth’.
His programme featuring the walk’s highlights was broadcast on May 6 2018 and is available to listen to or download here. It was a really enjoyable event, with lots of information about the Common’s history and biodiversity, which we hope to repeat.
Windmill Renovation
April saw the Common’s Grade II listed ‘windmill’ being refurbished, after a long campaign by the MAC’s Charles Walton.
April saw the Common’s Grade II listed ‘windmill’ being refurbished, after a long campaign by the MAC’s Charles Walton.
Technically a ‘wind pump’ or ‘smock mill’ it is the only listed building on the common. It was built in 1837 to pump water into an ornamental lake from the adjoining railway cutting. Before the filling of the lake in in 1884, which lost the wind pump its purpose, there were also four sails, long since gone.
Spring Walk
A harbinger of Spring. We were pleased to spot our first blackcap on Peter White’s spring bird walk.
A harbinger of Spring.
We were pleased to spot our first blackcap on Peter White’s spring bird walk. They are one of the first migrants to arrive in the spring.
Key Information
The blackcap is a distinctive greyish warbler, the male has a black cap, and the female a chestnut one. Its delightful fluting song has earned it the name ‘northern nightingale’. Although primarily a summer visitor, birds from Germany and north-east Europe are increasingly spending the winter in the UK.
Swan + Duck Food Bagging
Our latest session involved seven volunteers and replenished stocks after a busy Easter. Well done everyone.
Our latest session involved six volunteers and replenished stocks after a busy May Day bank holiday
Well done everyone. With demand increasing, we filled 650 bags to get us through to the next session in June.
If you’re interested in joining one of our monthly sessions, send an e-mail to friends@wandsworthcommon.org. Sessions typically last 1-2 hours, but you don’t have to stay the whole time. Any time you can spare is welcome. It's also a good way of catching up.
More information
The swan and duck food project was started by the MAC in 2013 as a way of educating the public into what was appropriate to feed to the wildfowl. Bread sinks to the bottom of the lake where it rots, fouling the water and also attracting rats. Steady sales of the candy-striped bags from Skylark are also a useful source of income for the Common, with all profits going to education and enhancement projects, such as the map and this website.