About Us
We are an active 'Friends' group who support and contribute to many of the fun & fantastic events which take place in the park each year. We are also passionate about promoting the park to the wider public as well supporting Tunbridge Wells Borough Council, the owners of the park and ensuring the park remains nurtured & safe....
Projects
The Friends work with TWBC to identify special projects which would benefit the park & where we can assist the Council in making them happen. Sometimes we plan, design & donate new elements; sometimes we raise/source funds to contribute towards them; sometimes we commission special studies; sometimes we volunteer - sometimes we do all of these things! .....
Donate
Donations & legacies are vitally important to a Friends’ charity such as ours in providing the funding needed for our special projects, especially when we we embark on an ambitious project such as our Island Bank Restoration project - vital to the park to prevent our two islands slowly eroding away ........
Get Involved
We are always looking for new members that who are passionate about the park - who would like to join us at one of our events - who fancy getting their hands mucky & helping the team on the gardening front - who might want to help the Friends’ projects or on our Committee and working parties ......
In 2019, Friends’ volunteers and Kent High Weald Partnership (KHWP) completed the refurbishment of the smaller island in the lake. The work was carried out at a about one third of the cost of the larger island which was refurbished by a commercial contractor in 2016.
Towards the end of 2019, we had accumulated further funds from membership subscriptions, donations and grants. Our plans now for 2019-2020 include the following:
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Funding KHWP to work with the Monday volunteers group. This will allow for the cutting back of the laurel, cutting of reeds in the pond and thinning and cutting growth by the stream.
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Fund an 8 week Park Time project in the spring. This is a scheme which allows people with mental health issues to carry out voluntary work in a calm and attractive environment.
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Fund the protection of the surface roots of the two oak trees near the café.
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Fund the lines of chestnut posts etc to protect the stream below the lake.
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Donate funds to TWBC for the protection of the lake banks.
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Donate funds to TWBC for the construction of VC Grove Path – this is a project already completed by TWBC.
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Fund the installation of a drinking water facility in the Park to help reduce the use of one-trip plastics bottles.