Charitable trust to run Newcastle’s parks

A new initiative that could see Newcastle’s parks run by a charitable trust is set to take another step forward.

The council’s cabinet is to consider a report outlining how the Trust can be funded soon. It also highlights the results of a major public engagement programme and asks councillors for permission to work up final proposals for a Trust for approval in October.

Newcastle City Council would be one of the first in the country to transfer its parks to a charitable trust, whose main aim would be providing quality parks for the residents of Newcastle, if the plans are approved. The initiative is a response to a 90 per cent reduction in the council’s parks budget as a result of huge government cuts.

The work is supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund and the National Trust, and could potentially attract fresh investment for the city’s 33 parks, 21 recreation sites and hundreds of allotment sites. It could also safeguard jobs and strengthen the role green spaces play in encouraging healthy lifestyles.

The council will still retain ownership of the parks and green spaces.

Kim McGuinness, cabinet member for Culture and Communities, said: “This proposal is about securing a positive future for our parks and green spaces, and greater community involvement in their future. Although the parks and allotments would be transferred into a Trust, we can reassure people that the council wouldn’t be walking away or selling off the city’s parks as they would still be in public ownership.

“We are the first local authority to attempt this approach. The support, guidance and advice from the Heritage Lottery Fund, National Trust and Social Finance shows how highly regarded this project has become. The report provides a positive picture of what we know so far, and that a Charitable Trust model is a viable way forward.”