Last week I wrote about the good news of the official opening of Worth Park Gardens after the restoration project, and this week sees further good news for Crawley’s parks and gardens. Crawley Borough Council’s Tilgate Park, Goffs Park and Memorial Gardens, and West Sussex County Council’s Buchan Country Park, have all been awarded Green Flags for another year. The Green Flag Award Scheme is run by environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy to recognise and reward the best green spaces in the country.
We are rightly proud of our great parks and gardens in Crawley and I have always taken the view that we should make them as good as they can be, while ensuring they maintain the special feel that they have. This particularly applies to the 400 acres of Tilgate Park.
I remember some years ago when the pub/restaurant was permanently closed and when the public toilets by the carpark were awful. I recall when there was no boating on the lake, when there was no Go Ape treetop walks and when the children’s play area was average. I recall when there was no outdoor gym, no Tilgate Parkrun, and when the Fisherman’s carpark was basically a dirt track with fewer parking spaces. I remember the Nature Centre when it had fewer animals and attractions before major investment went in, and when the café wasn’t a patch on what it is today. I remember the park before we improved the dam protecting homes downstream, and I remember the golf course before the new clubhouse was built and before the driving range was improved.
While Labour have been claiming the credit, the reality is this all changed for the better under the previous Conservative -run council, who had the vision to improve Tilgate Park while still maintaining its special feel. This week sees the opening of the new A23 access road and improved car parking facilities with more spaces, which was another project implemented by the previous Conservative Administration. It has been a great journey to provide a truly wonderful park that all of Crawley can be proud of.
Councillor Duncan Crow, Leader of Crawley Borough Council Conservative Group
29 July 2015