The Committee has been busy over past months. We are delighted with our new meeting venue and your feedback has been very positive. We are aiming to improve our connectivity with a short social break at each meeting. This will be after the speaker. A brief update / business meeting will follow in the final half hour.

Our next meeting will also include annual reports which will be sent round in advance allowing questions and comments from members at the meeting. Our major step forward is the imminent launching of our new website. We hope that you will enjoy the facilities it brings and find it useful and informative.

We are proud of our past achievements but as you will see in this newsletter we have even more ambitious plans for the coming year. As ever we welcome your suggestions and ideas for improvements or changes in the park.

MANY THANKS!

Meetings are held in:
Abington Bowling Club
Park Avenue South

Next Meeting:
9th April – 7.00-8.30pm

This meeting will be our AGM

The meeting will start with a speaker. Reports from officers will be presented with time for questions and comments from members. Officers for the coming year will be elected. The meeting will include a short break with tea /coffee at around 7.45 giving members the chance to mingle and chat. Meetings are open to members and non-members – we encourage everyone to join as we rely on public support to continue our work.

To contact the Friends: Email: friendsofabingtonpark@gmail.com

Our new meeting venue is proving very popular. Not only warm and comfortable but it is welcoming and hospitable with adjacent social spaces. We are introducing a short break with light refreshments at meetings to allow time for members to mix and mingle.

We are most excited about the launch of our website which will be coming soon – you will receive a notification. It has been challenging to achieve all that we need and want from our online presence. Thanks to Jo Dunne who created the original site, we have worked together to create a clear and vibrant space. It will carry up to date news and connect to other groups in the park.

We hope over time to increase the number of our collaborating partners – links to other websites or simply the posting of events or news are always welcome.

We continue to work closely with our key partners in WNC and the Museum Service as well as the Community Policing team and local councillors.

All of the groups involved in the park are invited to these quarterly meetings. They provide the opportunity to share news, raise issues and seek resolution of problems in a collaborative and positive forum. We are grateful to Abington Museum who host the meetings and to the officers at WNC who service the committee. We produce a park action plan which is updated after each meeting. A copy can be obtained from the Friends.

Since its inception some years ago, PMC has developed into a key management tool for the park. It allows everyone a voice and the chance to liaise and work together wherever possible.

Feedback from our recent meeting:

• Spinney project continues – a small group of volunteers working with the Park Ranger. A local company of ironmongers is to audit the site and provide costings for various railings replacement plans. There will be a separate biodiversity survey to cover both plants and trees as well as a plan to allow limited public access. All designed to encourage a rich and varied natural area to encourage a greater variety of wildlife into the park.
• Abington Museum is to host a greater variety of events to raise revenues. Events will be posted on the proposed new Friends webpage. Following multiple surveys, it is hoped to secure funding for a new roof. Next events: Easter trails 8-20th April.
• Natural, unmown areas were surveyed by RSPB – results will hopefully be made available for public information.
• Peace Garden – new accessibilty sign to be installed in line with Green Flag recommendations In 2024. Friends are planning the installation of an Information Board giving detials of all the groups involved in the project.
• Aviaries – the collaboration with Northampton College continues – painting of wooden sheds to follow soon.
• A memorial tree has been planted to commemorate the 800th anniversary of the church.
• The tradition of a tree planting by the outgoing Mayor / Mayoress – the current Mayor Mylissa Joyce will be planting a tree on the north side of the pathway adjacent to the café on 4^th April
• Northampton in Bloom will include the installation of the wellbeiing boards once again. To be completed once planting is completed.
• Carers’ bed to be replanted to commeorate 5 years since the Covid outbreak (A successful event was held on 9^th March-see below)
• The Abington Park litter pickers will join the Keep Britain Tidy Spring Clean. Any dead wood collected will repurposed to create ‘bug hotels’ as habitats for insects.