Landscaped Garden revitalises Clyde Road Estate

Residents at Clyde Road estate were greeted with an official opening to their new landscaped garden on Wednesday afternoon (31 August).

The open space area, occasionally used to get to parked cars or for gaining access into properties, previously offered very little to the residents and was in desperate need of updating from a 1960s look and feel.

Though the lawn and shrubberies were well maintained, the area was beginning to show its age and surfaces were in poor condition and the poor layout contributed to anti-social behaviour on the estate.

To help tackle the problems and make the area more appealing, and encourage a sense of pride among residents, the landscape needed an overhaul. This became a priority project.

We engaged with residents on the design (addressing their concerns), giving them a sense of ownership and getting them to work together to decide what they wanted and how the area should be used. The object was to create a space that was:

• revitalising, giving the residents ownership and making it an area they can use;
  
• safer, reducing anti-social behaviour;
  
• more bio-diverse, greener and aesthetically-pleasing;
  
• going to help improve engagement between residents, utilising the design process to improve communication between different people, their concerns and needs.
  

The work started in May 2010 and completed in December 2010. Even though there are still minor works that need to be completed the changes have been dramatic and pleasantly received by local residents.

It has brightened up the landscape area, opened up the estate and is welcoming, not only to our younger residents but to our older residents too.

Grand opening
To celebrate the completion of the project a grand opening took place on Wednesday (31 August) which saw a huge number of residents turn out and engage with each other.

They enjoyed a variety of activities, refreshments and music. Young children took part in the games laid out for them, from table football and snakes and ladders to the buzzer game, they even tried their hand at planting seeds and making window boxes. Gardening activities were also set up to gauge if residents would be interested in forming a gardening group on the estate.

Each and every one who attended said they loved the event and that they felt part of the community. The landscaped garden also gave them something to be proud of and an area they could maintain, and grow their own plants, while working closely with the landscape gardeners.

Sue Forsyth, Peabody IMPROVE Project Manager, managed the landscaping project. She said: "I am very excited to see the improvements really have lifted the landscape on the estate for the benefit of those who live at Clyde Road.

"The new roads and paths brighten up the neighbourhood and the new planting and shrubs will hopefully encourage families and individuals to enjoy themselves outdoors, whether they are having a picnic, doing a bit of gardening or simply enjoying some play time."

Pictured below: Everyone took part and enjoyed the day

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