Published on 19th February 2015

Sandford Park from the air

Residents and volunteers from the Friends of Sandford Park will be out in force tomorrow (Friday 20 February) to help council officers plant a new hedge in the park.

The hedge will run along the fenced boundary to help shield the park from views over the hospital car park and the plant for the lido.

The hedge will be made up of 340 Escallonia shrubs to create a formal evergreen hedge and 30 roses will also be planted to replenish the rose beds around the The Whish Sisters’ drinking fountain.

Malcolm Walls, community parks officer for Cheltenham Borough Council, says: “The new hedge will greatly improve this part of the park and screen out views to the car park and the lido plant.

"We really appreciate the help of the friends’ group and our other volunteers – it makes a big difference to the work that we can do.”

Chris Beal from the Friends of Sandford Park, continues: “We’re very pleased that we were able to win funding from the council for the new hedge and rose bushes. This is the first project that we’ve worked on with the council and we’re looking forward to doing more projects with them in the future to develop this already rather wonderful space.”

Funding of £1,580 for this work came from the council’s Community Pride Fund following a successful application from the friends’ group in 2014.

Contact: Laura Carter, communications officer, telephone 01242 264154, email [email protected]

Notes:
The Friends of Sandford Park (FOSP) was recently formed by local residents to support and advise the borough council’s work in preserving and improving Sandford Park. Find out more: contacts [email protected] and Friends of Sandford Park (facebook page) www.facebook.com/Friendsofsandfordpark

Sandford Park is a valuable green space running from Keynsham Road to Old Bath Road along the banks of the River Chelt. It is possible to walk or cycle from Charlton Kings to the centre of Cheltenham through a mixture of wild land and wetland in Cox’s Meadow and then, in Sandford Park, through the rose garden, a wide and mown green space, past the Edwardian Unwins Fountain, modern sculpture in the Friendship Circle, and finally through either the Italian Garden or the Annecy Garden into the centre of town.
A photograph of the whish sisters can be found here: https://cheltonia.wordpress.com/tag/sandford-park/