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NOTED the deputation received
from Satvinder Riyat (representing Sudbury Matters Forum as a
local community group) regarding the future of Barham
Park.  In thanking the Mayor for the
opportunity to present her deputation, she began by outlining the
history of Barham Park and its buildings and nature of their gift
as a community asset by Titus Barham in 1937, on the basis of the
Council acting as sole Trustee.  In
noting the current governance arrangements, with the Council
discharging its duties as Trustee through the Barham Park Trust
Committee and the Council supporting the Trust in terms of the
maintenance and upkeep of the Park and its facilities, the Sudbury
Matters Forum (having recognised the limited awareness amongst
residents of the Parks status) were keen to ensure that the local
community had the opportunity to establish a mechanism and voice
that could be used to assist in shaping and securing the future use
and management of the Park and its buildings.  This was felt to be particularly important given
the feasibility exercise currently being undertaken by the Trust,
with Satvinder Riyat announcing that as a result the Forum were
now in the process of establishing a “Friends of Barham
Park” Group.
 
The aim of the Group was to
ensure that local residents, as the beneficiaries of the Park
following its gift as a community asset, were able to have a voice
in its future.  Satvinder Riyat advised
that the Friends Group was being established as an independent,
inclusive and non-partisan body which all interested parties would
be welcome to join (irrespective of their proximity to the Park) in
order to ensure that it was as representative of the diverse
communities across Brent as possible. 
Members were advised that the key aim of the Group would be
to preserve the historical and ecological value of the Park
and its buildings ensuring that they remained sustainable for
present and future generations to enjoy.  In concluding the deputation, members were advised
of the key aims identified by the Group, which were as follows:
 

1.     To serve
as the voice of the beneficiaries in collaboration with the
Trustees to influence the future of the Park and its
buildings

 

2.     To
actively participate as volunteers in the maintenance, conservation
and preservation of the Park for future residents.

 

3.     To
engage with the Trustees in conducting a comprehensive survey of
the Park, in order to detect the presence of any protected wildlife
species.

 

4.     To
capture and preserve the history of the Park, including the
architectural importance of its buildings, its previous owner and
occupants, which may have cultural significance for the
borough’s diverse communities.

 

5.     To
educate about the Park’s historic significance.
 
Whilst recognising the current
nature of the challenges facing the Trust in supporting the upkeep
and maintenance of the Park and its buildings Satvinder Riyat ended
by highlighting that the Group were committed to working
with the Barham Park Trust and Council officers in order to
safeguard the Park as a much valued community asset gifted to the
people of the borough with anyone interested in
joining the Group urged to contact: www.friendsofbarhampark.org
 
In welcoming and responding to
the deputation, Councillor Muhammed Butt, as Chair of the Barham
Park Trust, thanked the Sudbury Matters Forum for their efforts to
engage with the Trust and Council, supported through Councillor
Benea.  In
recognising the need to ensure a collaborative approach was taken
to preserving the benefit and future of the Park, Councillor
Muhammed Butt outlined the Trust’s commitment to safeguard
and build on its legacy as a much valued community asset and
welcomed the established of the Friends Group through the Forum as
a means of focussing future collaboration and
engagement.
 
Eligible for Call-In:
No