An Update on the Position of Milton Country Park

A Park in a Pandemic

During March this year the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic made a considerable impact on the operation of Milton Country Park. Like the majority of businesses, the Park lost substantial income and had to adapt quickly to ensure the safety of its visitors and staff. On Mother’s Day, March 22nd the predicted good weather suggested visitor numbers would exceed what was manageable under the Government’s social distancing recommendations and the Park took the decision to close with immediate effect.

Once lockdown measures became clear over the coming days, and with the importance of taking local once-a-day exercise emphasised, the Park reopened to local people only, with the café, playground, toilets and car park remaining closed. All income at this point was lost. The majority of our small team were furloughed on the 1st April and the Park operated with the bare minimum of staff and volunteers to ensure our community had a safe space to come for their well-being.

Over the following months the importance of parks and green spaces became a central focus of the media and the public consciousness. The need for fresh air and exercise, for connecting with nature, and for a safe outdoor space to meet others, has meant that parks have played a vital role in preserving people’s mental and physical health at a most challenging time.

The Government spoke of the need for parks to remain open as though they were a statutory service, which was an encouraging recognition, but they failed to acknowledge that approximately 5% of Parks in the UK are independently run and receive no local authority or central government funding.

Cambridge Sport Lakes Trust has managed Milton Country Park for the past twelve years after South Cambridgeshire County Council took the decision to put the lease up for tender.

Milton Country Park costs approximately 20K per month to run, still less than it was costing the council when the Park transitioned to the charity. The Trust raises funds to maintain the park by providing a wide range of sport, activities and events, all with a commitment to encouraging people outdoors, alongside the car park fee and a small percentage of café revenue.

Funding Support

After two months of remaining open for the public good, with no income and not fitting the criteria for the government small business grant schemes, we’re very grateful that South Cambridgeshire District Council responded by providing its own grant of 25K to support the Park, with another 25K held back for September if needed. The Trust has also benefitted from a one off 10K grant from Milton Parish Council, a 10K grant from Sport England from the Community Emergency Fund, and our own crowdfunder generated over 9K from visitor donations.

We would like to extend a heartfelt thankyou to everyone who has supported Milton Country Park during this difficult time, helping us to remain open and continue to provide this valuable green space for the public good.

With the car park and café now open and since the announcement that people could meet in parks we are once again experiencing a high number of visitors. Although there are still considerable revenue streams lost to us this year we are confident that the Park is now viable for the immediate future, but what next?

Before the coronavirus pandemic the Park was experiencing high numbers of visitors and its facilities were frequently at capacity. This is once again the case and the increased appetite for Parks has meant we have had to close the front gate in order to restrict numbers for the last two weekends in a row. People do need parks, and this need is only going to continue to grow.

The Future For Milton Country Park

Alongside increasing numbers, Milton Country Park is now facing a future of significant pressure from large scale developments to the North and South of the Park. Waterbeach New Town has 6,000 new homes approved and 4.500 homes proposed. To the south, Cambridge North East Development proposes another 8,000 homes and businesses which will need vital access to the Park.  

This scale of development provides both opportunities and challenges for the Trust. As a charity committed to providing opportunities for the public health benefit we see a chance to provide a high quality facility that will improve wellbeing in the county, but to do this Milton Country Park must grow or it will eventually need to change its model to restrict visitor numbers to manageable levels.

The recognition of the importance of Parks gives hope for the future. Parks have value not just in terms of immediate benefit but in the vital role they play as a public health service, creating healthy, cohesive communities, and in responding to climate change with increased biodiversity and contributing to carbon reduction.

It is a timely subject, with Cambridgeshire committed to doubling green space by 2040 there is a resounding need to grow in response to demand but we must also value, invest and build on what we have.

We now look to Central Government, Local Authorities, businesses, planners, and individuals to act on what we’ve learnt from this crisis, to make a difference and put real, tangible value on the spaces people so clearly need.

MCP / CSLT