Statement on parks and gardens

Following a Dorset Echo article published on Monday 10^th March headlined Fear for Future of Weymouth Parks and Gardens, Weymouth Town Council has issued the following response to correct some inaccuracies contained within the report and reassure residents that it remains fully committed to maintaining and enhancing Weymouth’s wonderful green spaces. 

The article said the amount of money being spent to maintain Weymouth’s green spaces had drastically decreased for three years in a row, and that four years ago, the Council spent over half a million pounds looking after green areas across Weymouth, including cemeteries, allotments, parks and gardens. 

This is not accurate. As explained in our response – that was not published in the article although provided to the Echo – the £561,197 spend is for parks and gardens and included £231,097 for constructing The Marsh skatepark, which is not a maintenance cost, but a capital cost. The Council used a mixture of grants and reserves to purchase a one-off asset for the community. Once the initial outlay to build / purchase the asset had been made the Council return to its normal operating costs as the skatepark asset does not need to be purchased again.  

The article also said that Weymouth Town Council were approached for comment regarding cuts to annual spending, but the two responses were not included in the published article even though these had been supplied to the Echo in advance of the story that appeared on the 10^th March.  

For the record, the first response supplied was sent on Wednesday 5^th March and stated: 

“While budgets naturally fluctuate year on year, Weymouth Town Council remains fully committed to maintaining and enhancing our Green Spaces. Over the past four years, we have seen both increases and decreases in our budget for Green Spaces. Importantly, any reductions in spending have not come at the expense of service quality. Instead, we have focused on becoming more efficient, ensuring that every pound spent delivers value for our community. Two of our parks have been awarded Green Flag status, and as well as developing the new Radipole Park we intend to further develop many of our green spaces in harmony with the community and the environment.” 

The Council followed this up with a more detailed response on Friday 7^th March setting out further context and clarification to questions asked about figures supplied to the Echo.  

The Council was asked about a decrease in spending in expenditure in Green Spaces in 2021/22, when the figure was £561,197, and in 2023/24, when the figure was £235,445.

To provide context, these have coincided with many of the Council’s projects including The Marsh Recreation Ground which involved building the open access skatepark that opened in April 2022 at a total cost of £358,000 – spread over multiple financial years. This was largely funded by grants – as reflected in the income figures.  

In addition, since the return to normal service post pandemic, the Council have also been working strategically to reduce costs, which is reflected in the figures: 

1. Transport Costs: In 2021 the Council used part of its vehicle reserve for much-needed new electronic vehicles in line with its Climate and Ecological Emergency targets. This strategy helped save money while ensuring funds are available to maintain the vehicle fleet and reduce emissions. 
2. Staffing Costs: there has been some underspend on staffing due to restructures. The Council is now fully recruited with a dynamic, passionate new team. 
3. Play Area Equipment: There was a decrease in spending on play area equipment due to project delays caused by poor weather. This amounted to £70,000 and has now been spent on these upgrades under this year’s budget. Again, these are one-off projects, the Council is working with its teams to improve maintenance and the lifespans of this equipment. 
4. Maintenance and Materials: While the maintenance budget increased, wet weather delayed works, resulting in lower actual spending. Additionally, the materials budget was reduced due to contract demands, the Council did not have the need to purchase as much equipment due to lower demand of services to private businesses.  

While the reduction in expenditure is significant, much of it reflects strategic decisions, the end of planned projects and external factors rather than a decrease in the importance placed on Green Spaces. The budgets have largely stayed the same. 

The Council has delivered several key projects over recent years, and has moved to a strategy of building reserves and focusing on core services to deliver the Council’s long-term strategic goals. The Council is working closely with its communities to ensure we continue to deliver the projects they want in their communities.

ENDS