The refurbishment of features in Hull’s Pearson Park will add value for visitors - Yorkshire Post Letters

It's good to read that two of the larger parks in the city of Kingston upon Hull will shortly benefit from large chess tables with help from funding from the government to try to tackle loneliness, which in my opinion is long overdue (The Yorkshire Post, November 3, 2023).

The refurbishment of features in Pearson Park such as the conservatory and bandstand adds to the value of visiting this park and I am sure that the number of local residents and visitors from around Hull has increased.

Parks are for people, and it is fitting that Pearson park was originally called the people's park in Kingston upon Hull.

Hull’s largest East Park has its famous Charles Wicksteed (manufacturing some of Britain's finest playground equipment).

Its renowned for generations, the splash boat slide, which drops 22 feet over a distance of 100 feet, still thrills both grandparents, parents, their children and grandchildren. It has been here since 1887 along with the much later addition of an animal education centre.

This is proof that councillors in Hull value the parks for the benefits of local communities and are willing to invest in new facilities.

The large chess table will draw more visitors to East park, and I am sure that the cafe will benefit with more usage all year round and making the facility more viable.

Other local authorities’s parks in Yorkshire, mainly Leeds City Council's Roundhay and Lotherton Parks and district parks in Keighley and Otley, and in North Yorkshire council in Scarborough's, South Cliff Gardens, and Harrogate Valley Gardens should value the benefits that parks give to the local communities and visitors alike.

Parks can cater for everyone's needs from walking, jogging in organised Park Runs, playing football, rugby and in some cases outdoor bowling for mainly the elderly members in society, in some areas more young people are even taking up outdoor bowls as a hobby.

Diverse planting of wild meadows, planting a wide range of perennials and shrubs will attract insects, birds and grey squirrels. For those who sit and observe it will undoubtedly feel more relaxed away from the urban vehicle pollution found on most streets which are very choked vehicles in long lines of traffic.

Parks have opportunities to educate its users with different types of shrubs which can be used for hedging rather than unimaginative six feet wooden fencing panels, which are so thin these days that they have a limited lifespan.

There is more required to maintain a hedge by cutting it twice a year compared to treating a fence every two years. But a hedge will last longer in the long term and with the right choice of plants, for example Pyracantha or Berberis (Barberry), it will provide greater security to a property.

Model allotments with easy to grow vegetables in parks can be started by park gardeners and then adopted by friends groups or regular park users.