start-with-the-park

50 Start with the park
Green space standards
‘Any effort to
improve children’s
play opportunities
must recognise…
that most play
does not take
place on sites
formally
designated as
play spaces.’
Getting serious about play
(DCMS, 2004)
In the past, green space planning
has been determined by a variety of
quantitative green space standards.
Many of these have been incorporated
into local development plans as
targets for the development of
new green spaces.
The Active Recreation Standards,
set out by the National Playing Fields
Association, call for local authorities
to provide a minimum level of space
and facilities for sports for adults
and youths, and play for children. 16
The Accessible Natural Greenspace
Standards (ANGSt), developed by
English Nature, relate to the accessibility
(on foot) and size of areas that have
been naturally colonised by plants
and animals. 17
Such quantitative national standards
should be used with care. As PPG17
notes, while they remain a good starting
point, standards are best set locally
to meet local needs, demographic
patterns and economic patterns.
Policies should reflect an understanding
of how green spaces are integrated
with the built environment; of the wide
variety of types of green space; and
of the suitability of many of them for
multiple uses. Local policy and
guidance should take account of
the quality of green space, as well
as the quantity. From design policy
to design quality 18 offers a framework
for developing a comprehensive
range of design policies for local
policy documents.
Setting quality standards
The criteria of the Green Flag Award,
the national standard for parks and
green spaces, are used by 70 per
cent of councils in England. An awarded
site can be used as a local benchmark
against which the quality of management
and maintenance of a range of sites can
be measured using the criteria. For green
spaces in or around housing, Building for
Life and CABE have developed a series
of qualitative standards.