Park maintenance

How we maintain Bury's parks

The Parks and Countryside Service are responsible for the general management and day-to-day maintenance of Bury's parks and green spaces. The Service undertakes a wide range of horticultural and landscape operations which are managed to ensure that all sites are clean, safe, visually pleasing and contributing towards a quality environment for residents and visitors.

Area Teams

There are seven area teams which carry out the grounds maintenance to parks and public open spaces throughout the borough. The areas covered by the teams are:

• Team 1 - Ramsbottom
• Team 2 - Tottington and Bury West
• Team 3 - Radcliffe
• Team 4 - Bury town centre and south Bury
• Team 5 - Bury North and East
• Team 6 - Whitefield and Unsworth
• Team 7 - Prestwich

On-site gardeners

To sustain the improvements to the urban parks and to ensure that the high standards required for the Green Flag award can be maintained, a permanent on-site gardener is in place at each of Bury's major parks. The on-site gardeners work closely with the Park Ranger Service and volunteers and carry out a full range of horticultural and environmental maintenance resulting in improvements to the parks' appearance, cleanliness and its sense of welcome. This permanent presence can also have a reassuring effect for residents and visitors to the park, helping to create a sense of security and a deterrent against anti-social behaviour and crime.

Grassed areas and sports pitches

Grass is generally cut fortnightly during the season (March to October) and the cuttings left on site. However, any cuttings falling on to hard surfaces are either swept up or blown back on to the grassed areas.

Some of the more formal and decorative grassed areas may be cut weekly and the cuttings removed.

Edges to lawns in parks are not treated with herbicide, but instead, they are strimmed.

Where grass areas adjoin footpaths and roads, overgrowing turf is cut back annually in the winter season.

Bowling greens

Council managed bowling greens are cut three times a week throughout the season (March to October). Some park bowling greens are run under self-management agreements, whereby the club is responsible for ensuring that the bowling green is cut regularly.

Throughout the year, bowling greens require various other maintenance procedures besides grass cutting, these include:

• Spring and summer fertiliser application;
• Autumn and winter fertiliser application;
• End of season scarifying (removal of thatch and moss);
• End of season solid or hollow tining (to improve drainage);
• Verti-draining (this helps to alleviate compaction and allows surface water to escape more quickly); and
• Pesticide application (where necessary).

Shrubs

Shrub areas are litter-picked regularly throughout the year.

In summer, any persistent weed is spot treated with herbicide or removed by hand.

In winter, shrub areas are raked clear of leaves, litter and debris.

Following on from this, most shrubs are pruned back (dependent on flowering season of specific species), particularly if they have started to encroach on to lawns, paths and roads. Residual herbicide is then applied to the beds.

Roses

Rose beds are litter picked regularly throughout the year.

In summer, rose beds are kept free of weed by hoeing. The roses are usually dead-headed twice during the growing season and suckers removed.

In autumn, roses are cut back to prevent wind rock which could loosen the roots.

Roses are pruned in March to encourage new growth and to remove dead and diseased shoots.

Seasonal bedding

Summer bedding is normally planted at the end of May or beginning of June and spring bedding in October.

Flower beds are litter picked on a regular basis and kept free of weed, usually by hoeing.

Baskets and tubs are kept watered throughout the summer season and dead headed as necessary.

Hedges

Hedge clipping is carried out between one and three occasions (dependent upon the species) during the summer season.

In winter, hedge gullies are cleared of weeds, litter and debris and residual herbicide is applied.

Litter and litter bins

In most parks, where there is a permanent gardener and/or ranger present, litter removal and the emptying of litter bins is carried out daily throughout the year. Where there is no permanent site-based staff, litter removal and the emptying of litter bins is carried out weekly throughout the year.

Dog waste bins

These bins are emptied weekly throughout the year by the Cleansing Service of the council.

Sports pitch marking

The majority of football clubs using park's pitches are run under self management agreements and as such, are responsible for making their own arrangements for marking out pitches. However, where the pitches are still managed by the council, the following activities are carried out:

• Initial marking including painting and erecting of goal posts;
• Over marking weekly throughout the season;
• Dismantling and storing of goal posts at the end of the season;
• Annual pitch renovation.

Play areas, tennis courts and multi-use ball zones

These areas are inspected seven days a week (with the exception of Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year's Day).

Equipment and fixtures are checked and litter, glass and debris are removed. If any equipment is found to be dangerous or unsafe we make sure nobody can use it until we can repair it or replace it.

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