QU132 - Naturally Birmingham Future Parks Accelerator Programme Evaluation - AWARD

Birmingham City Council are seeking to appoint a Project Evaluator consultant for the Naturally Birmingham Future Parks Accelerator Programme. Birmingham has won a place on a new multi million pound initiative to enhance the future of its parks and green spaces.

Birmingham City Council is one of only eight places across the UK selected by the National Trust (NT), The National Lottery Heritage Fund (NLHF) and Ministry for Communities, Housing and Local Government (MCHLG) to take part in its ground-breaking Future Parks programme. Future Parks is designed to help councils find sustainable ways to manage and fund parks and open spaces across entire towns and cities.

The four pilots are A Skills led project at Ward End Park and wider neighbourhood this is looking at developing future skills requirement for the sector and how to link to the regional jobs programmes, and the national Parks Advisory Group, reporting to Government, how to get volunteers involved in other aspects of parks management how to get large employers within the City to value green space as an asset for their employees. The Health initiative will focus on Perry Common Recreation Ground, which is being re-structured through a recent housing scheme, as well as Witton Lakes in Stockland Green which is the site of a new eco hub being developed.

This will involve the local community through Witton Lodge Community Association and local health centres to test how we really embed green spaces as part of social prescribing. This will link locally and nationally with Public Health A Housing initiative looking at the development of a 12-hectare site in Stockland Green (the Magnet Centre) will look at different ways of integrating urban green space and parks to better serve local communities.

Through this the City will be working closely with the council's Planning department to ensure green spaces in housing are supported and managed in more meaningful ways. The Childrens Trust are our fourth partner in this project this community pilot will look to engage with existing projects in south Birmingham around Cotteridge Park and apply the learning to areas more in need within Kings Heath and Brandwood.

The primary focus is going to be around better engaging children and young people with green spaces both in early years (the first 1001 days) as well as in our most vulnerable children in care through corporate mentoring. We are looking for an evaluation that tells us What have the 4 pilot themes achieved with respect to how green spaces are being used differently Which key partners are being engaged and how successfully. What makes the engagement successful What building blocks are being put in place to ensure the 25-year strategy is successful Is there public awareness of the 25-year strategy and what is the response How are perceptions of parks and green spaces changing both in the community public as well as within BCC staff for eac...