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12 Maidstone Borough Council


Mote Park has been transformed with a £2.6million package of improvements. Alan Frith is audience development officer and it’s his job to get more people into the park.


Some facts about Mote Park - Mote Park covers an area of 460 acres


- Maidstone Borough Council paid £50,000 to purchase Mote Park from the 2nd Viscount Bearsted in 1929.


- A survey in 2012 found six species of small mammals – wood mice, yellow neck mice, bank voles, field voles, common shrew and pygmy shrew.


- The park is home to 128 species of birds.


- More than one million people visited the park in 2012.


Volunteers


Over the past two years volunteers have completed 4,500 hours work, valued at £56,000.


Image courtesy of Greg Mantanle Last year the park staged 47 events for 14,000 people.


The Mote Park restoration project was awarded £1.8 million from the The Heritage Lottery Fund and the Big Lottery Fund under their Parks for People scheme.


Improvements have included – new paths, restoration of parkland, 100 new trees, car park improvements, new bridges, restoring the 1840s waterfall, visitor hubs at Willington Street and School Lane with car parks and play areas, and restoring the neoclassical Volunteers Pavilion dating from the 1800s.


Alan’s job includes


- Co-ordinating the work of the volunteers who help with conservation work around the park.


- Planning and staging events such as teddy bears’ picnics, tree planting parties, stargazing live, outdoor theatre, and kite festivals.


What attracted you to the job?


Alan has worked in the entertainment business as a former DJ and was a Head Park Ranger at Tower Hamlets, working across 72 sites. He says the opportunity to organise events coupled with the chance to work in Kent’s premier park was an irresistible combination.


What do you like most about your job?


I like working with the volunteers because they share my passion for the park and I like to think that the different events we put on encourage new people to fall in love with it. But the thing I like most is working close to wildlife and the work we do to protect it.


What does good customer care mean to you?


It’s taking the time to understand people’s points of view and their needs, and then


Borough Update


This is your council newsletter, produced up to four times a year in the Downs Mail newspaper. It is written, edited and designed by the council's communications team, Maidstone House, King Street, Maidstone, Kent ME15 6JQ. Email: pr@maidstone.gov.uk. Your comments and suggestions are


always welcome. It is typeset by AW design and printed by Newbury News. If you are visually impaired and would like the newsletter text in large print, please call us on 01622 602807, and we will be happy to send you a copy.


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