Stakeholder feedback

The Parks and Open Spaces Strategy received five substantive responses from stakeholders. These include:

• PCC Transport Department
• The Hampshire Countryside Access Forum
• Bird Aware Solent
• Natural England
• PCC Public Health

Responses from stakeholders give general praise for the Parks and Open Spaces Strategy, consider protected sites, wildlife and biodiversity, and encourage continued collaboration with other departments.

General praise for the Parks and Open Spaces strategy highlights the strategy as:

• Well-considered and presented
• Balanced and holistic, considering conflicting demands of Portsmouth’s green and open spaces, including protected sites, sustainability, and connecting people with nature
• Informative about the city’s parks and open spaces
• Striving for inclusivity, particularly regarding the key principle set out by the strategy of ensuring no-one is excluded from the city’s parks and open spaces

 

Key quotes from stakeholders

“Overall the strategy is very informative and contains a lot of useful information about the city’s green space and parks. It is also good to see that one of the key principles is ensuring all members of the community can enjoy the city’s green space.”

– Portsmouth City Council Transport Department

“We are supportive of the strategy and recognise the importance of connecting people with nature, while also balancing the management of the many protected sites and the role of nature recovery and ecological connectivity across the area.”

– Natural England

“We generally regard this as a well-considered and well-presented draft which balances the conflicting demands of local access to both natural and manicured greenspace for all members of the community  with environmental and practical considerations.”

– Hampshire Countryside Access Forum

 

Continued collaboration with other departments is encouraged to ensure:

• Parks and open spaces and transport strategies generally support each other to achieve respective objectives and function holistically
• Accessibility is appropriately accommodated in the Parks and Open Spaces Strategy
• To help achieve sustainability and environmental goals