Friends of Graham Street Park Activities April 2020 - April 2021
National Lottery Funding of £6600, received in January 2020, has been spent throughout the park.
## **March 2020**
## Start of National Lockdown!
Just a few days before the first national lockdown, on 21st March 2020, Frogs organised a big gardening day. Denise was able to secure four big planters for the park which were placed in a team effort between the benches on the basin frontage. These were filled with bricks and soil and we planted pansies, ivy, lots and bulbs and seeds sown. Nine local families were involved, one of the biggest gardening events so far. The future was very uncertain, and we sensed that another get together wouldn’t be possible for some time.
## **April/May/June 2020**
To keep our gardening efforts alive while following lockdown restrictions, we locked watering cans to the planter boxes on the basin frontage and shared the code with members of the community. so that they were able to do watering as part of their daily exercise or activity for the children throughout the lockdown.
The whole park, especially the playground, which was locked due to COVID19 restrictions, was blooming. Tulips and daffodils grew everywhere from the bulbs that were planted in the previous winter.
There was a proposal to erect a herb garden structure within the round rose bed however the council had concerns over safety and maintenance issues but this proposal turned the focus to the old overlooked rose bed which was erected 25 years earlier to commemorate Crystal Hale and to celebrate IBC. Since IBC’s 50th anniversary celebrations had to be cancelled due to the pandemic, Frogs started to plan a revival of the rose bed for later that year.
The raised beds next to the football pitch that were cleared from shrubs got filled with fertile soil in preparation for a season of experimenting with food growing. What had started as a nice idea to teach the children and also adults about how vegetables grow and where food comes from turned into a successful edible garden, thanks to dedicated volunteers like Bunmi, Denise and Katja who spent many hours watering etc.
Local keyworkers’ children, who still attended Hanover school, helped to plant broad beans and carrots after school on May 14th. The first harvest was baby radish!
Thanks to Denise and her sister Rosie we received the first donation of many truckloads of tree bark on 5 June 2020 Forbes Tree Care.
## **July 2020**
A local independent coffee business, Big Shot, had a go at opening the kiosk on the first weekend of July, to serve coffee and treats to park visitors. Unfortunately, the weather did not cooperate and the struggled to find staff so our search to find and establish a professionally run coffee shop from the kiosk continues.
We had our first potato harvest on 9th July. The children in the local community got involved digging up the potatoes and were very excited about finding them. All the volunteers took some potatoes home to make a dish which they brought back later in the day to share. It was a huge success which we plan to make an annual event and involve more people from the gardening enthusiasts.
Another truck load of mulch from Forbes Tree Care was unloaded at the park on 24 July.
## **August 2020**
Bunmi and her neighbour opened the cafe on various weekends throughout August, serving home baked cakes (like a pumpkin cake made with Graham Street Park grown pumpkin) and refreshments.
## **October 2020**
A Whatsapp Composting group was established by Denise after the purchase of a hot compost bin. Nine volunteers are currently actively involved in the process of turning any leftover food into soil and fertiliser which is being used throughout the park. This is in addition to the open (cold) compost heap and the drums that are in place at the park from the end of 2019.
On 25th October we purchased composting worms and added them to the new composting drum.
Hydrangeas were planted in the playground, on the triangular bed behind the bench in the center.
A big new bench was installed by Islington Council on 10th October.
Forbes Tree Care had to fell a Eucalyptus tree on the canal towpath nearby and brought the mulch along with some big and small tree stumps to Graham Street Park. The stumps are used as seating under the cherry tree and as natural play equipment for the children similar to an Adventure playground. The thinner branches are used as natural fences and the mulch has been spread throughout the park, to protect the plant beds etc.
On 26th and 27th October the rose bed was upgraded in a big team effort. Debs and family did a huge shop at a gardening center and delivered everything to the park. All rose bushes were rearranged, and new plants added. More than 15 people were involved. The day ended with a small bonfire and marshmallows. Mulch was added on 27th.
## **November 2020**
Lots of new bulbs were purchased for families to plant throughout the park (no proper gardening day could be planned due to Covid restrictions)
Plans to get a fir/Christmas tree for the park were forming. Money towards a tree was raised through selling coffee and cakes at the kiosk. Another fundraiser was started to raise money for a new plaque for Crystal Hale and the rose bed. Katja and Maria have been working with a designer on creating a plaque that incorporates the existing 25y/o plaque currently attached to the wall. The new plaque will cost more than £800, further fundraising ideas are needed to complete this project.
On 15th November, a few families celebrated St. Martin’s Day with a lantern procession through the park.
A second bench, matching the one installed around the rose bed, was installed outside the playground overlooking the sandpit.
## **December 2020**
Frogs got its own QR code and a card reader to take card payments easier for kiosk trading. Hanover school mums opened the kiosk a few afternoons and on weekends.
On 12th December volunteer Michael organised a German-style Christmas get-together with Bratwurst and Gluehwein to raise money towards the Christmas Tree. The tree was planted on 17th December and decorated by local kids.
## **January 2021**
We ordered bird house making kits for local families and community members to purchase and build at home or at the park as last year a great tit made its home in our singular bird house. Volunteer David installed many of these bird houses onto trees in the park following the guidelines provided by James Robinson Tillet, Islington Council’s tree surgeon. The bird feeding station has attracted many more birds since it has been put up in 2019.
Forbes Tree Care donated sycamore mulch which was shifted by volunteers quickly, to protect plant beds and fill puddles.
## **February 2021**
Forbes Tree Care donated bigger chunks of mulch, useful for muddy areas within the playground. On 6th Saturday an impromptu event was created to get people together for shifting the mulch, before the big snow. Around 15 people helped.
We made plans to reach out to members of our community (priority to older, less mobile people) interested in doing some gardening. Bunmi divided the raised beds into plots that would be offered to individuals.
IBC wanted to donate a boat that could be installed in the park. We formed a boat group which considered the proposal but ultimately decided against the boat as it seemed unsafe, uneasy to clean and too big.
We suffered a rare incident of ASB: the bird feeder landed in the canal, a new one was purchased asap. However, the birdfeeder was later spotted in the canal and we fished it out.
Rosemary beetles infested all the rosemary bushes. In a team effort all children collected as many beetles as they could get. Unfortunately, the rosemary bushes seem to be unable to recover.
## **March 2021**
The edible garden beds were prepared with manure and soil from the park’s compost, all plots have been given to new members of FROGS.
After the end of year budget meeting, Islington Council parks management gave FROGS £450 to spend on the park which led to a revamp of the cafe which desperately needed a newer fresher look, especially since it is still FROGS intention to find someone who would like to run the cafe more regularly. The plan was to paint the walls white and install a worktop and more storage. Over Easter, the cafe was open on Saturday and Sunday, run by Denise and Saviana who served pizza, cakes and drinks.
In preparation for a Spring Clean Day on 5th April the garden storage space was decluttered and cleaned by Katja, Iona, Helen, Monique and Denise, to make space for cafe equipment to be stored during the DIY phase.
## **April 2021**
On 5[th] April a big spring clean took place with six families involved. Michael donated and installed a kitchen worktop with the help of David, Joana and husband and Katja. More shelving was installed on 24th April, afterwards the cafe and toilet area will be painted.
Hopefully iron doors and shutters will be painted green, Denise and Katja are in touch with a street art agency to offer the walls of the football pitch to graffiti artists. Fundraising for Crystal Hale needs to get going.
||**The Friends of Graham Street Park**|**The Friends of Graham Street Park**|**The Friends of Graham Street Park**|**1164862**|
|---|---|---|---|---|
||**For the period**
**from**|**01/11/2019**|**To**|**31/10/2020**|
|**Section A Receipts and payments**|**Section A Receipts and payments**|**Section A Receipts and payments**||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|**A1 Receipts**|**Unrestricted**
**funds**
**to the nearest £**
**60**
**85**
**-**
**-**
**78**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**223**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**223**
**-**
**-**
**177**
**200**
**89**
**-**
**56**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**522**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**522**
**- 299**
**-**
**1,200**
**901**|**Restricted**
**funds**
**to the nearest £**
**6,600**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**6,600**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**6,600**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**2,006**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**2,006**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**2,006**
**4,594**
**-**
**633**
**5,227**|**Endowment**
**funds**
**to the nearest £**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**|**Total funds**
**to the nearest £**
**6,660**
**85**
**-**
**-**
**78**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**6,823**
**-**
**-**
**6,823**
**-**
**-**
**177**
**200**
**89**
**-**
**56**
**2,006**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**2,528**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**2,528**
**4,295**
**-**
**1,832**
**6,128**|**Last year**
**to the nearest £**|
|Donations,legacies andgrants|**60**||||**15**|
|Kiosk trading|**85**||||**300**|
|Interest on deposit accounts|**-**||||**0**|
|Hire of kiosk|**-**||||**0**|
|Credits|**78**||||**20**|
||**-**||||**0**|
||**-**||||**0**|
||**-**||||**0**|
|**_Sub total_**_(Gross income for_
_AR)_|**223**||||**335**|
|||||||
|**A2 Asset and investment**
**sales, (see table).**||||||
|Purchase of fixed assets|**-**|||||
||**-**||||**-**|
|**_Sub total_**|**-**||||**-**|
|**_Total receipts_**
**A3 Payments**||||||
||||||**335**|
|||||||
|Bank and interest charges|**-**||||**0**|
|Cost of fundraisingevents|**-**||||**0**|
|Cost of kiosk trading|**177**||||**283.48**|
|Grants and donationspaid|**200**||||**0**|
|Insurance|**89**||||**99.31**|
|Light and heating|**-**||||**0**|
|Printing,stationery, postage|**56**||||**55.99**|
|Repairs and maintenance|**-**||||**0**|
|Telephone and internet|**-**||||**0**|
|Volunteer related costs (training,
meetings,volunteer events)|||||**341.87**|
|Water and sewage|**-**||||**-**|
|**_Sub total_ **|**522**||||**781**|
|||||||
|**A4 Asset and investment**
**purchases, (see table)**||||||
|Purchase of fixed assets
Loans repaid to an external funder
**_Sub total_ **|**-**||||**-**|
||**-**||||**-**|
||**-**||||**-**|
|**_Total payments_**
**_Net of receipts/(payments)_**
**A5 Transfers between funds**
**A6 Cash funds last year end**
**_Cash funds this year end_**||||||
||||||**781**|
|||||||
||**- 299**|**4,594**|**-**|**4,295**|**- 446**|
||**-**|**-**|**-**|**-**|**-**|
||**1,200**|**633**|**-**|**1,832**|**2,278**|
||**901**|**5,227**|**-**|**6,128**|**1,832**|
CCXX R1 accounts (SS)
19/08/2021
1
|**Section B Statement of assets and liabilities**|**Section B Statement of assets and liabilities**|**at the end of the period**||
|---|---|---|---|
|**Categories**
-
Signed by one or two trustees on
behalf of all the trustees
**B5 Liabilities**
**B4 Assets retained for the**
**charity’s own use**
**B3 Investment assets**
**B2 Other monetary assets**
**B1 Cash funds**|**Details**
Signature
**Details**
(agree balances with receipts and payments
account(s))
**Details**
**Details**
Volunteer expenses outstanding
Kiosk equipment
Not applicable
Not applicable
Cash on deposit
Kiosk cash float
Existing grants
**_Total cash funds_**
**Details**|**Unrestricted**
**funds**
**Restricted**
**funds**
**to nearest £**
**to nearest £**
**833**
**5,227**
**68**
**-**
**-**
**901**
**5,227**
OK
OK
**Unrestricted**
**funds**
**Restricted**
**funds**
**to nearest £**
**to nearest £**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**Fund to which**
**asset belongs**
**Cost (optional)**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**Fund to which**
**asset belongs**
**Cost (optional)**
Unrestricted
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**Fund to which**
**liability relates**
**Amount due**
**(optional)**
Unrestricted
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
**-**
Print Name|**Endowment**
**funds**
**to nearest £**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||OK|
||||**Endowment**
**funds**
**to nearest £**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**Current value**
**(optional)**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**Current value**
**(optional)**|
|||||
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**-**|
||||**When due**
**(optional)**|
|||||
|||||
|||||
|||||
|||||
|||||
||||Date of
approval|
|||||
|||||
CCXX R2 accounts (SS)
19/08/2021
2