Management of Public Green Spaces in the Village of Hathern

Statement of Purpose
This document will give the Hathern Parish Council and residents of Hathern a clear picture of the work required to maintain and improve the green spaces in the village over the next few years.

Overall Vision and Aims
The character of Hathern as a Leicestershire village is, in many ways, defined by its rural setting and the natural environment of its green spaces. Through the proper stewardship of these green spaces Hathern Parish Council aims to enhance their amenity value to the community whilst nurturing the diversity of plant and wildlife species that co-habit these spaces and preserving the essentially rural nature of the landscape for future generations to enjoy.

Hathern Parish Council’s Green Spaces
Green spaces are a vital part of the village environment. The green spaces under the responsibility of the Parish Council provide a range of amenities with a significant impact on village life. The quality of these amenities affects everyone in the community. The purpose of this document is to identify the relevant areas and their uses; set out a development plan for improvement where necessary and to put in place a comprehensive maintenance plan. The maintenance plan must take account of the need to keep the areas fit for purpose; to maintain an attractive appearance and to achieve best value. Furthermore much of this green space is an integral part of the open countryside around it and so it is important that the management plan ensures that the rural landscape is conserved and that the diversity of wildlife habitats is maintained.

Each of the main areas will be described in turn, summarising its use, current state and desired improvements. Maintenance will be dealt with in a separate section, as many treatments (such as hedge cutting) are common to several sites.

Main Sites

Maintenance plan