Parks and cemeteries winter maintenance

It is recognised that access to parks and open spaces are important to local residents for leisure and recreational purposes. 

Previous experience has identified that schools may close during heavy or prolonged snow and ice conditions. In such circumstances, parks often become a destination of choice for leisure purposes. 

All efforts will be made to ensure that parks remain open and accessible for public use during periods of severe weather. 

As such, customers (users of parks and open spaces) are being encouraged to assess the risks of travelling through parks and/or using the park facilities prior to entry. 

We implement a salting programme on the public highway. Customers should consider the option to travel around the park, as opposed to passing through, should always be considered in the first instance. 

This season, partial salting or gritting will be carried out in parks and open spaces across Southwark. This will focus on the busiest routes through parks, maintaining access to key locations and some slopes. 

Using a priority schedule, we spread salt and grit during the day in areas with ice or snow. 

This is in line with the services provided by a number of other local authorities and reduces our overall salt use which is more environmentally friendly. 

Individual members of the public who choose to use parks and open spaces during periods of inclement weather should still be able to access some facilities more easily but unsalted areas are used at their own risk.  

Duty of care

As an organisation, Southwark has a Duty of Care to park users, directly employed staff and maintenance contractors. To mitigate risks, we have taken the following actions.