The Friends of
Dagnam Park was conceived at a
meeting of the Brookside Angling Club in Harold Wood on the 2nd
May 2003 when a whole lot of angry Harold Hill people sat in the
audience bursting to have their say about the way their enjoyment
of the park had been destroyed by a handful of anti-social illegal
motorcyclists.
They had been given the opportunity by the angling club that had
invited all comers to the meeting. We all turned up but we were
not prepared to leave it at that, so a list of addresses was collected
and from that original list the core of “the friends”
was formed. We produced leaflets, contacted the press and organised
the biggest public meeting on Harold Hill for many years. 150 local
people attended the meeting which was a great success and our membership
grew. Since then we have gone from strength to strength, with the
angling club affiliated, about 80 supporters, and 35 paid up members.
We even have our first donation from a local firm, Peter Jones Brick Paving, who
has made a substantial contribution as well as delivering our leaflets
free of charge. We are still campaigning against the anti social
behaviour in the park but have moved into other areas.
We have already been successful in our campaign to have the park
declared a Local Nature Reserve, but we are still campaigning to
include within the park the surrounding “set aside”
farmland that is owned by the council. We are meeting on a regular
basis and alongside our campaign meetings we also organise indoor
and outdoor talks and activities. See the website notice board for
the diary of events.
Why not join
us; we need all the help we can get. We each contribute five pounds
a year which is used for the hire of halls and other running costs.
You can then help us to achieve our aims or simply learn about the
park, its history and wildlife. Contact us and leave a phone number,
address or email address and we will be in touch.
