The Friends of Ilkley Riverside Parks (FOIRP). who have transformed the parks by the River Wharfe, has issued its latest Annual Report, which sets out the groups continued achievements and also appeals for more members as the work load increases.
FOIRP Chair, Ed Duguid, said; “It’s been another year of hard graft from our amazing and dedicated volunteers and we are now seeing the transformation of the parks into the asset for Ilkley we always believed they were”.
Key achievements for the group in the last year included:
· New Stone Raised Beds Riverside Gardens
· New Planting on the Embankment at Riverside Gardens
· Revitalised Playground with new equipment
· Further work has been done to extend the Wildflower area
· Further benches have been repaired and renovated.
· More bins have been cleaned, painted or replaced
· More plants have been added to the new flowerbeds
· More Trees have been planted or replaced
“We have two Work Parties every week from March to December and get out in most weathers.” said Ed, “and we are grateful for the support we receive from local people and the generosity of local organisations without which we would achieve far less. In particular, we’d like to thank Helen Taylor and her colleagues, Landscape Gardeners, who have given their time, free of charge, to help us plan and design new flowerbeds over the last 3 years. In addition, we’d like to thank all the people and organisations who contributed to the funding of the new Playground in Riverside Gardens and our brilliant Project team who coordinated all this and the construction along with Bradford Council.”.
Ed added, “Whilst the improvements to the Park are self-evident this also comes with greater demands on our volunteers. We are a small and dedicated team and it would be great if we were able to increase our numbers to meet the co0ntinual challenges. Not only would we be able to achieve more but we would also benefit from fresh ideas for our future projects. In the next years, we will continue to extend our planting of the Embankments and flowerbeds as well as all our usual maintenance of the park areas.
If anyone is interested in devoting a few hours of their time in the fresh air and making a difference to the appearance of the Parks we would be delighted to hear from you.”
To get a copy of the Annual Report 2023 or if you have any questions email: foirp2@gmail.com
To find out more about the group visit https://friends-of-ilkley-riverside-parks.com/ or find them on social media.