Have your say on Victoria Park.

Gramaisc

Forum O. G.
In my day, structured facilities were of little interest to us. A few minutes on a swing or a slide was enough, all we really wanted was space and access.

Having said that, I am strangely attracted by the "rope pyramid" thing on Tenterbanks.....
 

Gareth

Well-Known Forumite
It already has great play facilites, a relative live opposite the park gates :)

Can live in the park for all I care.

The area is of high crime and low social mobility, many of the issues result in problems in the park

The hanley park play area, while not the worst I have seen but still not nice was caged off and completely detracts from is facilities, not that it keeps out the drug users in the day let alone at night.

It seems to have been quite hot bed of assaults and knife in recent has the public outcry for improvements and security....am I painting a lovely picture?

The rest of the park, mainly to the east while green and managed ok for the most part, has a real issue with dog fouling. It has little in the way of flowers nor colour but has some green area and tree line, but the old boating house on the pond is constantly vandalised. Shame as there is a lovely pond not made the most of.

The pedastrian entrances have been blocked off by massive concrete blocks to stop the issues with small cars and mopeds etc using the park as a race track at night.....I could go on.

No doubt hanley park was probably a great park in its hey day, but it us beyond that right now and it is bloody crying shame

It would be great to bring it up to scratch and Stoke council have banged on about this for years with no movement but it has excellent potential

One thing you can be sure, Victoria Park it isn`t right now.
 
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Gareth

Well-Known Forumite
This is the thing with you isn't it. You slag off everywhere else in your attempt to demean the opinions of others who expect better for Stafford and aren't happy to put up with the rubbish we have, but you NEVER have the accurate evidence to back up your patronising opinion.

I know you never like facts to get in the way of your opinion, but here's some information on parks in the Potteries. I'm assuming you mean the Potteries as you mention Northwood and Hanley which aren't actually Stoke but y'know!! If you think homelessness and drug dealing are absent from any Stafford park then you need to actually visit one. Drunks in the little seated area opposite the railway station are a speciality of Staffords Victoria Park!

So, for the record:

Hanley Park recently awarded £4.5 million for restoration

http://www.visitstoke.co.uk/Stoke-on-Trent-Hanley-Park/details/?dms=3&venue=2230569

http://www.stoke.gov.uk/ccm/content...open-spaces/other-parks-folder/hanley-park.en

Burslem Park is grade 2 listed park

http://www.visitstoke.co.uk/Stoke-on-Trent-Burslem-Park/details/?dms=3&venue=2230525

Tunstall Park, another Grade 2 listed park

http://www.visitstoke.co.uk/Stoke-on-Trent-Tunstall-Park/details/?dms=3&venue=2230580

Fenton Park

http://www.stoke.gov.uk/ccm/content...open-spaces/other-parks-folder/fenton-park.en

Longton Park


http://www.visitstoke.co.uk/Stoke-on-Trent-Longton-Park/details/?dms=3&venue=2230624

Bucknall Park

http://www.enjoystaffordshire.com/Stoke-on-Trent-Bucknall-Park/details/?dms=3&venue=2230514

Leeks population is a quarter of that of Stafford at c20,000 and a quarter of them are pensioners who probably don't need swings on a regular basis.

I don't mean to belittle anywhere, YOU asked the question, so I gave the answer. Even if I was it is no worse than you belittling Stafford.

I deal in nothing but facts not made up slurs for your own agenda

How one can use the comments you have at Victoria Parks play area simply because it is busy is baffling. Then you try compare it with a partly dilapidated park and an area you claim is full of pensioners ( which is balls) and you wonder why you are not taken seriously.
 
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proactive

Enjoying a drop of red.
which is balls

Crown-Green-Bowls3-1500-x-630.jpg
 

kyoto49

Well-Known Forumite
Can live in the park for all I care.

The area is of high crime and low social mobility, many of the issues result in problems in the park

The hanley park play area, while not the worst I have seen but still not nice was caged off and completely detracts from is facilities, not that it keeps out the drug users in the day let alone at night.

It seems to have been quite hot bed of assaults and knife in recent has the public outcry for improvements and security....am I painting a lovely picture?

The rest of the park, mainly to the east while green and managed ok for the most part, has a real issue with dog fouling. It has little in the way of flowers nor colour but has some green area and tree line, but the old boating house on the pond is constantly vandalised. Shame as there is a lovely pond not made the most of.

The pedastrian entrances have been blocked off by massive concrete blocks to stop the issues with small cars and mopeds etc using the park as a race track at night.....I could go on.

No doubt hanley park was probably a great park in its hey day, but it us beyond that right now and it is bloody crying shame

It would be great to bring it up to scratch and Stoke council have banged on about this for years with no movement but it has excellent potential

One thing you can be sure, Victoria Park it isn`t right now.

The discussion wasn't about social issues though was it.. When you replied to my question asking you to back up the statement that other towns would love to have a park like Stafford you stated Stoke + Leek. I then showed, with evidence, that Stoke (The Potteries) had multiple fabulous Grade 2 listed parks. At this point you brought in social problems. But that isn't what was being discussed. You brought social problems into your argument becuase I'd proved you wrong.

I'll reiterate. Staffords park is too small for the numbers using it, and spending money on it won't change that. Secondly, almost every town in England has a Victorian Park of equal facilites to the one in Stafford.

You need to raise you aspirations if you think there is anything outstanding about Stafford. it's a meh place, with meh facilities (sh*te leisure centre), average schools, but which is expceptionally well positioned to be able to leave for other places. Housing is cheap too, which backs up all my other opinions of Stafford, as desireable places to live have expensive housing - supply and demand you see.
 

Carole

Well-Known Forumite
I'm assuming you mean the Potteries as you mention Northwood and Hanley which aren't actually Stoke but y'know!! .

@kyoto49 Hanley IS Stoke, its part of the 6 towns if you care to google it.

My friend lives in LA * and pops over frequently to visit Stafford Victoria Park with her children because although her lovely Local park is wonderful for walking the dogs, it doesn't have the facilities for children.

So they come over, bring the kids, bring the family, clutter up the park when Stafford folk can't get a look in, then spend time in the area in the shops, cafe, restaurants, .... I mean really, how dare they come here?


The point is that Stafford has very successfully achieved something that other towns don't have ....the fact that the park is busy should be seen as an achievement, not something to be disparaged.


*for clarification, my friend from LA is "Longton Area" , not "Los Angeles".
 
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Jonah

Spouting nonsense since the day I learned to talk
Back when I were a kid in the 70s, I used to get taken to the old pool and play area during the summer and it was always completely rammed. I never remember any of us kids thinking "it's too busy, I can't play here". We just carried on playing and enjoying ourselves.

I'm sure that if you ask today's young kids if they think the park isn't 'fit for purpose' because it's busy they will look at you with a "what the hell are you talking about" expression because they don't care. They just want to play in the park and enjoy themselves.
 

kyoto49

Well-Known Forumite
Back when I were a kid in the 70s, I used to get taken to the old pool and play area during the summer and it was always completely rammed. I never remember any of us kids thinking "it's too busy, I can't play here". We just carried on playing and enjoying ourselves.

I'm sure that if you ask today's young kids if they think the park isn't 'fit for purpose' because it's busy they will look at you with a "what the hell are you talking about" expression because they don't care. They just want to play in the park and enjoy themselves.

So that makes it alright then? Not for me. Stafford is at least twice the size it was in the 1970s so should have park provision growing at a similar rate. It doesn't. And I also visited victoria park weekly in the 1970s and bar the 3 sunny days a year we used to get the place was empty bar me and my mates. Living where we did it was our local park.
 

Jonah

Spouting nonsense since the day I learned to talk
So that makes it alright then? Not for me. Stafford is at least twice the size it was in the 1970s so should have park provision growing at a similar rate. It doesn't. And I also visited victoria park weekly in the 1970s and bar the 3 sunny days a year we used to get the place was empty bar me and my mates. Living where we did it was our local park.
I am guessing that the majority of play area users (KIDS!!!) will be very happy with the facilities on offer.

You do seem to be getting a bit like HopesDad with your outlook towards Stafford.
 

proactive

Enjoying a drop of red.
I am guessing that the majority of play area users (KIDS!!!) will be very happy with the facilities on offer.

You do seem to be getting a bit like HopesDad with your outlook towards Stafford.
Actually, in all fairness, my lad used to regularly say, when we went to the town park 'Dad, it's too busy here for me to play. Can I go to the library instead?'.
 
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