PARK lovers are furious at the council’s plan to introduce widespread cuts to popular parks without consultation.

Beginning on May 8, the cuts will see park keepers at Abbotts Park, in Leyton, and Memorial Park, in Chingford, be replaced by mobile patrols, neighbourhood officers and CCTV.

Park users call the plans “outrageous” with the council “riding roughshod” over residents by “drastically" limiting facilities a lot of money has been spent on.

The popular Ridgeway Park, in Chingford, home to the famous model railway and new “state-of-the-art” tennis courts, is also facing cuts.

East London and West Essex Guardian Series:

A popular spot for model railway enthusiasts

The Chingford Get Together venue will see the hours of its long-standing park keepers reduce to eight hours a day.

Under the plans, the keeper will work eight hours before the park closes, but still spend two hours of their shift cleaning the surrounding streets.

This week the park closes at 11.30pm meaning the park keeper will arrive at 3.30pm, a full four and a half hours after its 11am opening.

Taking the two hours spent street cleaning and work time directive to take a 30-minute break, the keeper’s hours in the park is effectively five and a half hours.

Among the keeper’s various duties is to open the toilets and the mini golf, while caring for the tennis courts, newly refurbished after £0.5 million in funding from the Lawn Tennis Association.

Chairman of the model railway club, Roy Berg, said it is clearly a “security issue”.

East London and West Essex Guardian Series:

Park cuts a "security issue"

He said: “We are spending over £25,000 renovating our model railway and the new CCTV does not even cover it.

“The park is well used during the whole day with many pensioners walking their dogs in the morning.

“Mothers with young pre-school children use the facilities and residents are often here keeping fit during all times of the day.”

Park keepers carry out 95 per cent of the upkeep of the park as well as being essential liaison with the public.

Mr Berg added: “Under the proposed changes it would not take long before the park deteriorates to an unusable state.

“The mobile team are planned to cover the short fall, but it is not increasing in size, and is already pushed to complete their tasks.

“With three more parks to cover, their resources will be spread very thinly.”

Setting up an online petition to the stop the council’s plan is Sandra Dibble.

She said: “It is outrageous. How are they allowed to just steamroller these things through?

“This will affect so many people who use the park, dog walkers, young families and people using the gym and obviously the fantastic model railway and mini golf.”

Defending its lack of a consultation, a council spokesperson said: “A consultation was not required as we are updating an existing service not removing it.”

The council did not make our press deadline for further comment.