Let’s Talk About Green Spaces in Edinburgh (Not Including Cemeteries)

We are very lucky in Edinburgh. Look at all that green space in the image above!

"Almost everyone in the city lives no more than a 10 minute walk from a park or green space which is protected for good"

This bold statement does NOT include cemeteries.

It is not our quote – it is a direct quote from Edinburgh Council’s Culture & Communities Committee meeting on the 16th of November 2021

You can download the Public Pack yourself and read it here: https://t.ly/CGVE6  

Edinburgh Council have a "Minute of Agreement" partnership with the independent charity "Fields in Trust" who work with authorities across the UK to protect parks and green spaces in perpetuity for current and future generations to enjoy.

A very worthy partnership.

At the16th November 2021 meeting, City of Edinburgh had registered 34 public parks under this agreement, had two in the pipeline, and were looking at a further 25 parks and green spaces to be registered under a new agreement with Fields in Trust.

This would bring the total of protected parks under agreement with Fields of Trust to 61.

The purpose was to seek to ensure "that almost everyone in the city lives no more than a ten minute walk from a green space or park which is protected for good".

At this meeting it was stated "Using a ten-minute walk buffer as an accepted proxy for the 20 minute neighbourhood concept, officers have determined that currently 69% of the population of Edinburgh has a park or green space within a ten-minute walk that is protected by Fields in Trust. This can be increased to 92% by protecting an additional 25 specific spaces".

These figures are from 2021, three years ago. Progress has been made.

The 25 extra parks and greenspaces were passed by the Culture & Communities Committee at the 1st of February 2022 meeting, with the Public Pack noting that this was:

“ensuring almost everyone in the city lives no more than a 10 minute walk from a park or green space which is protected for good"

Remember, this does NOT include cemeteries.

You can read about Fields in Trust and check your own green spaces by postcode here:

https://www.fieldsintrust.org/knowledge-base/fields-in-trust-protection

Edinburgh Council goes on to comment at the Culture & Communities Committee on the 1st of February 2022:

"Public parks and green spaces are proven to help people stay physically and mentally well; places where we can all move, breathe, run, and play. They are an important tool to drive social cohesion, combat loneliness and build community."

We could not agree more.

However, it does beg the obvious question…

Why, with all this green space readily available to 92% of Edinburgh residents, do dog owners feel the need to use cemeteries as exercise yards for their dogs?

Many dog owners have admitted to us:

• It is because their local cemetery is the closest place to their home
• It is because the walled in nature of cemeteries make it easy to let their dog off the lead

Unnecessary, Disrespectful and Unacceptable.