BACKGROUND
FUNDING
The thirty-one acre site is rich in biodiversity and one of London’s ‘Magnificent Seven’ cemeteries that include Nunhead and Highgate cemeteries. The Friends of Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park have managed the site for twenty-five years and are now a charity employing three full-time staff.
VOLUNTEERING
Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park is historic urban woodland located in one of London’s most densely populated boroughs.
Located close to Canary Wharf and The City, Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park is committed to offering local people the experience of wild nature, by managing the site as a woodland nature reserve. Kenneth Greenway, Cemetery Park Manager, says: ‘In a borough that lacks green space, having a wild haven offers so much to help people with their mental and physical well-being’.
Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park has a service level agreement with London Borough of Tower Hamlets, which funds around 25% of its activities. The rest of their funding comes from grants, corporate donations, general donations, and fees generated from events and courses. They also charge for training and leisure learning, as well as offering the site as a film location. Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park has developed a workforce of over three thousand volunteers, who help to maintain the site coming from routes including the corporate community; volunteer organisations like The Conservation Volunteers (TCV); plus local people. A committee of eight volunteers manages the charity. Kenneth Greenway, Cemetery Park Manager, says: ‘We depend on volunteers entirely. If they’re willing, we’ll use them!’