Please barbecue responsibly to keep the Park safe

There’s nothing better than a barbecue with friends on a sunny day in the Park, is there?  However, careless use of barbecues in the Park brings with it an increased risk of fire and damage to our Park’s trees, vegetation and infrastructure. Over the past few years we have noticed a marked increase in barbecue-related damage across the Park and it is only a matter of time until we have a serious incident on our hands, which would be both dangerous and costly. One of our veteran oak trees (pictured) has experienced serious damage to its trunk from a barbecue too close to its trunk. This tree is now dying.

We have updated our BBQ Code which sets out some key points to follow so please help us keep the Park safe for all. 

From now on we are banning the use of disposable barbecues across the Park and encourage all our visitors to use the fixed barbecue stands provided. You are very welcome to bring your own barbecues to the Park too, just as long as they are raised well off the ground and positioned away from dry vegetation. By keeping barbecues off the ground, together we will reduce fire risk and prevent damage to our trees, vegetation and park furniture – and keep the Park safe for everyone.

We also want to encourage all people barbecuing to bring water with them to cool hot ash when they have finished and to dispose of ash in the designated ash bins provided. Please do not tip ash or leftover charcoal on to the grass or put it in the regular waste bins. We have had bin fires in the past when smouldering ash has been placed with general waste.

You will see some new signage going up around the Park this week to remind visitors about our BBQ Code. These include:

• banners in prominent locations near the car parks and barbecue areas
• copies of the BBQ Code on signs at key points in the Park and in our noticeboards

You will also see some other changes around the Park:

• Signs will be fitted to all picnic benches to say ‘No BBQs on here. Thanks for helping us protect the Park.’
• In time we will be installing more fixed barbecue stands around the Park.

Over the summer, our Nene Park Trust staff will be working hard to remind our visitors of our new BBQ Code and alerting them to the new signs if necessary.

Please help us to keep the Park safe for all by barbecuing responsibly. Thank you.