The upkeep and maintenance of our Communal Garden is paid for by the residents of the houses that back onto the gardens. The fee is added to the council tax bill of each resident.
As a communal garden there are necessarily some rules that must be adhered to, there are also other considerations that are advised and encouraged in order to maintain smooth running of the gardens for the enjoyment of all the residents.
Rules:
- No team sports or football on any of the lawns.
- Dogs must be under control at all times or be on a lead.
- Dog mess must be picked up and put into the bins provided. Please also pick up any other dog mess that may have been missed by another dog walker.
- Children and dogs must not go into the flowerbeds.
General Considerations:
- Because our lawns are under a heavy tree canopy it is difficult to maintain nice good quality grass. Therefore please keep off the lawns after heavy rain when the turf can get damaged and turn muddy.
- Please do not do any fitness training that might churn up the grass, i.e. sprinting between markers.
- Please do not put rugs or ground cover down when the grass is wet.
- Please ask your children to keep the noise down to a reasonable level and not to run around screaming and shouting at the top of their voices. They maybe disturbing other residents that are relaxing in the garden.
Gardens and Boundaries:
The Ladbroke Conservation Area Appraisal (RBK&C 2015) documents the historical design of the houses and gardens in our area and how they have changed over the years, the document issues some guidelines to residents to encourage the reinstatement and preservation of the historic nature of the gardens.
We hope that residents will consider these guidelines when designing their own gardens and boundary fences within our communal garden square and attempt to maintain the overall character mentioned in the appraisal.
The full document can be downloaded from the RBK&C website link: Ladbroke Conservation Area Appraisal 2015
The following are the relevant excerpts from the document pertaining to our communal gardens:
“2.29 The backdrop of the gardens is provided by the rear elevations of the houses that surround them which are often as finely detailed as the frontages. In most of the communal gardens, the houses have their own private garden area, separated from each other and from the communal garden with cast iron railings or bottle balustrades. A good number of original railings survive and make an important contribution to the character of the conservation area in themselves and by allowing the private and communal gardens to merge in an open and leafy manner. Each garden has its own uniform pattern of railings or balustrades, and where these are missing or have been replaced by walls or fences, the character of the area would be enhanced by their reinstatement.”
“2.30 Unfortunately, some private rear gardens,
and their boundaries fronting the communal gardens, have suffered from visually insensitive and historically inappropriate alterations or additions. The private gardens are generally low-key with natural stone paving, low railings, and carefully managed planting to give some privacy, while maintaining the visual amenity of the ensemble that they make with the communal gardens. Light pollution from over-large windows or glass extensions can also be an issue in these valuable dark spaces.”
“3.73 The private back gardens leading onto the communal gardens often have similar planting which merges with that of the communal garden across their railings (where these remain). Private gardens therefore contribute to the haven of nature and peace of these special areas.”
“3.74 Traditionally the private gardens were separated from the communal garden by railings (sometimes mounted on low plinths and usually matching along that side of the garden) or in some cases bottle balustrades. This gives the same appearance as a front garden fronted with railings, or a parkland enclosure, and allows the greenery in the private gardens to be seen.”
“3.77 Some back gardens have seen the loss of greenery to modernisation including hard surfaces for patios, enlarged lightwells or the construction of intrusive structures including solid fences to the boundaries. This harm to the area’s verdant character is compounded where it can easily be seen from the communal gardens or neighbouring windows. Restoration of railings or bottle balustrades on the other hand can enhance the setting of the communal garden.”