We are absolutely delighted to announce that The Oval Bandstand & Lawns has once again been awarded a Green Flag Community Award, the international quality mark for parks and green spaces.
This means that The Oval remains Margate’s only Green Flag accredited park and one of only three in Thanet, alongside the wonderful Ellington Park in Ramsgate and Pegwell Bay Country Park.
The award recognises the highest standards of management for community-run green spaces and reflects the dedication of everyone who has helped transform The Oval over the past five years.
Celebrating Five Years of Community Transformation
This award is particularly special because 8 July 2026 marked five years since GRASS Cliftonville CIC took on the ownership and management of The Oval.
When we first took on the site in 2021, we inherited an underused four-acre coastal park with huge potential. Since then, thanks to the incredible efforts of our staff, volunteers, partners and supporters, The Oval has become one of Kent’s leading community-managed green spaces.
Over the past five years we have hosted hundreds of events including concerts, theatre performances, outdoor cinema screenings, wellbeing classes, family activities, community events and ecological volunteering sessions, while delivering ambitious projects to improve biodiversity, accessibility and the visitor experience.
Continuing to Invest in The Oval
The work certainly hasn’t stopped.
Over the past year we’ve continued to invest in The Oval through a wide range of improvement projects, including:
- the creation of our new Wellness Garden
- improved wayfinding signage throughout the park
- a new Composting Hub to support sustainable gardening
- new wildlife planting and biodiversity corridors
- expanded wellbeing activities
- improvements to the refurbished pavilion and visitor facilities
- continued development of our food concessions
Over the coming months we’ll also be installing the first pergola within the Wellness Garden with the generous support of Mears, through MPS (Mears Property Services), alongside a new Chatty Bench to encourage conversation and help tackle loneliness within our community.
Our partnership with Mears Property Services has already made a tremendous difference to The Oval.
Jody Saich and Bryan Rose from Mears Property Services said:
“Everyone at Mears has absolutely loved supporting The Oval Bandstand & Lawns over the past few months. The passion, dedication and commitment shown by everyone involved has been truly inspiring. Their drive to make a positive difference and strengthen the local community is incredible to see. We’re proud to be part of such a fantastic project and look forward to continuing our support as The Oval continues to grow and thrive.”
Simon Bell, Director of GRASS Cliftonville CIC, said:
“Winning the Green Flag Community Award for a second year is a fantastic achievement and a wonderful way to celebrate five years since GRASS took on the ownership and management of The Oval. This award belongs to our staff, volunteers, partners and visitors, whose passion and commitment have transformed a once underused coastal park into a thriving community-managed green space in an area of social deprivation. We’re incredibly proud of what we’ve achieved together, but we’re even more excited about what’s still to come, with our new Wellness Garden, additional biodiversity projects and new community facilities helping to make The Oval an even better place for everyone.”
This award belongs to our whole community.
We would like to thank our incredible Oval Ecology Group volunteers, Mears Property Services (MPS), the Colyer Fergusson Charitable Trust, our many local businesses and community partners, and the hundreds of local people who have supported The Oval by volunteering, sponsoring projects, attending events and championing our work.
Every hour volunteered, every plant donated, every event attended and every word of encouragement has helped make this achievement possible.
National Recognition
The Oval Bandstand & Lawns is one of a record-breaking 2,391 parks and green spaces across the UK to receive a Green Flag Award in 2026, as the internationally recognised scheme celebrates its 30th anniversary.
Paul Todd MBE, Green Flag Award Manager at Keep Britain Tidy, said:
“Parks are essential public spaces that support our wellbeing, our communities, and our economy. Yet for millions of people, particularly in the most deprived areas, local parks simply don’t feel safe or welcoming. With public services under pressure, investing in parks is not a luxury, it’s a practical, preventative solution and one of the most visible ways to improve people’s quality of life. GRASS have shown what can be achieved when parks are properly supported and managed. As we celebrate 30 years of the Green Flag Award, we want every community to have access to green spaces like this that are safe, welcoming, and maintained to a high standard. Congratulations to everyone involved.”
Looking Ahead
Receiving a Green Flag Community Award for a second consecutive year is an incredible honour, but for us it is also motivation to keep improving.
Over the coming years we’ll continue working to enhance biodiversity, expand our wellbeing programme, improve accessibility, create new habitats, deliver exciting community events and ensure that The Oval remains a welcoming, vibrant and environmentally rich space for everyone.
Thank you for being part of our journey. Here’s to the next five years!