As always, friendly, enthusiastic volunteers are urgently needed to staff the gardens. The main duties are to welcome visitors, check and sell tickets and ensure that the squares and gardens are treated with respect.
No one will have to be on duty for more than half a day and every volunteer will receive a free ticket to the whole two-day event. With a large number of gardens participating, this promises to be a really good weekend.
For further details, please email Jock Blakey.
The forum of volunteers was established in 2006 to improve the infrastructure of the event, which is organised by a part-time paid co-ordinator and a small team of volunteers. Forum members represent groups of OGSW sites in designated geographical areas across the capital. At present we have eight forum members who over the past year have successfully worked within their areas, increasing the number of participating gardens. We now wish to increase the forum's representation and are looking to recruit additional members.
Each forum volunteer is a named point of contact for a group of gardens in a designated area. The main areas of activity will be to:
Forum members will spend around one day per month on the activities outlined above, perhaps rising to one day per week at peak times. Members (or their nominees) will ideally need to be available over Open Garden Squares Weekend. The forum, chaired by the OGSW co-ordinator, meets as a group at least three times a year.
Full training will be given, and forum members have access to a database of information, linked to the OGSW website, to assist with the above responsibilities. Forum members receive complementary membership of the London Parks & Gardens Trust. Travel costs and agreed expenses will be met by the Trust.
Applicants should be computer literate and have access to email. For more information and/or to make an application, please email the coordinator, Val Burton, or ring 020-7839 3969 (Wednesdays).