Enjoying our parks safely

We want you to enjoy our parks to the fullest, especially during the warmer weather, so we have pulled together some key tips and measures to ensure you can freely enjoy our green spaces.

Our parks provide a place for residents to spend their leisure time, to relax and meet others. They also offer great opportunities for exercise, to improve your health and wellbeing and to spend time in nature.

There are simple things you can do to improve your personal safety. Carrying a mobile phone so you can quickly call emergency services and letting someone know where you are going is an easy way to ensure that you are easy to contact. You can also limit risks by leaving valuables at home where possible and familiarising yourself with our parks and open spaces so you can walk confidently and avoid mistakenly veering off main paths.

If you’re out with your children, preparing ahead of going out to the park can help alleviate your concerns. Agreeing a place for you and your child to meet in case you get separated, so they are less likely to get lost. You can also help your kids feel empowered in our parks by ensuring they know who to approach if they need help – this can be done by identifying uniforms such as police and park staff.

Water safety

As the weather warms up, you might want to cool off by the Thames but it’s important to remember that it is a dangerous river with a strong current, and houseboats and debris that come with significant risks to swimmers. Swimming in rivers is very different to a pool and the cold-water temperature can easily shock, limit ability to breathe and can make you tired very quickly.

The RNLI has five simple steps that could save your life if you get into difficulties in the water:

1. If you’re struggling in the water, fight the urge to thrash around
2. Lean back extending your arms and legs
3. Gently move your limbs to help you float if necessary
4. Float until you can control your breathing
5. Then call 999, call out for help or swim to safety

Find out more about water safety.

Event

You can attend our water safety event to meet emergency services including the London Fire Brigade and Royal National Lifeboat Institution and to try out paddling.

Event details:

• Date: Saturday 15 June
• Time: 12 to 3pm
• Location: Bell Hill, Hampton, TW12 2EA

Keeping parks safe

You are also a key part in keeping our green spaces safe for others. If you see something, and are able to, check to see that other park uses do not need assistance – you can report any concerns to the police or Parks team.

It’s also important that you are respectful of others using the park which means everything from not littering to making sure that your dog is always under control in public. Being respectful also means ensuring you do not cause damage to natural habitats – disposing of cigarettes in a responsible manner, not lighting barbecues or fires and not disturbing animals.

If you have a crime or issue you can:

• Call 999 in an emergency
• Report a crime online (Met police) or call 101 if it’s a non-emergency. Use What3Words for precise locations
• Report a fault online
• Report a non-criminal or dog-related incident by emailing parks@richmond.gov.uk or ringing 020 8891 1411

Read our Keeping safe in parks statement to find out how we keep our parks safe.