Black Country trust honoured with King's Award for its dedicated voluntary work at a 'true gem' of a park
A Black Country trust and its dedicated volunteers have been honoured with a King's Award for their service to Smethwick's beautiful green space.
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More than 300 volunteers at Warley Woods Community Trust in Smethwick have today received the prestigious King's Award for Voluntary Service 2024 - the highest recognition award that a voluntary group can receive, which they hold for life.
Warley Woods Community Trust was formed in 1997 to protect, restore and manage the infrastructure of the 100-acre Bearwood parkland - it was taken on by ten staff members and hundreds of volunteers that took over the management from the council, and is believed to be the only charity in the country that has done so.
The large urban park is surrounded by residential housing, has 4,500 trees, picnic areas and a golf course, and is open every day, all year long for the enjoyment of the local community.
Many parks have 'friends' groups which put on events and carry out maintenance work but Warley Woods Community Trust is slightly different in that it is legally responsible for everything that happens in the park, making policy, business and landscape management decisions.
