Hundreds of local people enjoyed the opening of a brand new play space in Cator Park, Kidbrooke Village, in June.
A host of activities were available for all ages, including music and dance performances, competitions, delicious food from local suppliers, circus skills demonstrations, an interactive bubble show, and arts and crafts classes.
Holy Family Catholic Primary School choir opened the event, with a lively performance, while Wingfield Primary School helped with festival games.
The play area, developed in collaboration with award-winning Apes Adventure Playground Engineers, who designed the Olympic Park Playground, was designed to inspire children to explore the world around them. Play trails, sculptures and structures to jump, swing and hang from have all been incorporated throughout the space. For older children, there is also a new multi-use games area where they can practice sports like football, tennis, basketball and netball.
London Wildlife Trust was also on hand on the day, to help kids discover the natural beauty on their doorsteps. The Trust ran a range of workshops and activities, including teaching willow weaving and pond dipping sessions, where children could discover the incredible creatures and minibeasts that live in Kidbrooke Village's wetlands. London Wildlife Trust is a charity dedicated to protecting the capital's wildlife and wild spaces - it runs regular volunteering and educational activities at Kidbrooke Village and has guided the design, delivery and ongoing stewardship of the new, northern part of Cator Park. The team also unveiled colourful stepping stones and a series of brass rubbings of the park's plants and wildlife, dotted around the park as part of an educational ecology trail.
The event was also a chance for people to think about their environment by visiting one of the stalls set up to give information on energy consumption. Thanks to energy provider E.ON and lots of enthusiastic volunteers, the main stage was powered by 14 bikes using renewable energy. E.ON also gave demonstrations of their latest energy saving technology on the main stage, while IKEA ran short masterclasses with handy tips on upcycling, to help people prolong the life of old furniture and make the most of waste materials which might otherwise go to landfill.
Cllr Danny Thorpe, Leader of the Royal Borough of Greenwich, said: "Greenwich borough boasts over 300 parks and open spaces and we're always looking at making our borough even greener.
"Having access to green space is important to encourage active, outdoor lifestyles and it supports healthy physical and mental wellbeing. Cator Park is a fantastic place for everyone right across Royal Greenwich to discover - and with the new play space, there is even more reason to do so."
David Mooney, Director of Development, London Wildlife Trust, said: "Everything that's happening at Kidbrooke Village is helping to make it a more wildlife-rich environment that future generations can enjoy - from the new open spaces to the events and volunteering sessions that we encourage as many people as possible to join in."
Tony Pidgley CBE, Chairman of Berkeley Group, added: "Children are our future and they need a place to play, have fun, burn off some energy and make plenty of noise. That's what this wonderful new play space offers.
"It adds a fantastic new dimension to Cator Park, where we have already created more than 20 acres of beautiful open space where people of all ages can get close to nature and enjoy the peace and tranquillity of the great outdoors.
"If you haven't been here already, then please come to visit and bring your family, friends and neighbours with you.
"At Kidbrooke Village we are working in partnership with local people, the Royal Borough of Greenwich and the London Wildlife Trust to create a truly sustainable neighbourhood with biodiversity and nature right at its heart."