About the Friends
How and why the Friends were formed
The Friends of Richmond Park is a voluntary society whose objective is to help preserve Richmond Park, its natural beauty and its plant and animal life.
We have about 1500 members, mainly drawn from people living around the Park, and an Executive Committee, elected annually. We:
- Take action, where we can, to protect the Park, and watch for developments that threaten it; we lobby national and local government and other bodies over specific issues
- Organise activities such as guided walks in the Park and encourage people to appreciate the Park
- Publish a regular newsletter featuring articles on the Park's wildlife, management, history, and so on.
We also maintain contact with the Park authorities and relevant government departments, and with the Friends of the other Royal Parks.
The Friends was formed in 1961 when there was a public outcry over measures to allow motor traffic to drive through the Park at night and to increase the speed limit from 20 to 30 mph. As a result of the outcry, the gates to the Park were once more closed at dusk. Subsequent pressures to include the Park in the national highway system were also successfully resisted. In 2004 the speed limit was reduced back to 20 mph.
The original and continuing purpose of the Friends is to "protect Richmond Park as a place of natural beauty and public pleasure". That means that we want anyone who cares about the Park to continue to visit it, to enjoy its beauty and tranquillity, and to learn about its diverse animal and plant life.
The great challenge is to find ways of allowing visitors to enjoy it yet at the same time preserve it for the benefit of future generations - too many feet trampling across the Park or too many wheels driving through it threaten to spoil its special character.