Ahead of desilting work which gets underway in Kelsey Park in November, preliminary survey work is now taking place, with surveys also in progress in preparation for the bridge replacement too.
In advance of the desilting work starting, visitors to Beckenham’s much loved park and interested residents are being invited to a briefing session. The Kelsey Park project team will be present at the ‘drop-in’ session on Wednesday 9 October, from 5pm to 7.30pm, at Beckenham Public Hall, where they will be able to share more detail and answer questions.
Councillor Will Rowlands, Executive Councillor for Environment said, “I am delighted to confirm that the desilting work is getting underway, which will help conserve the much loved Kelsey lake, with bridge replacement work following as well. This substantial investment of £2.5m, in support of the future of Kelsey Park, underlines the importance placed in Kelsey Park by all of us, where we also have needed to make difficult decisions from a financial perspective too.”
Several key ecology, arboriculture, and condition surveys are currently underway at the park before the desilting work starts, with the contract for this work being awarded to Land and Water Limited.
The desilting work will occur in stages, thereby ensuring there will be water available for the wildlife that needs it. Work will begin at the Silt Trap, followed by the Upper Lake, and then finally the Lower Lake. A waterbody will remain accessible for the park's wildfowl and other water reliant species at each stage of the project, with lakes continually holding water throughout, to ensure that they remain habitable for wildlife. The works are estimated to be completed by June 2025.
The bridge replacement contract has been successfully awarded to B&M McHugh Ltd. following a successful tender in August 2024. The initial design and survey work is already underway, with the installation of the bridge envisaged to start in 2025, with work anticipated to be complete by Autumn 2025, subject to the outcome of the initial design work.
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