Press statement: Thursday 11 March
The use and maintenance of the Bowling Green area is a responsibility which remains with Gunnersbury Estate (2026) CIC, who manage the park on behalf of Hounslow and Ealing Councils.
We’re aware that a group identifying as the “Gunnersbury Park Bowls Club” is lobbying for access to the green to carry out maintenance to enable them to use the facility. This group is sponsoring a petition seeking public support for their position.
However, the CIC terminated the licence of the former Gunnersbury Bowls club in early 2020 and there is no current arrangement between CIC and any club in respect to the bowls green or pavilion.
Taking the decision to end the tenure of the former bowling club in early 2020 was the culmination of almost 2 years of discussions with the club. These discussion focused on the need to secure a commitment from that organisation that they would be able to maintain and repair both the green and pavilion, and that concerted efforts would be made to expand and diversify the membership of the club, which had enjoyed exclusive use of the green and pavilion.
The management of the former club were unable to meet the requirements of the CIC and so we reluctantly terminated their licence agreement and sought alternative uses which could provide both a revenue for the upkeep of the park facilities and offer a broad range of the community an affordable and enjoyable leisure experience.
The CIC is now committed to develop what is an underused and expensive-to-maintain facility as a modern, contemporary leisure facility focusing on a mini-golf offer in partnership with Putt in the Park, which has successful courses across London.
Putt in the Park will provide a new, leisure offer to our park visitors, fantastic benefits for the local community – including free access to the course for schools and free community access to a refurbished pavilion (click here for more information), and a new café facility for all park users. It will also provide a steady income stream to help Gunnersbury survive and thrive, for our community now and into the future.
Working with Ealing and Hounslow councils we are keen to provide people keen on bowling with access to other facilities nearby, a number of which are underused.