Meet The Trustees

I have lived close to Finchley Way Open Space for 30 years but had never explored it fully.  I did some research on the local area for the West Finchley Residents’ Association and found the site has an interesting history and that it had been left by Augustus Cooper to Finchley Borough Council ‘to be retained always as an open space’.  In 2019 Alan Douglas and I set-up a Friends group to fulfil the terms of the will and bring the site into public use, then in 2020 we became a registered charity.  It’s amazing how much we have achieved, although there is still a lot to do.

I have been a member of Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth since the 1970's and believe passionately that we need to treasure the natural world. I live very close to the site and walk my dog there regularly.  I have been volunteering from 2020.

I attended the first Friends meeting in December 2019 and along with my family have volunteered ever since.  I became Treasurer a few months later and I am now a Trustee too.  Living in close proximity to Finchley Way Open Space I was keen to make sure that the Green Space remained one and was looked after accordingly.  I really enjoy volunteering with FoFWOS and meeting lots of people from the local area. 

I live very close to the site with my family. We have been involved since the beginning of the Friends Group in 2019.

As a landscape architect I have been involved in helping to develop the Green Space. My real motivation is to leave a legacy for future generations to enjoy and to introduce different types of landscape to bring more insect life and biodiversity through new native planting.

I came to know about Finchley Way Open Space and its interesting history through the West Finchley Resident's Association and have been involved as a volunteer ever since.

I live in the local vicinity, and I am very passionate about us improving our environment and endeavour to help restore green spaces for our local community to benefit.  I really enjoy our volunteering sessions and have got to know a lot more of our neighbourhood's residents.

I have lived close to the site for 30 years and never quite known what was there.  I am intrigued by its history and enjoy working with the group to bring the space back to life.

I am keen to increase the diversity of native flora in the woodland.

This site falls within my Ward and the enthusiasm of the group is inspiring.  They have achieved so much in such a short time despite lockdowns stopping work for months on end.  It’s lovely to see the site being opened up for everyone to enjoy.

I have just completed studying MSc Biodiversity Conservation at Bournemouth University. I am a trainee bird ringer and I also volunteer during the holidays for the London Wildlife Trust, RSPB, and Heath Hands, as well as being on the Youth Advisory Panel for British Trust for Ornithology (BTO).

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It’s good to be involved in something that is so close to home and to have a real say in how it is developed to provide habitat for wildlife.

I have lived opposite Finchley Way Open Space for 29 years. For the vast majority of that time, I was blissfully unaware that it was anything other than an open field. It's fabulous now to live so close to a mixed biodiverse area in a London borough supporting a range of flora, fauna and birdlife.