Making space for girls in Bath
Make Space for Girls' 2023 report, Parkwatch revealed that 90% of park facilities are dominated by boys.
Brickfields Park is used by young people, but they were not represented in a resident consultation. So we stepped in to find out what teenagers want and used the opportunity to work with Make Space for Girls to focus on understanding the needs of teenage girls.
Now, we're working with Make Space for Girls, Bath North East Somerset Council the community to reimagine Brickfields Park for teenage females.
What we found
In line with Make Space for Girls Parkwatch report, we found that:
- 89% of basketball court users were teenage boys and teenage girls did not use the football pitches
- Girls seen in the park mostly engaged in social activities with friends or family
- Boys used the park most weeks, but most girls only visited a few times a year
- 25% of girls do not feel safe enough to visit Brickfields Park at all
What teenagers want
Our research shows that boys and girls want very different things from Brickfields Park. Most boys would come to Brickfields to play football with friends, use Wi-Fi, shelter or toilets. Most girls would come if the park felt safer, if there was shelter, swings and social seating, and space designed specifically for them.
What we're doing
We are making gradual improvements with a focus on making space for girls. We have:
- Improved sight lines across the park to make it feel safer
- Opened entrances to make the park feel more welcoming
- Introduced new benches
- Introducing new social seating areas
- Introducing new swings outside of the children's play area
- Redesigning the sports area and shelter with teenage girls
