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- David Lambert
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Dr Stewart Harding

BA (Hons), PhD, FRSA

Stewart has extensive experience in all aspects of the management, improvement, promotion and evaluation of parks and open spaces and is an acknowledged national expert in the field. He has written and lectured extensively on these and related topics.

Professional experience
Academic record
Publications

Professional experience

Stewart set up and ran the Heritage Lottery Fund's Urban Parks Programme from 1996 to 2000, awarding £185 million to 200 parks. He ran a grant scheme for the Countryside Commission for 50 parks and gardens in the south west including The Lost Gardens of Heligan and Trebah in Cornwall, Ashton Court in Bristol and Royal Victoria Park in Bath.

For the Parks Agency his recent experience includes:

Monitoring and advising on 66 HLF park restoration projects including Birkenhead Park, Finsbury Park, Forbury Gardens in Reading and Handsworth Park in Birmingham for the Heritage Lottery Fund
Review and analysis of the Heritage Lottery Fund's Urban Parks Programme, Public Parks Initiative and the Parks for People scheme
Condition survey of 140 parks and open spaces for the London Borough of Hounslow
Evaluation of the Wildspace! grant scheme for English Nature
Evaluation of the Doorstep Greens grant programme for The Countryside Agency
Case-study review of Doorstep Greens for the Land Restoration Trust
Helping CABE Space to test and refine Spaceshaper - a method for communities to assess the quality of their parks and open spaces
Review of the Green Flag Award scheme with Liz Greenhalgh, David Lambert, Andrew Parsons and Ken Worpole for CABE Space
People need Parks need People: the skills shortage in parks: research report with GreenSpace for CABE Space and Lantra.

Academic record

Bristol Polytechnic BA (Hons) 1st class (1986)
Bristol Polytechnic Certificate in Planning Law (Distinction) (1987)
University of the West of England, PhD (1993)

Publications include

'Marrying restoration with innovation is nothing new' Horticulture Week (21 August 2008)
'The Crap Parks Campaign - The Parks Agency' External Environment - Product Review (July-Oct 2008)
'The Future's Bright' Spaces & Places Issue 32 (April 2008)
'Life after funding' Green Places Issue 40 (November 2007)
'The good, the bad and the ugly' Green Places Issue 38 (September 2007)
'Poor parks in a rich country' Green Places Issue 33 (March 2007)
'Removing trees; more debate' Green Places Issue 29 (October 2006)
'Stop town cramming' Green Places Issue 28 (September 2006)
'Ready for the Chop?' Green Places Issue 26 (June 2006)
Book review: 350 Miles: an Essex Journey by Ken Worpole and Jason Orton Spaces & Places Issue 20 (April 2006)
'Safari Parks' Green Places Issue 23 (March 2006)
'Doorstep Greens' Countryside Agency Research Notes CRN 99 (January 2006)
'The highs and lows' Green Places Issue 21 (Winter 2005/06)
'To lock or not?' Spaces & Places Issue 16 (August 2005)
'The highs and lows' Green Places Issue 21 (Winter 2005/06)
'The debate: to fell or not to fell?' Spaces & Places Issue 12 (December 2004)
'Back to the future' Spaces & Places Issue 12 (December 2004)
'Local Authority Historic Parks in the UK' Cultural Trends No 38 (2001)
'Urban parks: the burden of history' Garden Culture in the 21st Century National Trust (2001)
'Regenerating historic urban parks' Urban Forestry in Practice Case Studies (February 2001) NUFU
'A blind date between illness and cure' The Regeneration of Public Parks Woudstra, J & K Fieldhouse (2000)
'Towards a Renaissance in Urban Parks' Cultural Trends No 35 (2000)
'Heritage Lottery Mania' Landscape Design No 258 (March 1997)
Parks and Gardens of Avon Avon Gardens Trust (1994)
'Thomas Wright at Stoke Park' Garden History Vol 17 No 1 (1989)
'Saving the Wizard's Landscape' Country Life (April 14 1988)