PARKS, BEACHES & OPEN AREAS

The NCC's being a custodian of the environment, is charged with the responsibility of ensuring that all parks, beaches and open areas are maintained throughout the island. As such the responsibility of the major historic parks such as Queen's Park, Farley Hill Park, King George V Memorial Park, Barclays Park all fall under the aegis of the NCC.

Further, recognising the need to bring the family and community together, and promoting socialisation, the NCC embarked on the production of several play parks and recreational areas across the island. These areas provide a serene atmosphere where persons can, among other activities, peacefully enjoy the beauty of their surroundings and take comfort in knowing that their children can play in safety. A Ranger service is provided at all major parks.

Visitors to our island can relax and enjoy our clean, beautiful beaches which are located in all but two parishes on the island. Lifeguards are stationed at all the major beaches, which include -

Beach facilities have been constructed as a complimentary feature on some of the major beaches throughout the island. These facilities allow patrons to shower and change while using the beaches. Facilities are located at the following areas:

Beach vending, a unique feature to our beaches is controlled by the NCC. Persons wishing to ply their handicraft, local jewelry, paintings and clothing or offer hairbraiding services, apply to the NCC for beach vending licences. An annual fee is imposed on all beach vending licences. The vendors are allowed to operate from beach vending markets/areas on the beaches throughout the island. However, at some the major beaches e.g. - Rockley Beach, kiosks are provided for these small entrepreneurs to provide some means of standardisation.

At present, there are approximately eighty-five (85) accesses to beaches around the island, which are categorised as follows.

• Pedestrian: - Areas where the public access the beach is a minimum width of six (6') feet.
• Vehicular: - Areas where the public can access the beach by a vehicle, and there is provision of adequate parking for said vehicles. These accessess are also utilized by pedestrians.

The existing beach accesses being maintained by the NCC have some or all of the following:

• Beach Facility
• Lifeguards Stations
• Seating/Picnic Tables
• Play Park
• Signage
• Water

These accesses are noted as follows: