Summer is here and the Barking and Dagenham Park Rangers want residents to show their wild side by getting outside to explore the wildlife right on their doorstep.

A brand-new competition is running throughout July and August, where the council wants to see how people in the borough connect with nature in their local area.

Residents have until 31 August to submit their entries in the form of photos, drawings and paintings, poems or stories, telling us what they did and what they see when they are in the borough’s parks and green spaces. There will be prizes for different age ranges and the best entries from each category will be used to create a calendar for 2021.

This is such a great idea for residents to get involved with. Over the past few months, visiting our parks and green spaces has been vital for wellbeing. A competition like this over the Summer, will hopefully encourage more people to explore the beautiful open spaces we have in the borough. So, what are you waiting for Barking and Dagenham? Go Wild!

Have residents walked in some woods? Fed the ducks? Or even studied a spiderweb up close? They can share it with us online using the hashtag #WildFreeLBBD or they can submit their entry via email to: rangers@lbbd.gov.uk.

Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Community Leadership and Engagement, Cllr Saima Ashraf said: “This is such a great idea for residents to get involved with. Over the past few months, visiting our parks and green spaces has been vital for wellbeing. A competition like this over the Summer, will hopefully encourage more people to explore the beautiful open spaces we have in the borough.

So, what are you waiting for Barking and Dagenham? Go Wild!”