A residents’ campaign · London Borough of Brent

Bring Rainbow Park back to life.

Behind Rusper Close sits 2,437 m² of public land that should be the beating heart of our neighbourhood. Instead it’s locked, worn out and dark. We’re asking Brent Council to change that — and we have the plan.

The park today The locked entrance gates and brick walls of Rainbow Park at Rusper Close, with the empty play area behind.
The entrance at Rusper Close — locked on a summer afternoon.
LocationRusper Close, London NW2 6QS
Size≈ 2,437 m² of council land
Goal200 signatures → a council debate
Sign the petition → Explore the plan
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Our mission

To refurbish Rainbow Park into a safe, welcoming, all-year space where local families and children can play, be active, enjoy nature, and spend time together — without leaving their own street.

Friends of Rainbow Park — a group of local residents, parents and neighbours.
0m²

of public land already owned by the council — no purchase needed, just renewal.

0%

of the park is overgrown woodland that most children can’t even get into.

0lights

no lighting, no shelter, no all-weather paths. On dark or wet days the park is unusable.

0names

signatures needed for Brent Council to formally consider the proposal at a meeting.

01 — The park today

Walk through it
as it stands.

01 / 09The locked entrance gate and notice board at Rainbow Park.
The welcomeA locked gate and a faded notice board. This is the first thing a child sees.
02 / 09A padlock on the park gate beside a low boundary wall.
Locked, but not secureThe padlock keeps families out by day. The low wall lets trouble in by night.
03 / 09Overflowing bins and litter around the play area.
Left to overflowBins go unemptied. Litter spreads across the one place children can still play.
04 / 09Litter on the grass in front of a cracked, crumbling boundary wall.
Crumbling edgesThe boundary wall is cracked and failing — easy to climb, hard to love.
05 / 09A large empty tarmac circle with a faded painted rainbow.
The empty circleA huge tarmac circle sits dead in the middle of the park. Its painted rainbow has almost worn away.
06 / 09Worn benches and tired, aged play surfacing.
Worn throughTired benches, tired surfacing, equipment past its safe working life.
07 / 09Old benches next to an overgrown, unmanaged park edge.
The creeping edgeNobody manages the overgrowth, so year by year it swallows more of the park.
08 / 09Foxes living in the overgrown woodland area of the park.
The residents we didn’t inviteFoxes have made a home in the woodland. It collects litter — and little else.
09 / 09Children climbing the trees in the park.
All that’s leftChildren climb the trees, because it’s the only play the park still offers them.

Seen enough?

This is a big, well-placed park.
It deserves better.

Drag / scroll sideways

02 — Why it needs work

Five problems,
one neglected park.

(01)

Not safe after dark

The boundary wall is low and easy to climb. After dark the park attracts vandalism, broken glass, drinking and drug use — and every morning, children play in what’s left behind.

(02)

Old, broken equipment

The play equipment is decades old and poorly maintained, and the safety surfacing beneath it is long past its best. What should be the heart of the park is the part parents trust least.

(03)

Most of the space is wasted

The woodland is roughly 40% of the park, but only bigger kids can push their way in. Seating is scarce, and a large empty tarmac circle sits unused in the middle of it all.

(04)

Neglected and overgrown

No one manages the greenery, so it creeps further every season. The overgrowth collects litter, hides the park from view — and foxes have moved in where children should be playing.

(05)

A summer-only park

No lighting, no shelter, no proper paths. From October to March — and on every rainy day in between — the park might as well not exist for local families.

(+)

And yet — it’s worth saving

It’s big. It’s minutes from hundreds of homes. And it already belongs to the council. Rainbow Park doesn’t need buying or building — it needs renewing. That’s a far smaller ask, with a far bigger return.

03 — What it could be

One park, all year round.
Six promises.

A safe, bright, well-kept space for every age — designed once, enjoyed for a generation.

P·01

Play that lasts

Natural timber play built to endure, soft safety surfacing beneath, and separate zones for toddlers, older kids and teens.

P·02

A court, not a void

The dead tarmac circle becomes a proper court for basketball and five-a-side — plus a lit scooter and cycle loop around the park.

P·03

The woodland, unlocked

Keep every tree — and thread a smooth, lit, step-free path through them, open to buggies, wheelchairs and wellies alike.

P·04

Open in every season

A covered area for rain and winter, proper lighting, and all-weather paths — a park for January as much as July.

P·05

Safe by design

A higher wall, proper gates, CCTV and clear sight lines. A busy, open, well-lit park is a safer park — by default.

P·06

Everyone plays

Step-free routes throughout, inclusive swings and a wheelchair-friendly roundabout, and benches with backs and armrests.

See the full plan →

04 — Borrowed inspiration

Parks that got it right.

ExampleNatural wooden climbing play structures.
Natural timber climbing play — beautiful, robust, low-maintenance.
ExampleBright, soft safety surfacing under play equipment.
Bright, soft, safe ground for every age.
ExampleA slide built into a natural grass slope.
A slide built into the natural slope.
ExampleLog trails for balancing and climbing.
Log trails to balance, climb and invent games on.
ExampleA covered outdoor area for shelter in winter and rain.
A covered area that works in winter and rain.
ExampleA wooden adventure fort for older children.
An adventure fort for older children.

Example photographs from other UK parks — shown for guidance only, not the final design.

This is your park

200 names.
That’s all it takes.

Signatures0 / 200

At 200 signatures, Brent Council must formally consider our proposal at a meeting. Signing takes 30 seconds — just your name and email. The petition link will appear here the moment it goes live on the Brent Council website.

Sign the Brent Council petition → Read the plan first

The Story→The Plan

A proposal for Brent Council

From forgotten
to unforgettable.

Nothing here is exotic. Every element below is standard parks work that Brent already delivers elsewhere in the borough — we’re simply asking for Rainbow Park’s turn.

Back the plan →

01 — The concept

One vision for the park.
Tap the numbers.

This illustration is a concept, not the final design — it shows what the space could hold. The final scheme will be shaped with residents, Brent parks officers and playground specialists.

Concept — not the final design Illustrative concept masterplan of Rainbow Park: a covered play dome with toddler, active and sensory zones, a five-a-side pitch and multi-use court, central seating square, a track looping the park, and woodland paths along the top.

Explore the concept

Tap a numbered marker on the illustration — or an item in this list — to see what each part of the concept would bring to the park.

Why a concept? It gives the council and residents something real to react to. Everything here can be scaled up, down or swapped as the community decides.

02 — How it happens

Three phases.
Each useful on its own.

Phase 01 · First priority

Make it safe

Nothing else works until the park is secure. Raise the boundary wall, fit proper gates, install lighting and CCTV, clear the worst of the overgrowth and give the whole site a deep clean.

  • Higher wall & fencing
  • Proper gates
  • Lighting
  • CCTV
  • Deep clean
Phase 02 · The heart

Renew the play

Replace the worn-out equipment with the covered play dome and its three zones — toddler, active and sensory play — lay the five-a-side pitch and multi-use court, and mark out the track that loops the park.

  • The play dome — 3 zones
  • Safety surfacing
  • 5-a-side & multi-use court
  • The track (lit loop)
Phase 03 · The whole year

Open it all year

Thread winding, step-free paths through the woodland, build the village square with sheltered seating and picnic tables, and finish with planting, bins and signage. From this point on, Rainbow Park works twelve months a year.

  • Woodland paths
  • Village square & shelters
  • Seating & planting
  • Bins & signage

03 — The work and the money

Honest about costs.
Smart about funding.

What the project involves
Higher wall, fencing and proper gatesTBC
CCTV and lightingTBC
The play dome — canopy, play zones & surfacingTBC
Five-a-side pitch & multi-use courtTBC
The track — lit loop around the parkTBC
Village square — seating, tables & sheltersTBC
Woodland paths (step-free)TBC
Planting, bins and signsTBC
TotalTBC

Real costs will be confirmed with supplier quotes — and the work can be phased, so no single budget decision has to carry the whole project.

Five routes to pay for it

Most of this matches money Brent already spends on parks every year. We’re mainly asking for Rainbow Park to be added to existing plans — plus a few grants we can help apply for.

Local infrastructure money that residents help decide how to spend — made for exactly this kind of project. This is our main route.
Main route
The council’s existing parks budget already pays for play equipment, paths and CCTV across the borough. We’re asking for Rainbow Park to join the list.
A new national fund running 2026–2028, created specifically to fix up run-down playgrounds like ours. Rainbow Park is a textbook candidate.
Lottery community funds regularly grant money to renew shared local spaces — with a strong record of backing resident-led park projects.
Landfill-tax community funds that frequently pay for play areas and park improvements within a set distance of their sites.
In plain English: CIL is money builders pay the council when they get planning permission. A share of it must be spent on local projects that residents help choose — which is precisely what this is.

04 — What we’re asking the council

Four simple
first steps.

(01)

Visit the park with us

Councillors and a parks officer, walking the site with residents — twenty minutes is enough to see everything on this page.

→
(02)

Add Rainbow Park to the next funding round

Starting with Phase 1 — the safety works: wall, gates, lighting and CCTV.

→
(03)

Help us formalise “Friends of Rainbow Park”

A recognised residents’ group the council can work with, fund, and hold to account.

→
(04)

Run a short residents’ survey with us

Confirm, on the record, what local people want from their park — and let that shape the final design.

→

05 — Get involved

This only works
with you.

Tell us your ideas

Want something added, changed or challenged? This plan belongs to the whole street — we want to hear it.

Say you back it

A one-line message of support from a local family carries real weight with councillors. It takes a minute.

Spread the word

Tell neighbours, parents at the school gate, and anyone who remembers what this park used to be.

✉ Email us Join the WhatsApp group ideas@rainbowparknw2.com

Ready when you are

Put Rainbow Park
on the agenda.

200 signatures obliges Brent Council to formally consider this proposal. The petition link will appear here the moment it’s live on the council website.

Sign the petition → Back to the story