Gina Harkell and Kate Dawson are calling for Finsbury Park to be locked at night

RESIDENTS are calling for Finsbury Park to be locked at night after they say historic shrub beds have been ripped apart by “sex traders”.

Katie Dawson, who chairs the Friends of Finsbury Park, said that the situation had now reached “boiling point” after locals were constantly finding the park littered with dozens of condoms, ripped clothes, and dirty underwear.

“We’ve been aware of it for a long time,” she told the Tribune.

“There are all manner of problems in the park. It is a completely no-go zone after dark. There have been endless problems with drugs, sexual assaults, a murder a couple of years ago. It’s absolutely horrendous.”

Ms Dawson, who lives on the Islington side of the park, said that locals had witnessed it become “a hotbed of crime and anti-social behaviour”, with reports of large groups congregating to engage in sexual activity at night.

“Who knows the extent of it?” she added. “We see the debris. It’s pretty out of control. This is a public park that people bring their children to. It’s a health hazard.”

Ms Dawson said that locals had found shrub beds ripped up and that anti-social behaviour was leading to the “destruction of the ecology of the park”.

The group is now calling on Haringey Council, which is responsible for the upkeep of Finsbury Park, to lock the space at night.

Ms Dawson said: “The council refuse to lock the park, which is out of keeping with any other comparable park in London. They say they don’t have the money, but they have £1.2million profit from all the events in the summer. We don’t see the case that they don’t have the funds to do this. We want the council to start taking us seriously.”

As the group is calling for action to counter the anti-social behaviour they say has plagued Finsbury Park for years thanks to the no-lock policy, Islington Council have opened a consultation that will look at the locking systems for parks in the borough.

Condoms, tissues and other ‘sex debris’ left in the park’s historic shrubland

They plan to save just £140,00 through proposed changes that would mean all park gates are left unlocked.

Islington’s environment chief, Councillor Rowena Champion, said: “The proposed changes to the park gate locking service will make sure that all parks and green spaces in the borough can benefit from the limited resources that we have, which will be most welcome for those parks that aren’t currently locked.”

She added that the council is “keen to hear from Islington residents about how this change may impact them, and any ideas or suggestions they may have”.

But Ms Dawson said this plan would be a “mistake”. “Although you might save a bit of money, it’s small change, and you’ll end up having to spend more on managing the knock-on effect of that decision – the cost of having to clean up or repair the damage that is done.

“And it’s not just a financial consideration, these places can then become unsafe and a threat to community safety,” she said.

“If Finsbury Park is anything to go by, it’s not a good idea.”

Haringey Council’s culture chief, Councillor Emily Arkell, said: “We are determined to keep Finsbury Park as accessible and open as possible. We recognise in this post-Covid world how important it is to our communities and residents, who commute to and from work via the park and exercise there in the early mornings and late evenings.

“It is essential that everyone feels safe inside Finsbury Park and we have taken, and continue to take, strong steps to ensure that remains the case.

“We’ve installed CCTV cameras and overhead lighting as well as increased staff presence, including ongoing regular patrols, to prevent anti-social behaviour.

“We will continue to engage with our partners and external stakeholders on plans to improve community safety through police-led initiatives such as the tri-borough Clear, Hold, Build project, which aims to tackle serious and organised crime in the wider Finsbury Park area.

“We would only consider locking the park in exceptional circumstances as there is no legal requirement for us to do so. We would encourage park users who witness incidents of anti-social behaviour in Finsbury Park to report it to the police by calling 101. We are all determined to stamp this out.”