The Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) and Big Lottery Fund is to invest £34m in some of the UK’s most precious, yet tired green spaces.
These include:
Great Yarmouth’s vibrant Venetian-inspired water gardens constructed as part of an unemployment relief programme after the First World War
Belfast City Cemetery - the final resting place of some of Belfast’s industrial giants, including an underground wall originally built to divide Protestants and Catholics and a ‘poor ground’ where 63,000 people are buried in unmarked graves
Winckley Square Gardens, Preston - one of Northern England’s finest Georgian squares - with notable residents including suffragette Edith Rigby and seven-times Mayor Nicholas Grimshaw
Stoke-on-Trent’s Hanley Park – one of the biggest Victorian public parks in the UK, built for local potters and miners to relax and play sports
This money will transform these sites, some of which are situated in the country’s most deprived communities. Disused historic buildings will be restored and used as new cafes or public facilities, helping to attract more people and therefore more income. Innovations include public wi-fi installed in Peel Park, Salford and plans to harness renewable energy from the mill pond at Victoria Park, Stafford.
Heritage Minister, Tracey Crouch, said: "This investment will breathe new life into each of these 16 historic parks and cemeteries, making them great places for people to enjoy. Britain's famous green spaces are so important for giving people a place to get together, relax and exercise, and have a vital role in strengthening our local communities."
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