Levelling Up cash boosts city park

Derby City Council has been making a number of improvements to the city’s parks thanks to external funding.

It is making a number of improvements at Normanton Park, thanks to £85,000 from the Government’s Levelling Up Parks Fund.

The scheme includes the creation of a community garden on the park’s former bowling green.

Fruit trees and new beds have been planted with the help of volunteers from the local community, Derbyshire Constabulary and local businesses Alstom and Rolls-Royce.

An accessible footpath has been installed, while decorative metalwork and new seating will be in place by the summer.

The project has also seen 62 new trees planted across the park, and the council is working with Sporting Communities and the Football Foundation on a scheme to redevelop the existing sports courts into a PlayZone.

PlayZones are safe, inclusive and accessible outdoor facilities that bring communities together through recreational forms of football and a range of other sports.

Claire Davenport, the city council’s director of leisure, culture and tourism, said: “This is an exciting time for Normanton Park.

“The Government funding has provided the opportunity to improve several aspects of the park, which will bring long-term environmental benefits as well as creating a better experience for the local community.

“There’s also a lot of work going on at our other parks around the city and we thank the many volunteers that have given up their time to help.

“We hope Derby’s citizens will get out and enjoy the city’s many green spaces, now spring has arrived.”

Sporting facilities are also being improved elsewhere, with work to improve tennis facilities within the city’s parks almost complete.

Courts at Alvaston Park, King George V Playing Fields and Markeaton Park are being renovated thanks to an £87,000 investment by the Government and the Lawn Tennis Association’s Park Improvement Programme.

Lakes in some of the city’s parks have also been undergoing significant restoration.

Volunteers from the Earl of Harrington’s Angling Club have been working in partnership with council officers on the improvements.