New public park plan revealed for Waverley

The Waverley development is on the site of the old Orgreave Colliery and will accommodate 1,800 homes when fully built out, in addition to the new Olive Lane shopping area, which has seen early retailers move in, a primary school and other facilities.

Now regeneration specialists Harworth, which is behind the transformation, has announced the creation of a new park.

It will be called Highwall Park and will represent one of the final stages of the development.

It will run through the centre of Waverley from Olive Lane to connect with Waverley Lakes.

The park will accommodate a mixture of trees, foliage and ponds, designed to attract local wildlife, with footpaths for walking, running and cycling, picnic areas, and sports and play spaces.

It will take up ‘brown field’ land, previously used in the coal mining industry.

Rotherham landscape company Sky High will conduct the landscaping work.

A community consultation took place before the park was designed, to gather local input and it will be developed in three phases, with the first expected to be open for public use later this year.

Peter Massie, national director of development and residential sector lead at Harworth, said: “Our vision for Waverley has always included a vibrant green space at the heart of the development where those living and working here can come together to socialise, exercise and enjoy the great outdoors and local wildlife.

“We’ve been working hard over the last year to prepare this complex brownfield site for the creation of the new park. We’re pleased to be at the stage of working with Sky High to get the park ready for the community to enjoy.”

Luke Hammill, managing director at Sky High Trees & Grounds Maintenance Services, said: “As a local business, we are proud to be playing a role in the creation of Waverley, and it is excellent to be delivering such a brilliant new space for the community. At Sky High we are committed to delivering industry-leading landscape projects and we look forward to doing so at Highwall Park.”