Severn Valley Country Park
Encyclopedia
| Severn Valley Country Park | |
|---|---|
| Area: | 126 acres |
| Status: | Country Park Country park A country park is an area designated for people to visit and enjoy recreation in a countryside environment.-History:In the United Kingdom the term 'Country Park' has a special meaning. There are over 400 Country Parks in England alone . Most Country Parks were designated in the 1970s, under the... |
| Established: | 1992 |
| Awards: | Green Flag Award Green Flag Award The Green Flag Award is the benchmark national standard for parks and green spaces in the United Kingdom. The scheme was set up in 1996 to recognise and reward green spaces in England and Wales that met the laid down high standards... |
| Administrative authority: | Shropshire Council |
| Location | |
| Nearest Village Village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New... : |
Alveley Alveley Alveley is a village and civil parish in south east Shropshire, England, along the Severn Valley on the east side of the River Severn. It has appeared in records dating back to AD50.... |
| County County A county is a jurisdiction of local government in certain modern nations. Historically in mainland Europe, the original French term, comté, and its equivalents in other languages denoted a jurisdiction under the sovereignty of a count A county is a jurisdiction of local government in certain... : |
Shropshire Shropshire Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west... |
| Country Country A country is a region legally identified as a distinct entity in political geography. A country may be an independent sovereign state or one that is occupied by another state, as a non-sovereign or formerly sovereign political division, or a geographic region associated with a previously... : |
England England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental... , U.K. |
Severn Valley Country Park is a country park
Country park
A country park is an area designated for people to visit and enjoy recreation in a countryside environment.-History:In the United Kingdom the term 'Country Park' has a special meaning. There are over 400 Country Parks in England alone . Most Country Parks were designated in the 1970s, under the...
in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, located near Alveley
Alveley
Alveley is a village and civil parish in south east Shropshire, England, along the Severn Valley on the east side of the River Severn. It has appeared in records dating back to AD50....
, Shropshire
Shropshire
Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west...
, 8 miles (12.9 km) from Bridgnorth
Bridgnorth
Bridgnorth is a town in Shropshire, England, along the Severn Valley. It is split into Low Town and High Town, named on account of their elevations relative to the River Severn, which separates the upper town on the right bank from the lower on the left...
, roughly central in the Severn Valley
Severn Valley (England)
The Severn Valley is a rural area of mid-western England, through which the River Severn runs and the Severn Valley Railway steam heritage line operates, starting at its northernmost point in Bridgnorth, Shropshire and running south for 16 miles to Bewdley, Worcestershire in the Wyre...
. Originally the site of a huge coal mine, it is now a 126 acres (51 ha) park consisting of woodland, meadows and riverside banks with views over the River Severn
River Severn
The River Severn is the longest river in Great Britain, at about , but the second longest on the British Isles, behind the River Shannon. It rises at an altitude of on Plynlimon, Ceredigion near Llanidloes, Powys, in the Cambrian Mountains of mid Wales...
and a Green Flag Award.
History
The site was a coal mine for over 400 years, with shafts being put in at HighleyHighley
Highley is a large village in Shropshire, England, on the west bank of the River Severn and on the B4555 road. Highley has a population of approximately 3,100, but is beset by transport problems due to the lack of a road bridge, resulting in a high unemployment rate.-History:Highley began as a...
in 1870; and the river and then the railway were used to transport the coal. Production shifted to Alveley
Alveley
Alveley is a village and civil parish in south east Shropshire, England, along the Severn Valley on the east side of the River Severn. It has appeared in records dating back to AD50....
in 1936, and the mine finally closed in 1969. Work started to reclaim the site in 1986; the park was officially opened to the public in 1992.
Features
Severn Valley Country Park has many walks around the visitor's centre, as well as beside the river, and in the meadows and woodlands. The visitor's centre itself provides information on the park, a café and toilets. There is also a picnic site nearby and a large carpark. There is an additional picnic site near the river and another in a meadow at the top of the woods.A lake and bird-hide are located before the car park. The main path runs down to the riverside. The woodland path stretches down to the riverside and is mainly on a boardwalk; it also contains a brook. There is also a walk along the entrance road to a large meadow with a lake and picnic site which joins onto the woodland path.
Across the bridalway bridge over the Severn is the Country Park Halt
Country Park Halt railway station
Country Park Halt is an unstaffed request stop on the Severn Valley Railway heritage line in Shropshire, situated near the west bank of the River Severn, about 300 yards north of the footbridge between Highley and Alveley in the Severn Valley....
on the Severn Valley Railway
Severn Valley Railway
The Severn Valley Railway is a heritage railway in Shropshire and Worcestershire, England. The line runs along the Severn Valley from Bridgnorth to Kidderminster, following the course of the River Severn for much of its route...
.