Derbyshire Dales District Council is restoring five historic parks and pleasure grounds that run along the Derwent Valley and connect Matlock to picturesque Matlock Bath, an area popular with tourists and weekend visitors. The aim of the project is to restore the historical landscape, whilst conserving and improving the ecological value of the sites, as well as enhancing its safety and desirability to tourists.
This ambitious £.5 million, 5-year Matlock Parks Project, is part funded by a £2.67 million grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund, to enable improvements to be made to the five popular parks; Hall Leys Park, Pic Tor, Derwent Gardens, Lovers’ Walk and High Tor Grounds.
The cost of the investment in this latest phase totals nearly £300,000 and is funded by a combination of sources: the Heritage Lottery Fund, Derbyshire Dales District Council, Matlock Town Council, SITA, the Forestry Commission via their English Woodlands Grant Scheme, Rural Transport Partnership and contributions of work-in-kind from many local individuals and organisations.
One of the improvements included the installation of new railings and gates to provide greater safety and security to hikers and weekend visitors to this area of outstanding beauty.
We successfully won the contract to supply 600m of timber post and rail and 600m of bespoke metal estate fencing in galvanised mild steel for High Tor, a scenic walkway that takes in a spectacular 300 foot rock rising from the bed of the river Derwent. We also supplied 100m of bow top railings and over 100m of handrails in galvanised mild steel, for Lovers Walks, a narrow path which passes along a series of small cliffs overlooking the river, with scenic views of Matlock Bath and the nearby Heights of Abraham. All railings were supplied powder coated to the main contractors Jacksons Civil Engineering to enhance longevity.
Alpha Rail has extensive experience in the restoration of areas of natural beauty through the supply of new gates and railings, with others including Dorchester Gardens, Battersea Park in Wandsworth (winner of a Civic Trust Award), Roundhay Park in Leeds and Handsworth Park in Birmingham.
"The new railings complement the appearance of the parks, as well as contributing towards the restoration of an historic feature. The completed parks are already attracting more visitors to the area, whilst also providing new facilities for local residents."- Alison Baker, Project Manager, Jacksons Civil Engineering
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