In September 2024 when the old committee handed over to the new one, we ran a short survey to find out how the local community felt about the park and what, if anything might need to be done. We had 40 respondents, and this is what we found out:

How do we currently use the park?

What would we like to see at the park?

What do we like best about the park?

We really like:

• That is is a calm, quiet, safe space
• There are different natural areas – trees, plants and open space
• The friendliness and sense of community
• The tyre swing!
• It’s convenient and accessible

What don’t we like about the park?

The biggest issues:

• Drainage – the area gets wet and boggy
• It’s looking shabby and run-down
• Limited play equipment
• Dog poo!

How far are we travelling to use the park?

i.e. most visitors are really local.

Over the past year, we’ve been talking to people who use and care about Scout Road Park. Through the survey, informal chats on-site, and conversations at maintenance days, we’ve gathered lots of ideas about what people value and what could be improved.

It’s become clear that we need a more joined-up, long-term approach to keep the park in good shape for the next 20+ years. This is beyond what occasional volunteer maintenance days alone can achieve. Parts of the previous project from 2010 are now reaching the end of their life (like the wooden boardwalk, pontoon and the play equipment that’s slowly being removed), while other areas were impacted by the flood works between 2016 and 2020, including the loss of the pond.

We’ve used all of this feedback to create a brief for a “Nature-Rich Masterplan” for the park that we can take to professional landscape designers to help us create a plan for the future.

Why we created a brief

You might wonder why we needed to write a brief or bring in professionals.

Essentially, a brief is a way of clearly setting out:

• what people want from the park
• what problems need solving
• what opportunities we want to explore

By pulling together all the community input into one clear document, we can make sure designers understand what matters most to local people from the start.

Working with a professional landscape designer also means:

• ideas can be turned into realistic plans
• different needs (nature, play, access, safety) are properly balanced
• everything fits together as part of one long-term vision

This helps avoid lots of small, disconnected or conflicting changes over time, and instead creates a plan where improvements fit together even if they’re not delivered at the same time.

What the masterplan will do

The masterplan is not about changing everything overnight. It’s about creating a shared long-term vision for the park.

It will:

• show how the park could look in the future
• map out ideas for paths, planting, play areas and community space
• set out a phased approach, so improvements can happen step by step as funding becomes available

This means we can run future maintenance days and improvement projects knowing they are all contributing to the same overall plan.

Reflecting what you told us

The brief we created for the design team is based directly on community feedback. Key themes included:

• A greener, more nature-rich park
  More planting, better habitats for wildlife, and spaces that enhance that feeling of being close to nature.
• A park that works for everyone
  Clear, accessible paths, welcoming entrances and spaces that feel safe and open.
• Better spaces for play and activity
  Opportunities for creative, informal play as well as improvements to existing sports use.
• Places to sit, gather and spend time
  Seating and shelter so people can enjoy the park, whatever the weather!
• Something that lasts
  Designs that are durable, low-maintenance and make sense for the long term. This includes thinking about environmental impacts in construction, use and end-of-life.

All of these ideas came from what people told us they wanted to see.

Why this matters for funding

Having a clear, professionally developed masterplan is really important for the future of the park.

It means we can:

• apply for larger grants with a clear plan in place
• show funders exactly what we want to achieve and why
• demonstrate strong community support and involvement

It gives us a much better chance of turning ideas into reality.

What happens next

We’ve successfully secured funding from Hebden Royd Town Council to get started on the first phase of this work.

This will cover:

• early concept ideas and designs
• visuals to help everyone understand the proposals
• a draft masterplan

Over the coming months, there will be more chances to get involved, give feedback, and help shape the plans as they develop.

This is about turning your ideas into a clear, long-term plan for the park — one that helps us protect what people love, improve what isn’t working, and unlock funding if we need it.