New lease of life for historic parks
25 January 2010
Three historic parks are sharing £9.3 million in lottery grants, providing much-needed money to restore historic features and provide new facilities.
Almost half the money goes to the Walsall Arboretum, a Victorian park in the centre of the town originally laid out in 1874 as pleasure grounds around two boating lakes. One of the features to be restored is a Grade II listed boathouse; a new visitor centre will also be built and the lakes will be cleaned out and returned to good condition.
The other two parks to benefit are the former home of Arts and Crafts leading light William Morris, Lloyd and Aveling Park in Waltham Forest, London, and Hillworth Park in Devizes, Wiltshire. The funds, from the Big Lottery Fund and the Heritage Lottery Fund, are awarded under the Parks for People programme which has so far contributed £150 million to conserving and regenerating public parks and gardens all over the country.
Find out about Parks for People
Find out about the Heritage Lottery Fund