Springfield Park

Programme Update

Our team continues working alongside Liverpool City Council to finish and hand over the remaining parkland to the community as soon as possible. We were delighted to complete all remaining infrastructure works at the end of March, giving Horticon access to the full park site and allowing much needed drainage connections and other foundation works to be completed.

A new planning application for the park has been submitted to the Local Planning Authority at the request of Liverpool City Council. This is to cover some small changes to the initial planning application in 2019, including clarification in the park boundary and some alterations to the design following feedback from the local community i.e. a reduced park swale and retention of the three willow trees. This application is a formality and won’t impact on the final works taking place.

Please be assured that this doesn’t affect anything we have delivered within the park and that 9.4 hectares of parkland are still being returned to the community as promised. The revised planning application will soon be live on the LCC planning portal and there will be a standard consultation process. We will share the link here once this goes live.

Delivering the programme we set out last year has been really challenging and much more difficult than we could have imagined. Difficult weather conditions over the Winter and early Spring really hampered our progress as the ground in several areas remained too wet for drainage systems to be installed and ultimately for some works to continue.
We have worked really hard to mitigate against these challenges wherever we can and work with our partners to explore every option available to reduce further delays. With infrastructure works and drainage connections completed alongside drier weather, the park is now in the final stages of completion.

Over the summer months the majority of the park has been completed and made accessible to the public including the natural play area, a new wildflower meadow and many of the connecting paths around the park.

The kids seem to really be enjoying the park at the moment, it seems like a nice space for them. It’s just perfect, there’s so much to explore.”  Emma, Parent

Final works and planting on the park swale are continuing. Some small remedial works around the swale area, including the northern section of the loop path and around the Portico, are almost complete. We are continuing to install wayfinding signage, information boards, benches and bins etc. as we near completion.

Springfield Park Swale

Swales are an effective, sustainable, and environmentally friendly drainage solution, providing a natural habitat for local wildlife while also reducing water run-off at peak times. When not in use, dry or wet swales form a natural part of the surrounding environment. Swales are used in other green spaces across the city, most recently at the Southern Grasslands adjacent to Festival Gardens.

The Springfield Park swale has the capacity to drain overflow water from the park and other neighbouring elements as instructed by Liverpool City Council.

There have been requests from parts of the community to ‘fill in’ the swale. However, we were unable to remove the swale without an alternative solution in place to manage drainage within the park that met the requirements of Liverpool City Council and the Planning Authority. Liverpool City Council confirmed the current swale must remain in place to reduce the risk of waterlogging and flooding in the park. The swale is expected to be completed soon, and a full health and safety assessment will be undertaken before this area is opened to the public.

Work on the swale was initially delayed, which gave us time to consider potential solutions that could enable us to remove or reduce the size of the swale. We cannot independently connect the park drainage system into the local water system as the discharge of land water from just the park into the local network is against current guidance. Our suggestion to Liverpool City Council is to use a soakaway to complement the swale. A soakaway is a buried drainage feature that infiltrates water directly into the ground rather than into an offsite location (i.e., a local sewer). Soakaways can work effectively but only when geological conditions are favourable. A soakaway would require a ‘testing phase’ over a multi-seasonal period and this could potentially take up to two years. Depending on the effectiveness of the soakaway, the size of the swale could be reduced; a smaller swale would still be needed to collect overflow water for the soakaway.

What is in the New Springfield Park?

Play Park

The new Park play area opened back in April and it’s been fantastic seeing so many children and young people enjoying it.

My favourite place to go is the new playground. I love the swings and the sandpit. I wish I could go every day!” Clemence aged 4 (pictured below)

“My kids are obsessed! We have probably been here ten times since it opened…We feel really privileged to have such a nice playground and facilities within walking distance. It has been much needed in the area and it saves us having to travel out to the likes of Sefton Park and Calderstones Park. It means we can meet new friends and get them [the children] out in the outdoors.” Clemence’s mum Rachael

“The kids seem to really be enjoying the park at the moment, it seems like a nice space for them. It’s just perfect, there’s so much to explore.”  Emma, Parent

“It’s better than what we have got in Bangor Hospital. It’s really good being next to the hospital. This is our first time coming to the hospital, and the park is brilliant. The play equipment is fantastic.” Rebecca, Parent

 “We only live around the corner so it is ideal for us to come over after school and on weekends. They’ve loved playing in here. I think the equipment is brilliant, there’s more here than in any other park in Liverpool. I should say it’s one of the best parks we have visited in Liverpool recently, definitely.”  Jenna, Parent

The play area includes all kinds of exciting features including a wobbly bridge on entry, sandpits, rocking boats, roundabouts, interactive play panels, seesaws and an amazing multi activity climbing frame and slide. The accessible seesaw, donated by Friends of Springfield Park to the community, has been relocated into the new play area which also features a range of swings for all abilities. There’s also plenty of picnic tables and seating for families to rest after hours of play!

Natural Play Area

Children of all ages can enjoy this open green space, featuring stepping logs, timber sleepers and rock boulders.

Some of our families are enjoying this space such as Emilio and Rumer (pictured above) :

I love being outdoors and climbing on the rocks and rolling on the grass. I love this park.” Emilio

Rumer’s mum, Lauren, said: “Rumer loves to explore the park and gets very excited when visiting.”

Wildflower Meadow

The previous park playground has been turned into a wildflower meadow.

Esmai (below) came from Stoke today and said, “My favourite thing to do is smelling the flowers, they’re beautiful and playing on the slides.”

The Promenade is Open!

Our Promenade is now open. The Promenade links the Park from the Alder Centre to the Institute in the Park buildings.

Reserve Football Pitches

The football pitches were seeded earlier this year and an establishment period to allow the grass to grow is now underway.

Multi-Use Games Area

The Multi-Use Games Area (MUGA) and Trim Trail are all being used regularly by the local community. The MUGA is floodlit which means it can be used from 9am-10pm each day!

Variety of Habitats and Homes for Wildlife

Within the new park are all kinds of different habitats aiming to increase biodiversity and the health of local wildlife. With 350 new trees, woodland areas, bare soil areas and a variety of different plant species, Springfield Park’s ecosystems and microhabitats will thrive.

Lighting up the Park

Springfield Park is lit up from dusk till dawn! Lights throughout the Park are operated by sensor technology and automatically come on at dusk and turn off at dawn every day. The Park lighting scheme was really important to the local community and will help to improve visibility and safety.

Reducing Anti-social Behaviour

The reinforced barrier that closes off the loop line from Springfield Park

We continue to work with Friends of Springfield Park, Liverpool City Council and Merseyside Police in exploring ways to tackle anti-social behaviour. This includes strengthening the fence from the existing Springfield Park to the loop line. Hedges have also been installed to reinforce the barrier further.

Community Engagement Meeting December 2023

Below, you can find a link to the minutes and actions from the Community Engagement Meeting that took place on Wednesday 6th December 2023.

Community Engagement Meeting Minutes – 06/12/2023 (181kB pdf)

Springfield Park Newsletters

Our official Springfield Park newsletters can be found below!

Alder Hey Community Newsletter November 2023 (6MB pdf)

Alder Hey Community Newsletter June 2023 (1MB pdf)

Springfield Park Newsletter March 2023 (2MB pdf)

Springfield Park Newsletter December 2022 (3MB pdf)

Springfield Park Newsletter Autumn 2022 (2MB pdf)

We know that Alder Hey’s Hospital and Children’s Health Campus were only made possible thanks to our amazing community. We’re really grateful for that and we’re committed to delivering a Springfield Park that will be enjoyed by all.

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