Grade II listed Hanley Park first opened in 1897. Designed by landscape architect Thomas Mawson, it is considered one of the best and earliest examples of his work in public parks in England. Stoke-on-Trent City Council is working with local volunteer group, the Friends of Hanley Park, to develop detailed plans to regenerate this historic park.

Reyahn King, Head of HLF West Midlands, said on behalf of HLF and BIG: "Hanley Park is one of this country's largest Victorian parks with a huge number of visitors each year. We were really impressed with the City of Stoke-on-Trent's desire to not only restore the park but also work in partnership to get the surrounding community much more involved with the site.

"We're delighted to be giving the project our initial support and look forward to hearing how plans progress over the coming months."

Councillor Andy Platt, Cabinet Member for Green Enterprises and Clean City, said: "We are thrilled this first round bid has been successful, it is great news for Stoke-on-Trent and the hundreds of thousands of people who visit the park. Hanley Park has a rich heritage and its regeneration will sit side-by-side with the transformation which is taking place in this city.

"Our scheme aims to restore the park, including its central pavilion, the boathouse, two lodges and formal gardens. It will also concentrate on encouraging greater use of the park by engaging with the local community, schools and volunteers. Thanks to investment from the Lottery we can go ahead and develop these innovative plans.

"The application process was extremely competitive, but we are significantly closer to securing the full grant of around £4.9m. The challenge now is to continue this hard work for the next two years to ensure we have as strong an application as possible."

The £5.8m plans to improve the park are in line with the council’s Mandate for Change Agenda which is promoting healthy lives and making Stoke-On-Trent a great place to live.

The two-year development scheme for the park will be delivered with UniQ partners. Stoke-on-Trent College will be developing a £4m sports centre on the edge of the Cauldon Grounds annex of Hanley Park and this will act as a catalyst for the regeneration of the whole park. Staffordshire University will also be bringing specialisms to the partnership such as community engagement, environmental technologies and visual analytics.

The City Council will use its HLF / BIG development grant of £420,000 to draw up plans to carry out restoration works to the park’s pavilion, boathouse and lodge buildings, the original formal gardens, ornate terracotta detailing, and the impressive fountain in Cauldon Grounds, as well as managing vegetation to open up views through and from the park. Plans will look at improving park access, and encouraging greater use of the facility by helping the local community to get involved.

Further information

Stoke-on-Trent City Council: Ciara Hill in the Communications Department on 01782 232 130.