We want to give our park new lease of life (From Worcester News)

We want to give our park new lease of life

12:01pm Friday 13th August 2010 in

• Skip social links
• Print
• Email
• Comments(0)

FROM images of a smokeladen battlefield of a war now passed beyond living memory, to young families enjoying the summer sun, Gheluvelt Park is both a living memorial and a huge visitor draw.

After £1.4 million of funding, the revamped and restyled park will officially relaunch tomorrow with a series of activities and events.

Organisers hope the park will be seen as a place to go for a day out.

Birds of prey demonstrations, an afternoon of live music, First World War re-enactors and a chance to pull a bowstring are some of the highlights.

The event is running from 10.30am until 6pm, with the new war memorial opening at 11am and the flower show at 1pm.

Most of the permanent features, such as the play park and Splashpad, have already been opened. Keith Hall, project manager, said: “There wasn’t any point not letting people use them if they were ready.”

But the relaunch is to show off all the park’s new facilities and “give it a new lease of life”, Mr Hall added. The park’s new groundbreaking Splashpad has already had youngsters frolicking about in delight – replacing the unloved and unused wading pool.

Even Worcester City Council’s deputy leader Roger Knight rolled up his trousers to have a paddle.

And the new play area has been such a big hit that benches for footsore parents are now being installed.

“We’ve come a long way since 2002 when there was a first meeting and something needed to be done,”

said Mr Hall.

“Now we’re in the top set of parks nationally awarded a prestigious Green Flag award.

“Before the changes we were getting 40,000 visitors a year, now it’s looking like 120,000 – it’s been an overwhelming change.”

The city council, which owns the park laid out in 1922, also came up with a novel way of promoting the relaunch by brewing an ale called Gheluvelt Gold.

The pale session ale (140 pints worth) is on tap over the weekend at the Worcester CAMRA Beer, Cider & Perry Festival at Pitchcroft, but will not be available at the park itself.

The drink is the brainchild of Stuart Minchin, assistant parks warden, who said: “Celebrating the park with the brewing of a new beer is a very Worcestershire thing to do.

“I’m a keen beer drinker and this seemed like a good opportunity to market the park in a different way.”

Chris Gooch, of county-based Teme Valley Brewery, got the call to start the brewing process with a batch of hops from Ankerdine Farm – enough to make 720 gallons of the ale.

“We’ve got enough to make another batch in September, then that’s it, it’s gone,” said Mr Gooch.

“It’s drinking date will run to July 2011.”

Selected casks have gone to a handful of sellers and beer festivals, with half the first batch now bottled.

Lee Lancett, also of the council’s parks team, offered his creative mind to design a label for the bottles of beer.

He designed the label on a computer, laying out the text and adding pictures of the park’s bandstand and of Major Edward Hankey, who commanded the 2nd Battalion Worcestershire Regiment at the pivotal Battle of Gheluvelt during the First World War.

“I wanted to call it Major Hankey’s Ale, but we re-thought it to have the park’s name included,”

said Mr Lancett.

“I knew the park was a memorial, but I didn’t know how prominent a battle it commemorated.”

We want to give our park new lease of life Richard Vernalls finds out more about this weekend’s relaunch of the city’s popular Gheluvelt Park.

So,what does Gheluvelt Gold taste like?

Keith Hall, project manager, said: “This is a feisty Worcestershire beer to commemorate a feisty act by a feisty Worcestershire Regiment.”

Stuart Minchin, assistant parks warden, said: “It’s a fantastic beer, somewhat refreshing with a bitter-sweet finish.”

Claire Neville, council communications manager, said: “I don’t usually like beer, but that’s nice. Although I have to say as a woman, no beer is complete without a bit of lime.”

Lee Lancett, parks operative, said: “I’m a lager drinker usually, but that’s a very nice summer beer.”