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25
Mar
Knaresborough Forest Park to get new features
Compost toilets, seating and solar panels are to be installed in Knaresborough Forest Park thanks to a £15,000 grant.
Knaresborough Forest Park consists of 60 acres of land that was returned to public ownership last year after a fundraising campaign raised £864,000.
The forest park, along with adjoining Long Lands Common, were bought to protect land between Knaresborough and Harrogate from development.
The two schemes are jointly managed by a community benefit society operating under the Long Lands Common name.
Long Lands Common board member Mark Flood successfully applied for the £15,000 grant from the Waugh Trust.
The trust, which supports educational initiatives in the area, was set up by a legacy left to the Rotary Club of Knaresborough by local teacher Alan Waugh in 2021.
The rotary award will fund equipment to enable groups to access the land, including compost toilets, seating for 32 people, hand washing facilities, solar panels, a secure storage area and two movable outdoor shelters.
Mr Flood said:
We are hugely grateful to the Rotary Club of Knaresborough and the Waugh Trust for showing this faith in us and recognising the educational value of the Knaresborough Forest Park site. This award means that while we are still paying off the bridging loan for the purchase of the site, we can now begin to look ahead to sharing it with the local community.
An aerial view of Knaresborough Forest Park.
Knaresborough Forest Park is currently accessible by a path running from Bilton Hall Drive, past the jubilee allotments and past the farm buildings bordering the A59. There is also an unofficial path that leads to Mackintosh Park.
The aim is to open-up the site to local organisations, including schools and youth groups. Knaresborough-based Orb Community Arts, local scout groups and Veloheads in Starbeck, an organisation which helps young people develop skills for life, have already taken part in activities on site.
The next guided walk showing people around the site and explaining the vision for it takes place on Saturday 19 April. More details are available here.
The £864,000 raised to buy Knaresborough Forest Park, which had been under private ownership for 250 years, included a £300,000 loan, of which £15,000 still has to be repaid.
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