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Case Studies: Leeds Conference
Manor Fields District Park, Sheffield
Ian Stanyon MLI and Roger Nowell
The workshop will present Manor Fields District Park in Sheffield as an ambitious project taking 25 hectares of formally derelict land and turning it into a respected site with the cultural identity of being a park. ECO principals have underwritten the project reducing the impact of the scheme on the environment and being developed incrementally it has shown both sensitivity to the site’s natural characteristics and has allowed the community to come to terms with the changes before moving forward to the next phase.
The project has taken a light touch on the natural environment. Vegetation has not been wholesale ripped out but some areas have been retained to encourage wild habitats not normally associated with public parks. Using recycled construction materials has minimised the effect of construction processes on natural recourses and in some cases materials generated by on-site demolition have even omitted the need to use road transportation to import.
Sustainable drainage is demonstrating best practice in the management of built development surface water and a successful cooperation has built up between the City Council, the developer and the design team. SUDS basins take surface runoff from the neighbouring housing development and while robustly attenuating runoff flows are also used in creating new wetland habitats. A series of wetland and marginal wetland habitats provides opportunities for new planting and the natural incursion of wetland fauna including insects, birds and fish life.
Management practices are being put in place to encourage these wild areas and the give the opportunity for visitors to enhance their experiences alongside their more normal park activities. The workshop will demonstrate the contribution that the development of Manor Fields District Park has had on minimising the effects of the scheme on climate change while providing social and natural environment benefits.