Alyn Waters Country Park Management Plan 2017-2020 Parks, Countryside and Rights of Way Department Environment Department Contents Summary page 3 1. Introduction page 4 2. Strategic Context page 4 3. Site Map page 6 4. Site Description page 8 5. Current use and Management page 16 6. Analysis and Evaluation page 25 7. Management Aims page 27 8. Monitoring page 28 9. Action Plans Development page 29 Conservation Management page 31 Environmental Education and Events page 35 Community Involvement page 36 Interpretive page 38 Promotion and Marketing page 40 Maintenance page 42 10. Appendices A.1 Visitor figures page 48 A.2 Annnual achievements page 50 A.3 Balsam pulling records page 52 A.4 Byelaws page 53 A.5 Environmental Education programmes. page 55 A.6 Corporate Safeguarding Policy page 56 A.7 Celebrations and Memorials in the Country Parks Page 57 A.8 Contact details. Page 58 2 Summary Alyn Waters Country Park is the largest park managed by Wrexham County Borough Council. It is located within 4 miles of Wrexham town centre. Much of the site was formerly sand and gravel quarry and later used for domestic landfill. The area was designated as a country park in 1989. This Management Plan identifies and describes the features of and resources within Alyn Waters Country Park. It goes on to analyse the Parks development, its conservation status, its role as an educational and community resource and its value as a visitor attraction. The Park is now a popular and well-used facility. Much of it has been developed, but some decisions need to be made on how the remaining areas of the Park should develop and how the existing areas should be managed and maintained. During this period of financial uncertainty the parks management needs to adapt and be able to maximise opportunities whilst maintaining the excellent facility, for thelocal community and for local and regional visitors. This management plan seeks to address these issues. Individual action plans with in the Management Plan outline a series of projects and activities to be carried out over the next five years, subject to the appropriate funding. Much of the capital for this work must come from a variety of different sources such as the lottery, the landfill tax credit scheme and other external initiatives. Continued support by the community and its involvement in the care of the Park is essential if Alyn Waters Country Park is to continue to prosper. It is intended to continue to monitor and evaluate the development of the Park, through visitor and local community consultation. The projects listed in the Action Plan may be revisited or amended as new sources of funding or new priorities emerge. Vision Statement Alyn Waters Country Park is and will continue to be a clean, well maintained park, with a good network of cycle ways, paths, parking and play facilities, a visitor centre and café, conference and training facilities, excellent opportunities and facilities to carry out environmental educational study. The woodlands and grassland will be managed for conservation and landscape value providing good quality wildlife habitats. The Park will continue to be well used by the community, schools and tourists from outside the area. Volunteers and the local community will play an active part in the care and management of the park. The Park will help people to become fitter and healthier through regular physical exercise 3 1. Introduction Alyn Waters Country Park is situated between the villages of Gwersyllt and Llay, four miles north of Wrexham. The Park covers 152 hectares of woodland and grassland along the river Alyn. It is managed by the Parks, Countryside and Rights of Way section of the Environment Department of Wrexham County Borough Council. A park development strategy was completed in 1991 and this has broadly guided the development of the Park over the years. Successful developments have included the establishment of two community woodlands, a local nature reserve, visitor centre with café and education room, golf driving range, play area and trim trail, sculpture trail and cycle ways. 2. Strategic Context This management plan fits within and is informed by a number of local and national initiatives and acts. Wrexham’s community vision is set out in The Wrexham Community Strategy 2009 – 2020 (Wrexham CBC). This strategy sets the framework for the key statutory plans, such as the Health, Social Care and Well-Being Strategy, the Local Development Plan and the Children and Young People’s Plan that will guide how Wrexham develops, how health will be improved and protected and how children and young people will be cared for. Of particular relevance to this management plan are the priorities:- Respect and promote built and natural environments, parks and green- spaces for everyone to access and enjoy; keeping them well-kept and attractive. Enable and encourage people to be active citizens and get involved in their local community. Encourage the provision of a wide range of cultural, sporting and physical activity, heritage and shopping opportunities throughout the County Borough. Our Wrexham Plan 2013 – 2024 further states;- “We want Wrexham County Borough to be a great place, A safe place, A place where people live independently and are healthy and active. We want you to be able to enjoy quality leisure facilities, parks and other outdoor spaces. All work and no play? No thanks. When you get up in the morning, we want you to feel good about yourself and your surroundings. To feel confident. Optimistic about the future. We want Wrexham County Borough to have a strong economy that’s resilient to hard times. A place that gives everyone a fair chance to reach their potential. We want to look after the land and make sure it’s used in the right way. A place where 4 you can have your say. And, more importantly, be heard. Where you shape public services. Where you feel like you can make a difference”. The development of the Alyn Waters Country Park is set within the aims laid out in Wrexham’s Parks Strategy (first written in 2009). The Parks Strategy set out the broad aims of caring for the landscape and heritage, protecting wildlife, consulting and involving the local community, improving visitor facilities and raising standards, widening the use of the parks, raising environmental awareness and working with volunteers and encouraging people to become more active. Within the Parks, Countryside and Rights of Way Service, the aim is to manage, protect and conserve the countryside and rights of way network of Wrexham County Borough and to promote and develop understanding of the Borough’s natural environment. Providing a range of quality countryside facilities and supporting services, which are accessible to the residents and visitors to the Borough, will support this. In the national context, the plan sits well within the aims of the Wellbeing of Future Generations act (Wales) 2015. The Wrexham We Want 2016 – is a current initiative from WCBC to consult and work with people and communities to develop a plan to deliver the legally binding Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act. The findings of this will be incoproated into future management plans. The Environment (Wales) Act 2016 – This act provides the legislation required to plan and manage Wales’ natural resources in a sustainable joined up way, which informs this plan. This plan is also set within The Welsh Assembly Government’s long term vision for Wales,“Climbing Higher”, the Welsh Assembly Strategy for Sport and Physical Activity. Climbing Higher is a key document with stretching targets for the health of people living in Wales. The Strategy focuses on improving the health of the nation through improving physical access to green space and sporting facilities and encouraging children and adults to take more exercise. Encouraging people to visit the countryside can help to get them fitter and more active. The Management Plan supports The Environment Strategy for Wales, 2006. This sets out important principles and outcomes expected from us all, in particular – “Individuals understand and are enabled to take responsibility for their environmental impact; changes are apparent in behaviour”. Indicators for this outcome include percentage of people taking actions to improve the environment and trends in the number of people taking part in environmental volunteering. Another important principle within the strategy is “There will be sustainable, widespread and equitable access to the countryside and coast, which recognises the need for a balance between tranquil areas and areas supporting larger numbers of people and a range of activities. Damaging access will be discouraged”. 5 3. Site Map The site map is divided into compartments. The following table describes the compartments . 6 Compartments Description Gwersyllt side 1 Scrubland Includes car park, visitor centre, picnic area and trim trail G2 Wet woodland with steep slope down to river Mixed mature broadleaved, Bradley Fishing club lease the fishing rights along the river G3 Wet Woodland along the River Alyn Mature alder/ willow. Includes 2 areas of wet flushes G4 Community Woodland Originally planted between 1993 and 1995 under the Forestry Commission Woodland Grant Scheme. Underdeveloped mixed broad leaved. G5 Community Woodland Planted as above. Mixed broad leaved. G6 Community Woodland Planted as above. Mixed broad leaved with aspen. G7 Skylark meadow Former landfill site. Restored with wildflower mix. Flora developing. Breeding resident skylark population. G8 Woodland planting Former landfill. Pedal Power and WCBC containers located at eastern end of compartment. Llay side 1 Grassland Local Nature Reserve This grassland has high conservation value. It has breeding skylark and is floristically diverse supporting a healthy butterfly population1. The potential for conflict between nature conservation and recreational use is high as compartment is popular with walkers who often have dogs.