Central Park masterplan of environmental enhancements

Plymouth City Council is committed to improving Central Park so it fulfils its potential as one of the city's premier destinations.

The Council is keen to develop the park's primary function as originally conceived back in 1928 as a park devoted to the improvement of the health of Plymouth people via active sport, recreation and leisure activities.

The Council has developed a masterplan of environmental enhancements in colaboration with stakeholders and users of the park. This masterplan sets out six primary objectives as shown below:

1. Promote a strong vision for the park
2. A park with quality features
3. A park which is easy to move through and to access
4. A park with quality outdoor sports, leisure amd play facilities
5. A park with improved landscape and biodiversity
6. A park with resolved land drainage issues.

The masterplan was adopted by the Council on 29 March 2011.

The masterplan of environmental enhancements was submitted for public comment over 6 weeks during October and November of 2010, which gained 181 responses. The majority of these respondents make positive responses to all the proposals within the masterplan, you can view the results of the consultation below:

Public consultation results part 1 [8.7KB]

Public consultation results part 2 [149KB]

The improvements included:

Outdoor sports

• Four new football pitches
• Improvements to the existing pitches
• Two new outdoor bowling greens
• Four new tennis courts
• A 1km competition cycle track
• New sports changing building

Footpaths and lighting

• 3.5 miles (5.7km) of new footpaths
• Total refurbishment of existing footpaths
• New street lights
• Two new pedestrian crossings
• New signs
• New park furniture, litter bins and seating
• Improvements to seven existing park entrances
• One grand new park entrance at Alma Road in Pennycomequick

New park facilities

• Two new café buildings with public toilets
• A new events field
• Improvements to the two existing children’s playgrounds and a new playground in the wooded valley
• Enhancements to the planned replacement skate park
• New hill and gazebo feature
• Outdoor theatre/performance space
• An improved key feature at the location of current cube clock
• The provision of 24 new allotments

Biodiversity, landscape and drainage improvements

• Measures to address the land drainage problems including a system of open swales and ditches feeding a new lake of 3,000sqm
• Tree planting within the avenues
• New woodland planting to increase species diversity, enhancing and creating new habitats
• New hedgerows and Devon banks

The capital costs for these enhancements over a 10 year period to 2021 is estimated at £12.1 million and would provide:

1. £3.35 million to improving outdoor sports facilities
2. £5.4 million towards enhancing footpaths, access and park entrances
3. £2.15 million to improving park facilities (cafés, playgrounds, skate park)
4. £1.21 million to enhancing the parks biodiversity and landscape improvements

It is anticipated that these costs can be met from a variety of funding streams which include:

• Proceeds from allowing development as a result of the adopted AAP
• Future developer’s contributions collected citywide for open space and recreation
• Successful lottery bids from environmental, heritage and sporting grant funding bodies

Central Park Masterplan [5.66MB]*

Peverell Park Road reservoir entrance [104KB]

Clock tower and central hub [72KB]

Outland Road entrance [1.3MB]