Friends of Parkwood Springs - Skyline Project Position Statement

Position Statement regarding Skyline’s proposed project in Sheffield
Friends of Parkwood Springs – May 2025.

We appreciate Skyline’s offers of engagement with the community, it should begin as soon as possible to influence the development of plans, not just to react to ones presented by Skyline. We would welcome a timeline of opportunities for engagement allowing partnership with local higher and further education and liaison with other groups.

Our base position is that the needs of current users and the local community should be preserved, development should avoid areas that are particularly valued, and that the environment, local ecology and biodiversity should not be damaged and enhanced if possible. Our long-term aim is for a Country Park in the City - a public green space, a natural area with a countryside environment allowing people to experience nature in an informal setting.

We support this project if it is done properly and meets our concerns, but not at any cost. If it is not done well we will oppose as necessary - we will not be cheerleaders.

The Area between the Skyline development on the Opportunity Site and Cooks Wood Road is heavily used by the local community. There should be no boundary creep and no regular service access to the top of the site through that area.

There is a need to integrate the Skyline development not just with the rest of Parkwood Springs but as part of the wider area of North Sheffield.

We care about the current site ecology, including noise and lighting aspects, and the protection and increase of biodiversity. We want to promote different habitats and encourage native species. The presence of two SSSIs on the site should also be recognised.

We welcome cooperation between Skyline and Valencia in enhancing the ecological value of the attenuation pond and surrounding area. We feel it could be used for environmental education as part of wider offerings by the new development. The path networks on both sites should be integrated.

We understand that the core proposal is for a luge and gondola lift but would like to see more active offerings as well, leading to skills development. Skiing and snowboarding at the former village were both much valued by the people of Sheffield.

We like the proposed kids activities, wider trails and quiet areas accessible to all - activities that you don't pay for. We support volunteering opportunities for local people and apprenticeships. Pricing should be accessible to local people.

Particular elements of our response are:

Ridge walk - full public access and continuity needs to be maintained.

Existing viewpoints should be preserved.

Meadows and meadow extensions around the main viewpoint should be preserved.

The main infrastructure should be at the bottom of the hill, it should be aesthetically pleasing and sensitive to the overall concept of a country park. Buildings should have green roofs and or solar panels.

We would like to hear about the proposed waste collection strategy and security arrangements.

The development should accord with council policies including disabled access, sustainability and use of local suppliers.

Current MTB tracks should be preserved.

No fences - it is important permeability is maintained.

Views of Parkwood Springs are visible across the city - the development needs to meld with landscape.

Forest garden and its tranquillity should be preserved.

Will there be a service access from Oakham Drive? The construction phase needs to be very tightly managed to minimize impact on other parts of the site.

The development should recognise it is part of the wider country park and recognize the industrial and cultural heritage. The site encapsulates large parts of the history and growth of Sheffield.

Aspects of history and social change include:

• Medieval Deer Park;
• Woodland management until the end of the 19th century;
• Industrial archaeology such as the silver mill, the Manchester-Sheffield railway and railway workshop, the steelworks and brickworks, the gas works and power station, mining, quarrying and landfill in the 19th and 20th centuries;
• The development of Parkwood Springs village from 1850 until demolition in the 1970s;
• Woodland clearance in the 1926 general strike and winter of 1947;
• Use of the site for gun and rocket emplacements in the Second World War;
• Paths and planting by Manpower Services Commission schemes;
• The development of the former ski village;
• Contemporary aspects such as the creation of the new link road, power generation by Valencia and the development of the Country Park in the City.

 
We would like to see interpretation boards and some art/sculpture reflecting the history of the site.