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| Sutton Park NNR | |
|---|---|
 Longmoor Pool | |
 Interactive map of Sutton Park NNR | |
| Location | Birmingham,England |
| Coordinates | 52°33′42″N1°51′14″W / 52.56174°N 1.85392°W /52.56174; -1.85392 |
| Area | 971.25 hectares (2,400.0 acres) |
| Operated by | Birmingham City Council |
| Website | www |
Sutton Park NNR is a large urban park located inSutton Coldfield,Birmingham,West Midlands,England. The park is aNational Nature Reserve; large parts are also aScheduled Ancient Monument. Sutton Park is one of the largest urban parks in the United Kingdom. The park covers more than 2,200 acres (900 ha) according to one source.[1] It consists of a mix ofheathland,wetlands andmarshes, sevenlakes, extensiveancient woodlands (covering approximately a quarter of the park), several restaurants, a private 18-holegolf course on its western edge and a municipal golf course to the south, adonkey sanctuary (permanently closed), children's playgrounds and a Visitor Centre. There is no entrance charge to the Park (parking charges are under discussion). A wide range of leisure activities are undertaken in the park including dog walking, pony trekking, bike riding and kite flying and there are areas to fly model aeroplanes and helicopters. Additionally, arailway line runs through the park.
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Peat-cutting, near Rowton's Well duringWorld War II, recoveredflintarrowheads at the base of the peat. There are some unassumingprehistoricburnt mounds, and an ancientwell. The park contains a preserved section of theIcknield Street, aRoman road; the noticeably cambered road enters the Park near the Royal Oak Gate and exits towards the aptly namedStreetly, the "meadow by the paved street";[2] it is still possible to walk the road. In 1909, twoRomancoins were discovered in the park. The Queen'sCoppice, planted in 1953, now covers the site of an ancienttumulus, from which a stone 'coffin' was dug out byantiquarians in 1808. Near Blackroot Pool are theearthworks of an ancient encampment, the origin of this is not known – possibly it was a hunting lodge and it may have been Roman,Mercian orNorman (or even all three, over time).
The park was established as aRoyal Forest by theAnglo Saxon kings ofMercia, from their seat atTamworth[3] at around the 9th century. By the early 12th century, it was in use as aNormanmedieval deer park. The land was given to the people of Sutton Coldfield byKing Henry VIII in 1528 afterBishop John Vesey, a friend of the King, asked for it as a present to the people ofSutton Coldfield. Thecharcoal burning that took place in the Park is thought to have given Sutton Coldfield the second part of its name.
Wyndley Pool is the oldest in the Park, perhaps dating from the 12th century or even earlier. The house of the Royal Steward sat on the bluff overlooking Wyndley Pool. Keeper's Pool and Bracebridge Pool date from the 15th century. Powell's Pool, Longmoor Pool, and Blackroot date from the 18th century, and were created to runwatermills. There was another pool atBoldmere, now outside the park, but this has since vanished. Most of the Park has been undisturbed since then. The area of Ladywood, at Four Oaks, was taken for housing, but in exchange the Meadow Platt area near the town was added to the Park, thus allowing the construction of a new Park Road access from the town.
A railway line, theSutton Park Line, was built through the Park in 1879 and the Park hadits own station. The advent of the railway, and the new town entrance, greatly increased the number of visitors to the Park. The Park's own dedicated station was closed in 1964, and the line now only serves goods trains, steam specials and diverted passenger workings.
Construction of the line resulted in the filling in of an area of wetland known as "Webb's Stows", causing the loss of several species of rare plants from the park.[4]
The Sutton Miniature Railway ran near to the present-day Wyndley Leisure Centre, from circa 1905 until the 1960s, when it was dismantled and the equipment put into store. The stock and engine shed are now at theVintage Trains Depot at Tyseley, Birmingham.[5]
DuringWorld War I, convalescent camps were built in the Park. DuringWorld War II further camps were built; these were first used for enemy aliens, then forU.S. forces prior toD-Day, and finally forNazi German and Italian prisoners of war.
In 1957, the 50th anniversary ofScouting was celebrated when the9th World Scout Jamboree, held concurrently with the 6thWorld Rover Moot and the 2ndWorld Scout Indaba, was held in the park, with participants from all over the world. The event is commemorated by a short stone pillar in the centre of the park.
On Sunday 30 August 1992, 100,000 fans attended theBBC Radio 1 biggest everRoadshow to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Radio 1 with live performances from bands includingDel Amitri,Aswad,The Farm andStatus Quo. Free buses were provided byTravel West Midlands and a large Radio 1 Air ship floated above the park.[6][7]
There was a rare 1887lido, for open-air all-weather swimming, at Keepers Pool but the lido closed in 2003 after arson, and was burned down entirely in 2004. The Lido area has now been purposely reverted to woodland andwetland.
The park is popular for a number of sports. These includemountain biking, with the "Skeleton Hill" being popular with downhill bikers. Secondly sailing and canoeing, which take place mainly on Powell's Pool and finally kayaking and canoeing club on Blackroot Pool with Royal Sutton Coldfield Canoe Club.
Runners and walkers also make the most of the park and its extensive pathways and trails.
A number of running events are staged in the park. These include:
There is a free 5 kmparkrun event in the park at 9:00am every Saturday, starting at Banners Gate.[9]
The City of Birmingham triathlon event in held in July with the open water swim stage taking place in Powell's Pool.
The Park hosted the triathlon events for theBirmingham 2022Commonwealth Games. The swimming occurred in Powell's Pool, while the cycling took to the streets of Boldmere before transitioning to running in the park itself.
Be Military Fit hold fitness classes up to six days a week in the park close to the Boldmere Gate.
There are countless cycling routes throughout the park for all different capabilities. There is an 18-hole golf course near to the Streetly Gate entrance to the park.
There is a section of grass sectioned off for the usage of model aeroplanes and helicopters. This is between Boldmere Gate and the Jamboree Stone and can be accessed at most times by car from Boldmere Gate.
Sutton Park has also been used for motor rallying, and was a popular spectator stage on theLombard RAC Rally in the 1970s and 1980s.
Also there are many watersports in the park, including fishing, rowing and sailing on the park's Powell's Pool, where the Sutton Sailing Club(SSC) sails regularly throughout the year. Bishop Vesey Grammar School row on Powell's Pool.
Nightjars formerly bred in the park; the last recorded being in 1957,[10] the year of the Scout Jamboree. Since then, there have only been two sightings, in 1974[10] and 2005.[11] Bothred grouse andblack grouse were in the park until 1868 and 1897 respectively.[10]
Two streams rise in the park,Plants Brook (also known as the Ebrook or East Brook) and its tributary Longmoor Brook, as well as several of their smaller tributaries and man-made drainage channels.[12] These feed a number of man-made pools and reservoirs.[12] Their outflow, outside the park is into theRiver Tame, and ultimately via theRiver Trent and theHumber, into theNorth Sea. Following heavy rainfall, water is fed into the streams from outside the park via storm drains known as "Combined Sewer Overflows".[12]
In 1997,English Nature designated most of Sutton Park anational nature reserve and it features onEnglish Heritage's list of recognised historic parks and gardens. In July 2005, a 20-year 'Keepers of Time' scheme was announced, which will eliminate alien species fromancient woodlands and restore native varieties likeoak,ash andbeech.
The park is currently managed byBirmingham City Council; but in July 2004 it was announced that control would be devolved to the local councillors forSutton Coldfield.
The roads have reverted to their previous 'heavily restricted' status. There is still considerable car traffic into and out of the park, mainly of families with children, dog walkers, kite/model aeroplane fliers and other recreational use. However, cross-park 'through traffic' is now completely blocked by sturdy gates across the main link roads, similar to the existing gates at all road entrances and exits, that open and close with dusk and dawn. This measure has significantly reduced the use of the park as a rush-hour short-cut (notably betweenBoldmere andStreetly), with some noticeable impact on congestion of local routes around the Park. The benefit of traffic restriction is improvement in the enjoyability of the park; with cleaner air, safer roads for walkers and cyclists, and much reduced visual andnoise pollution, plus reduced wear and tear on the poorly maintained, decayingroad surfaces.
Road speed limits through the park have been reduced twice, from 30 mph to 20 mph in the 1980s, and to 5 mph in 2004. Also, on the pedestrianised areas (areas that used to be roads for cars, but are now closed to vehicles, except for emergency/ranger traffic), many speed bumps have been removed.
The commercial funfair for small children beside Powell's Pool continues to operate, attracting significant business. It offers rides such as a daisy-chainedgo-kart track ride (with 'spooky' tunnels), and a two-person manually operated bell-ropepirate ship swings.
There is aSea Cadets dry-dock training vessel ("the Concrete Corvette") at Boldmere Gate along with the headquarters of the 1st Sutton Coldfield Sea Scouts, and at the other side of the park the 9th Sutton Coldfield Scouts.
In December 2007, theNational Cycle Network won £50-million in a public vote. The effect on Sutton Park will be to buildthe Plants Brook route that will create a free off-road bicycle path from eastErdington to Sutton Park.
In February 2008, a City Councilfeasibility study examined the possibility of once again running passenger trains through the park.
In September 2012, an outbreak ofE. coli O157 was confirmed by theHealth Protection Agency. Seven people were infected during the months of July and August. The park remained open butBirmingham City Council advised children under 10 to avoid visiting Sutton Park and for visitors to avoid contact with animals and wash hands thoroughly.[13] Due to the outbreak, the autumn Midlands Counties and English National Road Relays running events in 2012 were cancelled.
During theCOVID-19 pandemic, outdoor exercise was encouraged as people struggled with the physical effects of lockdown and restrictions. Sutton Park remained busy even as the Wyndley Leisure Centre facilities were shut.
