Location: The park is located near the A41 to the west of Whitchurch, off Chemistry. Grid Ref: SJ 532415 (for a map showing the location of the site click the link on this page)
Recreational Activities: Walking - level easy walks with mostly hard surfaced tracks.
A ribbon of open space including grassy areas, woodland and the Staggs Brook stretches from Jubilee Park to The canal spur at Chemistry and is a haven for wildlife. The country park includes Greenfields nature Reserve which is managed by Shropshire Wildlife Trust (click on the link below).
The area has a range of valuable wildlife that have escaped the attention of developers and agriculture and is managed to encourage a range of wildflowers and animals. Look out for cuckoo flower on the wetter areas in spring and listen for the 'plop' of watervoles escaping into the stream. This is one of the few places in Shropshire where you may still see this rare mammal, which was once common throughout the country.
Currently a project, funded through the Market Town Revitalisation Project, has just begun called 'Walking in Whitchurch'. This aims to improve the paths and signposts leading from the canal to the Town Centre and Greenfields Nature Reserve in order to encourage people to make use of this lovely part of the town.
Whitchurch Waterways Country Park came about as a result of activity under the Whitchurch Renewal Area Scheme where land was bought at Sherrymill Hill (some of which is leased to Whitchurch Town Council) to form part of the Country Park.
The land was bought in order to safeguard the area with an eye to future plans for the former canal to be reinstated into the centre of the town. This canal originally linked the town with the Llangollen Branch of the Shropshire Union Canal.
The first 400 metres of the canal branch have been completed. Whitchurch Waterway Trust are working on plans to further extend the canal
The Council are maintaining the land in trust on behalf of the Whitchurch Waterways Trust.