Lottery funding for Ellesmere Heritage Project

The Heritage Lottery Fund and Big Lottery Fund have awarded Shropshire County Council and Ellesmere Town Council £1,133,000 towards a heritage restoration project at the Mere, Ellesmere. The award is part of the Parks for People programme which aims to restore and regenerate public parks and gardens.

Councillor Ann Hartley, local Member and Chair of the Mere Committee said: “We are all very excited and pleased with the news that the Heritage Lottery and Big Lottery Funds have awarded us £1.1m towards restoration works at the Mere, Ellesmere. 2008 will be an action packed year with buildings being restored, gardens enhanced and new staff on board to run events and activities.”

Geoff Elner, Ellesmere Town Mayor added: “Ellesmere Town Council are extremely pleased to hear that the Lottery Board have confirmed that they have awarded a grant of £1.1 million towards The Mere at Ellesmere Heritage Project. This is a significant amount of money which will allow the project to enhance the Boathouse, Cremorne Gardens and Mere frontage, to commence.

"It will be so very good to see these long awaited projects progress over the next few months; it is an exciting time for Ellesmere and we thank the Heritage Lottery and Big Lottery Fund Board for their generosity and foresight in awarding us this grant.”

Local people and visitors will benefit from the exciting project which will take off in 2008. The much-loved gardens and historic buildings will be restored to their former glory, the Boathouse Restaurant will be extended to include a visitor information centre, and a new waterside terrace will be added.

There will also be lots of opportunity to learn about the heritage of the park such as the fact that it forms part of an internationally important and rare landscape known as the Meres and Mosses created in the last Ice Age. And that the Mere and Cremorne Gardens that we see today with its exotic trees and walkways was created by the wealth from canals.

The new Boathouse ‘centre’ will include a fantastic display of local wildlife and heritage interest. Events and activities will be run in the park throughout the year. There will also be activities for local school children exploring the wildlife of the Mere.

There will the opportunities for anyone with an interest in the park to get involved and learn new skills. A ‘Friends of the Mere’ group will be set up people can learn about wildlife, horticultural skills or how to run guided walks and talks.

For further information contact Angela Jones, Project Manager, Conservation and Ranger Team on 01691 624448

20 December 2007