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Hollinsend Recreation Ground


DaveH

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Hollinsend Recreation Ground

Situated in South East Sheffield and is bounded by Ridgeway Road, Hollinsend Road and Ridgehill Avenue.

Up to 1930 this land was part of Foxwood Farm (also known as Cartledge's Farm after its last owner) so would have been open farm land.

When the Intake estate was built during the 1930's this land was never built on, probably due to the small stream stream that runs through it and the tendancy of the surrounding land to become very soft and boggy after even a relatively small amount of rain and to remain like that for some time.

So instead of building on it the land became an open recreational area.

Map / image is Copyright Google Maps.

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The park has 4 entrances, 1 on Ridgehill Avenue, 1 on Hollinsend Road and 2 on Ridgeway Road.

The main entrance, mainly because it is the only one with vehicle access from the road is at the bottom end of Ridgeway Road just above All Saints Church, Gleadless, often referred to incorrectly as Hollinsend Church.

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The access from the road is mainly for Council Recreation Department vehicles to access one of their storage sites immediately behind the church. This is usually locked up unless workmen are present.

The road also gives access to the Pavillion, which has parking space for 2 cars.

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The Pavillion building is used by several groups. At one time used by the scouts it is now used by a pre school group, as a meeting room and it has always served as a home to Hollinsend Bowling Club as the pavillion has 2 very well maintained (and therefore frequently fenced off to prevent vandalism) crown greens.

The pavillion also used to be the place where you could pay to hire a tennis court or use the golfing pitch and putt facility.

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The raised second crown green in the foreground, looking towards Ridgeway Road. The trees in the distance are on the site of the former pitch and putt golf.

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The area between the bowling green and Ridgeway Road and between Gleadless Church and the Groundsmans House (the first house up Ridgeway Road after the church) was formerly a pitch and putt golfing area with 9 flag marked holes. It is not used for this any more and noe has more trees growing on it.

In the recreation grounds heyday anyone passing down Hollinsend Road on a hot summers day would see people playing golf, bowls and tennis in this busy little park.

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The recreation ground once had 3 well maintained tennis courts. They are still clearly visible in the aeriel maps and photos such as that in post #1 by Google.

In recent years they have fallen badly into disrepair and neglect such that today they are a sorry sight and practically unusable.

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Outside of the tennis courts are these foundations.

They are all that remains of the changing rooms used by football teams using the park for games of football at weekends.

The changing room was destroyed by fire, - deliberate arson, some years ago.

Strangely for a park of this size and range of facilities there are no public toilets and never have been.

There are toilets in the pavilion as at one time it also had a small cafe, but today these are hardly public.

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A path runs directly through the park from Ridgeway Road to Ridgehill Avenue, entering through narrow passageways (gennels) between the rows of houses on these suburban, residential streets.

The path is a good "short cut" to get across the park.

About half way along this path is a small childrens playground.

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At the eastern end of the path is the Ridgehill Avenue entrance

Note that these entrances have barriers to prevent access of motorcycles, used by vandals who drive around the area illegally and recklessly , causing a danger to the public, particularly young children, using the park and causing damage to the park itself. One reason why the crown greens are fenced off.

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Close to the Ridgehill Avenue end of the path it splits with one branch of it running down towards the other entrance on Hollinsend Road.

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Running northwards from the path on the eastern side of the park is the stream. It does dry up in summer but its position is clearly revealed by the line of thicker, greener vegetation which grows along its course. Seen here looking up the park from the path.

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After heavy rain, like that which we had in the week before these pictures were taken (there were floods in the town centre) then the course of the stream becomes obvious.

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The source of the stream seems to be at the very northern end of the park, entering under a makeshift wooden bridge just in front of some houses on Ridgehill Avenue in a corner where the road bends leaving another small green play area.

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This picture shows the source of the stream and its path.

The line of longer green grass across the middle of the picture marks its path.

The left hand extremity of it is its source.

The houses beyond are on Ridgehill Avenue.

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An electricity sub station and a transformer unit are not the ideal things to put in a park, certainly not near a childrens playground area, - but that's what they did in Hollinsend.

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The childrens playground has consisted of, for many years

A set of Juvenille swings

A small slide

A set of swings

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Also added to the park, on the opposite side of the path to the childrens playground is this small picnic area.

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The childrens playground also shows evidence of previous attractions which have been removed (probably for safety reasons).

The areas of patched up ground are the site of a rocking horse and a roundabout.

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These steps at one end of the playground have been there for years and seem to serve no purpose, except for being a falling hazard.

The small area at the top of the steps seemed to be used years ago mainly by young girls to play skipping and hopscotch.

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