Rivelin Valley Park is a public recreation area in the

Rivelin Valley The River Rivelin is a river in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. It rises on the Hallam moors, in north west Sheffield, and joins the River Loxley (at Malin Bridge). The Rivelin Valley, through which the river flows, is a long woodland vall ...

area of

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, situated south of Leeds and east of Manchester. The city is the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire and some of its so ...

, England. The facilities consist of a

playground A playground, playpark, or play area is a place designed to provide an environment for children that facilitates play, typically outdoors. While a playground is usually designed for children, some are designed for other age groups, or people wi ...

and a small

water park A water park (also waterpark, water world, or aquapark) is an amusement park that features water play areas such as swimming pools, water slides, splash pads, water playgrounds, and lazy rivers, as well as areas for floating, bathing, swimming ...

as well as a

café A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café (), is an establishment that serves various types of coffee, espresso, latte, americano and cappuccino, among other hot beverages. Many coffeehouses in West Asia offer ''shisha'' (actually called ''nargi ...

. The park is situated on the Rivelin Valley Nature Trail, which is maintained by volunteers from the Rivelin Valley Conservation Group.Rivelin Valley Conservation Group
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History

Recreation facilities in the area of Rivelin Valley Park date back to 1909 when the

Corporation A corporation or body corporate is an individual or a group of people, such as an association or company, that has been authorized by the State (polity), state to act as a single entity (a legal entity recognized by private and public law as ...

converted the New Dam into an open air swimming pool. The New Dam had been constructed in 1853 as a supplementary water supply to Spooner mill which made

scythe A scythe (, rhyming with ''writhe'') is an agriculture, agricultural hand-tool for mowing grass or Harvest, harvesting Crop, crops. It was historically used to cut down or reaping, reap edible grain, grains before they underwent the process of ...

s and

cutlery Cutlery (also referred to as silverware, flatware, or tableware) includes any hand implement used in preparing, serving, and especially eating food in Western culture. A person who makes or sells cutlery is called a cutler. While most cutlers ...

. The swimming pool was opened on 18 September 1909 for men and boys, although it is recorded that women were allowed to use the facility. The water in the pool was always very cold because of low sunlight due to it being set low in the valley, however 19,098 bathers used the pool in 1910. The pool closed in the 1930s when the large wooden hut used as changing facilities burned down.''"Sheffield Parks And Gardens"'', Douglas Hindmarch, Tempus Publishing, , Pages 106 & 107 Gives historical details. New facilities were built for the park in the early 1950s on the site of the Spooner’s wheel, which dated from the late 18th century. The mill buildings were demolished and the small reservoir filled in, and were replaced by the children’s playground and café. At the same time paddling pools were constructed between Rivelin Valley Road and the

River Rivelin The River Rivelin is a river in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. It rises on the Hallam moors, in north west Sheffield, and joins the River Loxley (at Malin Bridge). The Rivelin Valley, through which the river flows, is a long woodland vall ...

. The river had always been used as an unofficial play area by children and the new pools which were constructed as part of the

Festival of Britain The Festival of Britain was a national exhibition and fair that reached millions of visitors throughout the United Kingdom in the summer of 1951. Labour Party cabinet member Herbert Morrison was the prime mover; in 1947 he started with the ...

celebrations were inspired by the success of the paddling pools at

Millhouses Park Millhouses Park is a public urban park located in the Millhouses neighbourhood in south of Sheffield, England. It is a park stretching approximately along the floor of the valley of the River Sheaf, sandwiched between Abbeydale Road South (A6 ...

. The construction of the pools called for the River Rivelin to be diverted by the use of a

cofferdam A cofferdam is an enclosure built within a body of water to allow the enclosed area to be pumped out or drained. This pumping creates a dry working environment so that the work can be carried out safely. Cofferdams are commonly used for constru ...

and

puddling A puddle is a small accumulation of liquid on a surface. Puddle or Puddles may also refer to: * Puddle, Cornwall, hamlet in England * ''Puddle'' (video game) * Puddle (M. C. Escher), a woodcut by M. C. Escher * Weld puddle, a crucial part of th ...

. The pools were opened by the Lord Mayor Alderman T.W. Bridgland, J.P on 27 July 1951. Yorkshire Film Archive
Gives details of construction work.''"Walking The Rivelin"'', Keith Kendall (Rivelin Valley Conservation Group, No ISBN, Pages 13 & 14 Gives historical details.

Present day

The paddling pools were completely revamped and renamed as the Rivelin Valley Splash in 2013 after consultation with the local population. Sheffield Star Newspaper - Park play area revamp backed
Details public consultation. The changes include a new water filter system, three large splash pads with anti-slip surfacing, a variety of waterplay equipment, such as jets, sprinklers, bucket drops and water tables and ramped access with handrails into the paddling pool.
Details new facilities. Some of the funding for the new facilities has come from the Aiming High for Disabled Children programme and this has ensured full disabled facilities. The new pools were opened on Saturday 13 July 2013. Sheffield Telegraph Newspaper - Kids making a splash as play area reopens
Details reopening of pools. The playground and toilets were also upgraded in 2012 and 2013 respectively and the café continues to offer meals and refreshments on a daily basis.

References

{{Parks and Woodlands in Sheffield Parks in Sheffield