Severn Valley Country Park is a

country park A country park is a natural area designated for people to visit and enjoy recreation in a countryside environment. United Kingdom History In the United Kingdom, the term ''country park'' has a specific meaning. There are around 250 designated c ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, located near

Alveley Alveley is a village in the Severn Valley (England), Severn Valley in southeast Shropshire, England, about south-southeast of Bridgnorth. It is in the civil parish of Alveley and Romsley, Shropshire, Romsley. The Office for National Statistics ...

Shropshire Shropshire (; abbreviated SalopAlso used officially as the name of the county from 1974–1980. The demonym for inhabitants of the county "Salopian" derives from this name.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West M ...

, from

Bridgnorth Bridgnorth is a market town and civil parish in Shropshire, England. The River Severn splits it into High Town and Low Town, the upper town on the right bank and the lower on the left bank of the River Severn. The population at the United Kingd ...

, 7 miles from Kidderminster, roughly central in the

Severn Valley The Severn Valley is a rural area of the West Midlands region of England, through which the River Severn runs and the Severn Valley Railway steam heritage line operates, starting at its northernmost point in Bridgnorth, Shropshire and runnin ...

. Originally the site of a huge coal mine, it is now a park consisting of woodland, meadows and riverside banks with views over the

River Severn The River Severn (, ), at long, is the longest river in Great Britain. It is also the river with the most voluminous flow of water by far in all of England and Wales, with an average flow rate of at Apperley, Gloucestershire. It rises in t ...

and a Green Flag Award.

History

The site was a coal mine for over 400 years, with shafts being put in at

Highley Highley is a village and civil parish in the county and district of Shropshire, England. It is located on the west bank of the River Severn and is south east of Bridgnorth. History Highley began as a rural farming community, including an entry ...

in 1870; and the river and then the railway were used to transport the coal. A new shaft was sunk at

in 1935, with production beginning in 1938 and being fully transferred from Highley by 1940.Shropshire History, Alveley Colliery
(retrieved 17 August 2018) Sidings for the colliery on the

Severn Valley Railway The Severn Valley Railway is a standard gauge, standard-gauge heritage railway in Shropshire and Worcestershire, England. The single-track line runs from Bridgnorth to Kidderminster, calling at four intermediate stations and three request stop ...

opened on 30 January 1939, with coal being transferred to the sidings via a ropeway across the river Severn. The mine finally closed as uneconomic in January 1969. Work started to reclaim the site in 1986; the park was officially opened to the public in 1992.

Features

Severn Valley Country Park has many walks around the

visitor's centre A visitor center or centre (see American and British English spelling differences), visitor information center or tourist information centre is a physical location that provides information to tourists. Types A visitor center may be a Civic ce ...

, as well as beside the river, and in the meadows and woodlands. The visitor's centre itself provides information on the park, a café and toilets. There is also a picnic site nearby and a large carpark. There is an additional picnic site near the river and another in a meadow at the top of the woods. Severn Valley Country Park offers parents a wide range of fun activities for kids such as Bird Spotters Packs, Bug Hunting Guides and Butterfly Spotters Packs. Group activities for kids include organised Dinosaur Days, Fossil Hunts, and Pond Dipping Groups. Educational activities for kids include Pond Dipping, Orienteering, Mini-beast Hunts, and River Study events. A lake and bird-hide are located before the car park. The main path runs down to the riverside. The woodland path stretches down to the riverside and is mainly on a boardwalk; it also contains a brook. There is also a walk along the entrance road to a large meadow with a lake and picnic site which joins onto the woodland path. Across the bridleway bridge over the Severn is the Country Park Halt on the Severn Valley Railway which was built in 1996 on the site of the former colliery sidings.

References

External links

Severn Valley Country Park

Severn Valley Country Park

BBC Shropshire

Severn Valley Railway
{{coord, 52.4534, -2.3646, dim:2000_region:GB, display=title Country parks in Shropshire