A country park advocating biodiversity and wildlife is being hailed the hidden gem of the borough and members of the community are urged to to pay it a visit.

Lyme & Wood Country Park, located between Earlestown and Haydock, consists of 274 acres with 180,000 trees planted.

The country park was originally two coal mines, and their legacy remains as both Wood Pit Colliery and Lyme Colliery mines were the inspiration for the park’s name.

The landfill was completed in 2019 and since then, volunteers have been contributing to the site’s developments to achieve a biodiversity park for a greener area. 

Outdoor activities are offered to members of the community, including guided walks, litter picking, and planting. St Helens Star: Volunteers at Lyme & Wood Country Park Volunteers at Lyme & Wood Country Park The park also includes a 3-acred nursery that is shared with other organisations from the area. 

Catherine Donnellan, secretary of Lyme & Wood Country Park, said: “We believe it’s the 2nd biggest park in Merseyside, beside Croxteth, and it really is a hidden jewel in our crown- not many people know about it.

“Because we’re such a built-up area, it’s just so amazing to have all this green space and it’s very much about biodiversity and the tree planting.”

The park enthusiast also emphasised the importance of getting the community involved as well as the positive benefits it has on people’s physical and mental health.

The country park’s social media engagement has significantly increased since the Covid-19 pandemic, with a 1,700 surge in followers.

Catherine believes that the rise in followers and park attendees is due to people appreciating the benefits of outdoors after being in lockdown.

“After covid, everyone wanted to get out into the fresh air and wanted to walk, so we said, ‘come to the park, there’s loads of room to walk and you won’t be near people’ and now we’ve got well over 2,000 followers. It’s absolutely great for mental health.”

St Helens Star: Forest at Lyme & Wood Country Park Forest at Lyme & Wood Country Park

As well as advocating the health benefits of visiting the park, the secretary of Lyme & Wood also emphasised that the former coal mine site is there for the community.

“We see ourselves as the custodians of the park, so we look after the park for the community and to carry it on to the young people to take over when we’re not there.

“Whether you’re 1 or 91, this park is for all of us- for everyone, and that is our real big push- it’s for the community.”

The park is involved with the Duke of Edinburgh awards and have also received donations from organisations including Tesco.

Lyme & Wood are also looking to involve local businesses in their eco project and are hoping to expand their portfolio onto a website.