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Poolsbrook Country
Park was once the site of the former Ireland Colliery, but has been
transformed from dereliction into a tremendous country park and
amenities area.
The Park
was developed by Derbyshire
County Council and Chesterfield Borough Council on the site of the
former Ireland Colliery. This 180 acre park boasts 85 acres of woodland 42
acres of grassland and 23 acres of green water.
The site boasts a Visitor Centre that houses the Ranger base, public toilets, community
meeting rooms, a base for the Walk This Way Project and a
Community Cafe. Also in the park are a Children's Adventure Play
area, picnic sites, sledging slopes, four miles of trails of cycling,
horse riding and walking, an outdoor events arena and lakes for angling.
The park has become important for wildlife and has been designed to
encourage wildlife diversity. Ornithologists are particularly pleased at
the impressive range of birds attracted. These include Great Crested
Grebe, Cormorants, Mute Swans, Canada Geese, Pink Footed Geese,
Wheatears, Yellow Wagtails and even a Red Throated Pipit and Siberian
Chiffchaffs have been spotted.
Unfortunately the park proved attractive to groups of people wishing to
camp there illegally but measures were taken to prevent this and enable
the park to be enjoyed by an increasing number of users. More is planned
including CCTV and better lighting, signage.
PARK AMENITIES
Community Cafe
The Community Cafe has been up and running since July 2006 at the Park
and is now looking for volunteers, but to ensure the project is a
success volunteers are required to help run the cafe in the centre. We
are looking for volunteers who can commit to a minimum of one Saturday
or one Sunday per month. If you are interested in volunteering for the
cafe call John on 01246 473313.
The cafe is doing well but would be able to open more often if there
were more volunteers. Anyone who could spare a few hours would be made
welcome - just pop into the cafe any weekend and speak to one of the
volunteers. The Cafe is Open Saturdays and Sundays and Bank Holidays -
All year Round.
Caravan Park
This site incorporates a range of
sustainable resource and energy-saving features and should be heralded
as a blueprint for caravan sites of the future. Pools Brook opened on
the 14 March 2008 and is to be their flagship Eco site. There will
be 86 pitches and it has top-class amenities. New technologies are to be
trialled at the Pools Brook Country Park site which if proved successful
will be used elsewhere.
Solar heating panels and photo-voltaic cells on the roofs of the
reception office and toilet block, and the power of the sun will be
harnessed to pre-heat water used in the sites showers and washbasins.
There will be a system to collect the 'grey water' to be recycled to
flush the toilets. There is also to be a wind turbine to further boost
the electricity generated by the photo-voltaic cells, and as you would
expect low energy light bulbs will be used on the hook-up bollards. But
the one thing you wont be able to see is the heat recovery system as it
is all buried underground with the exception of a small pump. Around
1100 meters of pipe filled with brine is used to pick up enough warmth
to provide underfloor heating in the toilet block during the daytime. In
the middle of the night the energy is diverted to help boost the hot
water storage. A further 500 metres of pipework provides a similar
facility for the reception office.
CONSERVATION
The park had a rare bird visitor in May when a ringed necked duck was
spotted. This is a first for Pools Brook Country Park.
The two nest boxes that survived after the other three were destroyed
have both had nests. One has been occupied by blue tits and the other
great tits, which have both fledged.
It is hoped to purchase a variety of bird boxes for different birds.
These include a tree sparrow, kestrel and an owl box, with the money
donated by members of the public. These will be put up in the park ready
for the breeding season next year.
FRIENDS OF POOLSBROOK COUNTRY PARK
Anyone interested is invited to attend the Friends of Pools Brook
Country Park's are very welcome to attend the volunteer meetings.
Contact us for more details
BIRD BOX UPDATE
Thanks to all our customers who
have supported the bird box fund by purchasing books, duck food, bird
seed and bird boxes.
We have now reached our target and purchased a bird box with a camera
installed.
We are continuing to sell the duck food etc and are now raising funds to
purchase a new feeding station at the front of the building for the
birds. Your continued support is welcome and appreciated.
We have success with the birdbox with the camera installed.
A blue tit has made a nest on Sunday 27th April and 1 egg had been laid
on that particular day. Members of the public are welcome to come and
see it on the television either in the foyer where duck food is sold or
in the cafe when Mark the Wildlife Man is there.
Bird boxes and swan
feed are now on
sale on Sundays in
the Community Cafe
