Parks and open spaces
Introduction
We are responsible for the provision, management and maintenance of over 720 hectares of public parks and green spaces, including:
- Formal parks and open spaces
- Bowling greens
- Tennis courts
- Outdoor gym equipment
- Allotments
- Children's play areas
- Skate parks
- Ball courts
- Country parks
- Local nature reserves
- Greenways
- Playing fields
- Woodlands
- Water bodies.
Parks management staff are based at Hardshaw Brook Depot, Parr Street, St Helens, Merseyside, WA9 1JR.
The Ranger service operates from four main parks:
- Victoria Park, City Road, Windle
- Mesnes Park, Park Road North, Newton-le-Willows
- Sankey Valley Country Park, Blackbrook Road, Blackbrook
- Taylor Park, Grosvenor Road, West Park
Parks maintenance
We are responsible for the general management of operations and day-to-day maintenance of various parks, playing fields and gardens across St Helens, and also provide play equipment inspections and maintenance.
Mobile gardening teams regularly visit sites to ensure that the defined standards are maintained.
The gardening staff ensure that the quality and range of horticultural features are all maintained appropriately and standards of cleanliness and health & safety are achieved, for example:
- grass areas
- litter collection
- flower and shrub beds
- hedges
- playgrounds
- outdoor sports facilities
- trees
All council-owned land is maintained on:
- highway verges
- public open spaces
- school grounds
- parks
- town centres
- cemeteries and crematoriums
We do not cut grass that is privately owned, or on properties/estates owned by bodies other than the council.
To report any issue with maintenance in any of the areas above, please contact us.
Contact us
By phone: St Helens Borough Council Contact Centre - 01744 676789
By post: Contact Centre, Wesley House, Corporation Street, St Helens, WA10 1HF
Parks quality standard - Green Flag Award
We are committed to improving the standard of our parks and open spaces.
The Green Flag Award is the national standard for parks and green spaces in England and Wales. The award scheme began in 1996 as a means of recognising and rewarding the best green spaces in the country. It was also seen as a way of encouraging others to achieve the same high environmental standards, creating a benchmark of excellence in recreational green areas. To achieve Green Heritage Site Accreditation, winners have to understand and take action to conserve the heritage value of their site. They also need to help people to understand and enjoy its unique history, from nationally important parks to local green spaces that help tell the story of places and communities.
In 2023, Victoria Park, Windle was awarded Green Flag status for the ninth consecutive time, in recognition for its quality provision of the park.
The Green Flag Award scheme is managed by a consortium consisting of Keep Britain Tidy, BTCV and GreenSpace. The Green Flag Award team is now based at the Keep Britain Tidy offices at Elizabeth House, The Pier, Wigan, WN3 4EX. The scheme is celebrating as 2,216 parks - the largest number since the scheme began, are proudly preparing to raise their flags.
Read more about the Green Flag Award.