Brickfields Community Woodland
A brand new woodland in Sutton Manor / Lea Green with a brick and industrial heritage
An Introduction To Brickfields
BRICKFIELDS is a brand new community woodland that's located between Chester Lane, Walkers Lane and Lea Green Road in the Sutton Manor, Lea Green and Sutton Heath districts. Part of the site is adjacent to the former Ibstock Brickworks, which ended production at its Sutton plant at the end of 2008, bringing to an end a lengthy heritage of clay and brick works in the district. Hence the name of the community woodland that's managed by the Forestry Commission and which has cost over £2 million and is developing as a place of beauty and potential wildlife haven.
An artist's impression of the Brickfields woodlands project
As of May 2009 the site, which is equivalent in size to more than 40 football pitches, is close to completion with multi-purpose leisure trails, wildflower meadows and wetland habitats. It's been over three years in the making, with Forestry Commission environmental scientists first assessing the site's suitability as a potential woodland in the Spring of 2006 with soil and water sampling. The land at that time consisted of some neglected woodland, scrub and grassland that was populated in the main by dog walkers and rabbits. In order to expand Brickfields' biodiversity, careful consideration had to be given to the site's suitability to support a new woodland due to its past industrial use which extends beyond brick manufacture and clay extraction.
Take a break on a Brickfields' bench! (contributed Forestry Commission picture)
The History Of The Brickfields Site In Sutton, St.Helens
The new Brickfields Woodland is based around tracts of disused land that in recent times comprised the former Sutton Manor Sewage Works, Sutton Manor Colliery Railway and a number of ex-quarries and landfills including Roughdales Quarry, Buff Quarry, Daisyfield and Red Quarry. The recently completed landfill operations at Cory Lord St.Helens are also being integrated into the scheme.
An 1849 Ordnance Survey map of the area - note reference to Roughdales adjacent to Chester Lane
Surveys of the site which were conducted between 1808 and 1840 described the land as five fields that were part of a tenement associated with Big Lea Green Farm to the north. Two of the field names, 'Mill Hey' and 'Damstead', suggest an association with a mill site, although the location of the mill is uncertain. Another field was named 'Clay Hey', which suggests that clay extraction was or had been taking place in the vicinity.
The nearby Sutton Manor Colliery opened in 1901 and a railway connecting it to the Liverpool to Manchester line soon traversed the south-west corner of the present Brickfields site. The embankments of the railway are all that remains with the pit itself closing in 1991. Like the railway, the Sutton Manor Sewage Works were located in the south-west of the site but they became disused by 1982.
There are few remnants of the site's past still in existence, but this recent sign (pictured above right) does demonstrate why scientific sampling had to take place. Plus the Pendlebury / Sutton Brook weaves its way through the site, and so it was important to investigate whether there were any risks involved in developing the woodlands site.
The Developing Brickfields Woodlands
After receiving the thumbs up from the boffins, the Forestry Commission submitted forty documents to St.Helens Council's planning department in August 2007. The plans included several walking and cycling trails, bridges, nature areas and an eye-catching hill top feature with "active management of habitats" as well as “enhanced recreation provision”.
New access routes were proposed with entrances secured by kissing gates intended to exclude motorbikes. Planning permission was granted in November that year, with work starting in earnest in February 2008 when a major operation began to bring 11,000 tonnes of earth onto the site. This enabled trees to be planted in areas where there was insufficient soil covering and for small hills to be created to give the site a much more natural look. This is illustrated by the picture below that was taken on 15th March '08. Rumours circulating in Sutton Manor that super-sized moles were at work were quickly discounted by the Forestry Commission!
Local Sutton schools and local Sutton Manor and Lea Green residents took part in a series of workshops led by the Forestry Commission and artist, Steve Des Landes to create four new public entrances to give the site a friendlier and more accessible feel. The groups produced 40 different designs for the new entrances to reflect the industrial history. The designs were then turned into countryside–style kissing gates built with glass effect bricks made out of a resin brick format provided by Ibstock brickworks. This was prior to the Chester Lane's plant's unfortunate closure in December 2008 as a result of the recession affecting new house building and consequently diminishing demand for bricks. Ibstock, however, have 19 operational brick factories nationwide and have remained committed to the project.
Sculptured stones in the centre of the Brickfields site
The North West Development Agency have providing £2.1 million of regeneration funding to transform the site, with cash also coming Biffaward, a multi-million pound environment fund managed by the Royal Society of Wildlife Trusts. An additional £302,976 has been awarded through the Integrated Countryside and Environment Plan, delivered by Mersey Forest. St Helens Council and Groundwork have also been involved in the project which includes a 20 year management plan, so Sutton folk can be confident that this fabulous new woodland will be kept in top condition and won't be spoiled by the vandals and yobs.
Via the aptly-named Walkers Lane, Brickfields connects to the King George V playing fields (aka Sutton Manor Park) and then over Jubits Lane to Sutton Manor Woodland with its new Dream statue and makes for a very pleasant walk or cycle. Brickfields is part of the Newlands land regeneration programme, and forms part of the Mersey Forest in St.Helens which has seen our town transformed over the past ten years with the planting of over 2 million trees so far.
The last word on Brickfields goes to Bob Baker of Ibstock who sums up the project's concept:
The brick theme is being used in the site name to remind everyone of the industrial heritage of the area, including the present brickworks next door. The original fields were worked for clays and are now being returned to a green use - amenity woodland for the recreation and benefit of the local community. 
Further Brickfields Photographs and Information to follow (26/5/2009)
Take a cycle ride or have a jog in Brickfields (contributed Forestry Commission picture)
Header picture: The Brickfields site photographed on a snowy day in March 2006 prior to the start of the new community woodland development
Brickfields Photo-Album | Location Information
Sutton Beauty & Heritage strives for factual accuracy at all times. Please do also contact me if you believe there are any inaccuracies or if you have any further information or photographs that can be used. Thank you!
