Public to be asked views about move to develop museum park

Following a successful first stage bid by Bradford Council, work is underway for the next stage of the Heritage Lottery Fund (Parks for People Programme) for Cliffe Castle Park at Keighley.

The council wants to use the funding, which could be as much as £3.3m, to restore the most significant landscape features, improve links between the house and the grounds and run a programme of activities and events to increase the educational value of the park.

A public consultation event will be held in the café at Cliffe Castle between 1pm and 4pm next Saturday, where the project’s plans will be on display.

Coun Andrew Thornton, Bradford Council’s executive member for environment and sport, said: “This is the second public consultation by Bradford Council because we are determined that the public will have as much opportunity as possible to influence the project.

“Coupled with the restoration of the Cliffe Castle Museum building, the redevelopment of the park would be great for the people of Keighley and a tremendous asset for them and everyone across the district. We hope people will attend the public consultation to make their views count.”

The gardens of Cliffe Castle were created by wealthy mill owner Henry Isaac Butterfield in the 1870s.

It is home to many attractive historical features including a series of cascading terraces, two ornamental fountains, pond, rockeries, a grotto, an isolated tower and an ancient highway called Dark Lane.

Anyone wanting to find out more about the bid can log on to the website www.cliffecastlepark.org.uk.