Funding the Park and Landownership (2000)

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ORGANISING THE FUNDING Funding has been organised through the Heeley Development Trust, which was set up by a group of local people. This group got together in the early 1990s to raise the money to develop the Park and set itself up as the original Steering Committee. They became a company limited by guarantee in December 96 and a registered charity in 1997.	FUNDING TAKES 2 FORMS: 'Revenue' and 'Capital' REVENUE CAPITAL Funding covers: staff costs and money for events, etc. the works - building, planting, etc. Sources so far: SRB £30,000 ERDF £30,000 SRB £160,000 ERDF £180,000 English Partnerships £168,000 SRB = Single Regeneration Budget/City Challenge ERDF = European Regional Development Fund In addition there were smaller grants totalling £1,500 (e.g. from Shell Better Britain). 'Destination Sheffield' has also put money into developing art works in the Park (the willow dome and its mosaic).
LAND OWNERSHIP The land used to belong to Sheffield City Council's Housing Department (having been acquired and cleared in the 1960s and 1970s as the site of a new road). It has been leased to the Heeley Development Trust at a peppercorn rent (no cost) - for 120 years! (However, substantial fees were claimed from the Heeley Development Trust by the legal, estates and engineering departments of the City Council to cover their costs in making over the land - so free is not really free! - despite the fact that the City has made a substantial saving by no longer having to fund the costs associated with maintaining such a substantial area of grassland). The Trust is not looking to take on more land, but will continue to help improve other open spaces in the area such as the Tillotson Play area and the Lowfield Open Space.
FUTURE COSTS CAPITAL COSTS Phase 3 of the building of the Park started in March 2000 near Goodwin Road and Albert Road. After this the major capital phases will have finished. We will still be looking for money in the future to add or replace play equipment, put in more benches, plant more bulbs etc. A bid to the Sports Lottery Fund is being considered to help improve sports facilities over the whole area including building a couple of new, fenced in, ball-games areas suitable for everything from to basket ball to football. We have already applied to the F.A. with Heeley Boys Football Club and Anns Road School asking for money to improve the land above the school. We shall be applying for more to allow us to maximise the use of the land by improving drainage and adding floodlights in the school playground. Such improvements will allow it to be hired out in the evenings, raising money to be put back into improving sports facilities there. A small golf-driving net has been suggested for one of the open spaces in this area.	REVENUE COSTS ERDF and SRB funding is in place for the next two to three years. Part of the work we will do over this time is to build up a Landscape Maintenance Team . It is intended that this team will also take on private work to cover part at least of the cost of maintaining the park. To help us cover the maintenance costs we have applied to the Environmental Action Fund (unsuccessful), Enventure (a Landfill Tax funded Trust - decision pending) and the Sheffield Employment Bond (successful). An application to the New Opportunities Fund (NOF) is pending. We have a number of arts projects underway or planned, including building the "White Horse of Heeley", completed in April 2000, a community memorial to "Barney" the Heeley City Farm Horse that died in a fire at the farm in 1999. For each art project we have to apply for separate funding from various Trust Funds.

THE ORIGINAL INTENTIONS IN RELATION TO ORGANISING THE FUNDING (1996)

Capital costs Initially it was envisaged that the capital costs of the Millennium Park project would be about £2 million. The Heeley Development Trust is looking at becoming VAT registered.	Revenue costs It was envisaged that capital income from the Millennium Fund would be phased in from mid 1996 to 1999, with the majority of capital spending taking place from April 1997 to March 1999. At the completion of the capital work at the end of 1999 it was recognised that some landscape maintenance work maintaining newly planted trees, establishing mowing regimes in meadows etc. would be required. On completion of the construction phase of the park it was intended to employ a Park Ranger to do these and other maintenance, promotion and development tasks. Funding was to be requested from the Sheffield Single Regeneration Budget Round 2 ( to last until March 2003). The Heeley Development Trust was to continue to provide management and capacity building support for the Heeley Millennium Park after the first phase creating the structure of the park had been implemented. Local fundraising was planned to be carried out by the Heeley Development Trust to make up the balance of the revenue funding. There was to be no substantial public appeal. The Millennium Fund was to be asked to contribute £10,000 per annum for 3 years to these costs. Employment of Park Ranger The annual costs of employing a full time Park Ranger were expected to be: Salary (incl. PAYE & Nl): £18.000 Running and equipment costs (office, equipment, training, admin. etc.): £20,000 There were to be no charges for visitors.   As can be seen from the section on Future costs, changes have been made from the original funding plans.
ORIGINAL LAND OWNERSHIP Land, property and assets There were no buildings on the 20 acres of land (including satellite sites) proposed for the Heeley Millennium Park. Land was the only asset. The land in the proposed Heeley Millennium Park was owned by the Land and Planning Committee, Leisure Services Committee and Housing Services Committee of Sheffield City Council and in addition H Ponsford Ltd owned a part. All City Council Departments were involved in the consultations about the project and supported the use of their land for this purpose. Adrian Ponsford was also fully supportive of the Heeley Millennium Park. The Heeley Millennium Park was supported by the then leader of the Council - Councillor Mike Bower and by John Lambert -Secretary of the City Liaison Group. All the land proposed to form the Heeley Millennium Park was described as 'green, open space' in the Sheffield Unitary Development Plan (UDP) so that the development of the Heeley Millennium Park supported the intentions of the UDP. The roads within the Heeley Millennium Park were part of the Safe Roads Project for Heeley, Meersbrook and Norton, so funds could be made available from Sheffield City Council to carry out improvements on roads, enhanced road safety, cycle routes, improved traffic flow for buses etc. Arrangements were, therefore, made by the Heeley Development Trust to lease the land from Sheffield City Council for a 'nominal' rent.
Contractual commitments No contractual commitments have been entered into.	Management and ownership of the Heeley Millennium Park From the beginning it was intended that the Heeley Development Trust would become the Managing Agency for the Heeley Millennium Park. The Heeley Development Trust was registered as a Charitable Trust and a 'not for profit' company. There were to be no 'profits', all available finance being used to maintain, improve and develop the existing provision. No endowment fund was to be established. The land was to be leased from Sheffield City Council for a nominal rent for 120 years.

Funding

Organising the funding

Land ownership

Future costs

Original intentions

Original land ownership

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Funding

Organising the funding

Land ownership

Future costs

Original intentions

Original land ownership

Return to Top

Funding

Organising the funding

Land ownership

Future costs

Original intentions

Original land ownership

Return to Top

Funding

Organising the funding

Land ownership

Future costs

Original intentions

Original land ownership

Return to Top

Funding

Organising the funding

Land ownership

Future costs

Original intentions

Original land ownership

Return to Top

Funding

Organising the funding

Land ownership

Future costs

Original intentions

Original land ownership

Return to Top