Country Parks for the Future is a 10+ year delivery plan to change the way communities use their parks and greenspaces, from leisure use to active involvement delivering improvements in health, wellbeing, and social outcomes as part of our Programme of Work and supports both Sustainable Futures and Transforming Places.

In 2019, masterplans for both Palacerigg and Strathclyde Country Parks were developed following extensive community and stakeholder consultation, providing a strategic forward plan for the parks development.

Drumpellier already had a strategic plan under the Seven Lochs Wetland Park Partnership and continues to be developed under this regional approach.

Delivery is now being taken forward under four key themes:

• Active Parks
• Creative Parks
• Sustainable Parks
• Playful Landscapes

The masterplanning process took place just before Covid-19 dramatically changed communities lives and behaviours. The pandemic highlighted the importance of greenspace for health and wellbeing and as a significant health resource.

Our communities value and use greenspaces more than ever and we see increased interest in actively shaping a new future for our Country Park resource. We are actively revisiting the proposals to review their relevance to current times as we establish and implement a delivery plan.

In developing Strathclyde Country Park as a Country Park for the Future, the priority is to make the park a major visitor attraction and a hub for health and wellbeing for the whole area.

This video sets out the aspirations within the Strathclyde Country Park Masterplan which was approved by council committee in 2020 following community engagement in 2019. The Masterplan sets out a series of ambitious proposals for the next 10 years under five key themes which contribute to this goal.

Built as a space for recreation and sports the park has always had a sense of being an energetic place. The vision is to continue to offer sporting opportunities but to extend them to reach wider audiences and provide health and wellbeing opportunities for local communities.

Already developed at the north of the park the Bellshill Gateway Cycle Park project created a series of outdoor facilities for cycling and wheeled sports disciplines.

Work is now underway for the low-carbon redevelopment of the Watersports Centre to provide accommodation for local schools and wellbeing activity, using renewable technology to create a near net-zero building.

The forest and lochside walks provide great opportunities for local communities to explore the natural wonders within the park. Connections along the South Calder river have been improved and we will look for ways to work in partnership with public transport and other key walking and cycling paths as part of our Active Travel Strategy

Access improvements will ensure the park is accessible to as many individuals and user groups as possible, encouraging outdoor activities, health and wellbeing.

One of the key objectives of the Masterplan is to tell the story of its history, heritage and culture. The park will embrace development in digital technologies, using website and social media platforms, as well as exploring new 3D visualisation technology and expanded public wifi to unlock the secrets of the park to all.

Walking routes will allow visitors to explore the different artifacts throughout the landscape. Interpretation will also be used to highlight the variety of nature that lives in the park, this information may be hosted indoors in new facilities as well as being outdoors and online.

We are committed to integrating art with the design of all future projects. These alongside permanent and temporary sculpture commissions will create a unique art attraction, linked to new and existing culture and heritage activities in the area.

Strathclyde Park is being developed for the benefit of the communities that surround it and everything being developed will be with the people who live, work and play in the park in mind.

These changes will not all happen overnight, however the process has already begun and over the coming years will transform the park into a year-round destination for events, sport, arts, recreation, and health and wellbeing opportunities.

Palacerigg Country Park is a hidden gem that will be opened up to its local community with its heritage assets developed as a unique regional destination.

The 2019 Masterplan for Palacerigg Country Park highlighted three community priorities for the improvement; Access, Play and Community. To develop the Masterplan concepts further a Playful Landscape Plan was co-designed with the community in 2022/23.

Since this time we have already improved paths within the park, upgraded and expanded the range of equipment in the play areas, and created a playful Hidden Creatures Trail for families.

The signing of a lease with Palacerigg Community Trust in October 2024 sees the start of a new era for the park, as major facilities within the park come under community ownership for the first time.

At Drumpellier Country Park, the council is a key partner in the Seven Lochs Wetland Partnership, which agreed a masterplan and was awarded heritage lottery funding in 2016.

The Seven Lochs project aims to create a new wetland park of national significance. The project has already delivered a new visitor gateway, including the crannog-themed play area, and restored habitats with new and improved trails and peatland restoration.