Manchester's park in the skies re-opens in just 10 days - and there’s a major change coming to make it easier to visit.
The Castlefield Viaduct, run by the National Trust, opened last July for visitors to book a free tour around the space. The tours were introduced due to weight limit concerns on the Victorian structure, which used to carry trains to Great Northern Warehouse before its closure in 1969.
After a popular opening four months of the £1.8m park, which is opening on a one-year trial basis, bosses have confirmed that visitors will not need to pre-book from its re-opening on February 18. Visitors will be able to turn up at the Viaduct between 1pm onwards ‘to explore it at their own pace’.
READ MORE: Best free things to do in Manchester in 2023
"By introducing a new way for visitors to explore the viaduct at their own leisure, we hope that even more people will benefit from this green space in the heart of Manchester and support us in shaping its future,” Rebecca Alexander, visitor operations & experience manager, said. “The feedback we gathered in the first four months of being open to the public revealed that virtually all our visitors would like to see the viaduct become a permanent feature of Manchester.
"Our task now is to raise the funds to make this a reality for the people of Manchester. This is something we simply can’t do alone, and we need people to support our work through donating, sponsoring and getting involved.”
There are two new community gardens at the Viaduct, replacing installations from the Science and Industry Museum and Urban Wilderness. They have been put together by Hulme Community Garden Centre and Sow The City.
The Hulme garden is an urban forest garden to inspire viaduct visitors to create ‘layered’ planting. The canopy consists of dwarf family fruit trees; a shrub layer of blackcurrant and cranberry; kiwi, hop, and nasturtium climbers; an understorey of edible herbaceous perennials such as rhubarb, globe artichoke and strawberry, plus a selection of self-seeding biennials and annuals.
“Our mini forest garden demonstrates how visitors to the viaduct can re-connect with nature on their doorstep whilst growing nutritious additions to their diet for improved health and well-being,” said Kath Gavin, who designed the garden.
The Sow The City garden sees the viaduct welcome its first pond to the space, which is designed to help visitors build a connection between themselves and nature. It also features wildlife habitats and bee-friendly planting.
“There is a renaissance happening right now in how we understand the relationship between nature and humans,” explained Jon Ross. “We’ve designed a garden on Castlefield Viaduct with the latest research in mind to help thousands of visitors get their nature fix right in the middle of Manchester.”
Entry onto the structure will remain free when it reopens to the public. The aforementioned walk-up slot is from 1pm onwards, but the booking system will remain in place for guided walk visits between 11.00am to 12.30pm.
The National Trust also says there are also plans to host events throughout the spring and summer, including new family tours both on and off the viaduct, yoga, planting events, lunch-hour talks on weekdays and community-led plays.
Read next:
- The Rolls-Royce of pies and the warmest welcome at the UK's best pub, just an hour from Manchester
The plans for a Deep South-inspired 'dive bar' in the Northern Quarter
- Cheap as chips skewers, bullfrogs and the best sweet and sour ever at the Chinatown icon with special 'blue menu'
- The 1975’s Matty Healy orders Gallagher brothers to ‘grow up’ and ‘get back together’
- The restaurants and bars opening in Manchester this February
