Burrs Country Park

The park covers an area once housing the mill complex of the Burr and Higher Woodhill cotton mills.[1] The old mill remains were in the main removed from the site with certain features of interest left in situ, these include the Burrs Mill chimney, the mill floor and water wheel pit. The park also contains the feeder canal for Elton Reservoir, which is the source of water for the Manchester Bolton & Bury Canal. The site is on the Irwell Sculpture Trail and has three sculptures, 'Waterwheel' by David Kemp, 'Stone Cycle' by Julie Edwards and 'Picnic Area' by David Fryer.[2] The site is also home to the Bury Agricultural Society Show Ground, which moved here in 2001 following the loss of the Bury Show Ground. Bury MBC have a limited Countryside Warden service office located in a mill old cottage on Stock Street. It has been awarded Green Flag accreditation for 2007/08.[3] and a "Much Loved" award as part of Fields in Trust's UK's Best Park competition.

The site has leisure activities including[4]

• The Sunnywood Project www.thesunnywoodproject.co.uk
• The Irwell Sculpture Trail runs through the park
• The East Lancashire Railway has a Halt in the park
• Outdoor pursuits (walking and orienteering trails)
• Canoeing (training pool and slalom course). The long established Bury Canoe Club is based at the Burrs.[5]
• Playground
• Industrial archaeology - interpretation boards explain the history of the mills and cottages
• Picnic tables
• The Lamppost Café
• The Brown Cow public house is also housed in the country park
• Caravanning - The Caravan and motorhome Club has recently opened a purpose built camping and caravan site.[6]
• Fishing by licence only
• Birdwatching - resident herons, dippers and kingfishers
• Cycling (lies on the National Cycle Route 6)[7]
• Nature study (woodland, wetland and open space habitats)
• Friends of Burrs : The Friends of Burrs group is a collection of local residents and park users who are passionate about Burrs Country Park. The group carries out fundraising and practical park improvement projects including a gardening club, balsam bashing and litter picking.

The park lies on several bus routes from Bury town centre. There is a railway station on the East Lancashire Railway nearby to the park which was opened on January 1, 2017 [8] and since January 2017, has seen regular passenger services. The park is easily accessible by car or bicycle from Bury Bridge on the A58 and by footpaths leading from the suburbs of Brandlesholme, to the west, and Walmersley, Seedfield and Limefield to the east.

Bury MBC provide several guides to the area including the Irwell Sculpture Trail, wildlife, fishing and industrial heritage. These are available from Bury MBC at the site or can be downloaded at the Bury MBC website.[9]