“St Johns Sensory & Heritage Gardens”

Introduction and Background

St. Johns, Penistone, is built on foundations laid down at the time of the Norman Conquest, and there remains evidence of earlier buildings in the present structure. The Churchyard was a site for burials for many centuries, and although no longer used as such now, it remains an important site at the centre on the Town.

In its present state, St Johns is a monument of architectural merit and significance, and is a Grade 1 Listed Building. It is a central feature of the community of Penistone, dominating the surrounding countryside and imposing its character on the ancient township.

Church and Community have developed hand in hand over many centuries, with St Johns providing rites of passage for countless inhabitants. Memorials, inside and outside the church buildings have become a part of the living and developing heritage of the Town and the parish, the gardens are seen as a continuation of this function, linking Town, Church and Community in the spaces they each use.

The “Sensory & Heritage Gardens Project” seeks to build on the role St Johns seeks to provide of being at “the heart of the community”. In a very real sense the gardens are hoped to become a much loved and used green space in the centre of the Town by residents and visitors alike, providing a quiet space for reflection, alongside a mixture of planted and build environments that both stimulate the senses, and highlight aspects of local heritage.

The project is a partnership between St John the Baptist Church (Penistone) and Penistone & District Community Partnership.

The Current Situation

Much of the lower east end of the Churchyard is overgrown and unmanaged, many of the older gravestones are not really accessible to view due the overgrown nature of the site. There is a “permissive” path through the graveyard linking Shrewsbury Road and Church Street, this is well used by the public, as it is allows access from the Town Hall and Paramount Cinema to the Community Centre. The path itself is “dull” made from concrete slabs and providing no interest to the site at all.

The area has a number of mature trees, predominantly horse chestnut and limes, these provide a lot of leaf cover and provide home to a noisy and well established “rookery”.

Proposals for “Sensory & Heritage Gardens Project”

The project will create an accessible garden area in the centre of the Town. It is in easy reach of a car park, and as such will be highly suitable for people with mobility problems. We aim to make the garden full of "sensory" sensations, so plants, structures and signs will all be selected to provide stimuli to sight, sound, and touch.

In addition to the “sensory” element of the gardens, we are also looking to create a genuine “heritage” aspect to the gardens. The Church itself is an important historical building in the Town, and the gardens provide an excellent opportunity to develop a “heritage” site in the Town Centre. As such planting and design elements will take account of local social and environmental heritage.

The time scale for the completion of the project is clearly determined by the ability of the project to achieve necessary funding. It is hoped that if successful, initial work could start by early 2006, and be completed by August 1^st (Yorkshire Day Celebrations) 2006.

It is envisaged that the gardens will be a phased build, this is for a number of largely pragmatic reasons:

a) The overall size of the project means that a phased build is more manageable for those involved in its delivery

b) The cost of the project means that raising the full amount necessary could take some time, and therefore delay the start

c) The project can be split into logical “phases” with relative ease

d) A phased project will enable plans to be improved and amended as necessary to take advantage of new ideas emerging from an actively engaged community

The initial concept design was undertaken by Weddle Landscape Design of Sheffield, who have been responsible for a number of prestige projects including the Winter Gardens in Sheffield city centre. The design was based around initial ideas emerging from community consultation. The plans have received public support and approval from local residents and Diocese, planning permission has been sought.

Shrewsbury Road Entrance, Weddle Concept Drawing. 2005.
	Towards Church Street, Weddle Concept Drawing 2005.

In the “first build phase” of the project we intend to carry out the following work:

a) Relaying of “permissive path” using traditional “York Stone” paving.

b) Building of two walled seating areas near Shrewsbury Road entrance.

c) Creation of “Memorial Spiral” at Shrewsbury Road entrance.

d) Positioning and planting of four “raised beds” along the pathway.

e) Design of ten “Heritage Millstone Lights” with significant dates inscribed.

The “Memorial Spiral” will be dedicated to a local historical figure (Nicholas Saunderson 1682-1739 “The Blind Professor”).

The “Heritage Millstone Lights” will be positioned along the path and will be inscribed with significant dates in the history of Penistone and its surrounding parish, these will be “chosen” through public events where suggestions for inclusion will be presented and discussed and these might include:

o 1086 “Pengeston” mentioned in Domesday Book

o 1120 Penistone made an independent Parish

o 1392 Penistone Grammar School founded

o 1500 St John the Baptist church completed

o 1682 Nicholas Saunderson “The Blind Professor” was born at Thurlstone

o 1699 Penistone “Thursday” Market established

o 1763 Penistone “Cloth Hall” built

o 1850 Penistone 29 arch viaduct completed after 5 years of building

o 1904 St John the Baptist Church restored

o 1913 Carnegie Free Library built

o 1914 Penistone Town all built

The project will not cause disturbance to any of the graves, nor are there any plans to move or “lay down” any of the gravestones. There is a strong desire to retain the “feel” of a church yard in the development of the gardens.

There are no plans to remove or cut down any of the existing “mature” trees, these again are seen as an integral part of the gardens, and will only be removed when advised due to age, disease and safety. Likewise any new planting of trees will only involve species, in keeping with the area (e.g. Rowan, Yew and Birch)

Each of the raised beds will be planted to create both a different “sensory” appeal (e.g. Smell, Colour and Touch) but also to reflect some aspect of local “environmental heritage”, for example:

o Pennine Heathland

o Railway side plants

o River & Meadow plants

Each raised bed will also be supplied with an explanatory interpretation panel, also with Braille.