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Memorial Park is a much loved Green Flag park in the heart of Fleetwood. It was designed and developed in 1926 by Sir Leslie Patrick Abercrombie in commemoration of the First World War, as a memorial to the Fallen of Fleetwood and the surrounding area. It is one of only four listed war memorial parks and gardens in the country.

Memorial Park has been completely restored thanks to £2.4m funding from the Heritage and Big Lottery Funds. Essential conservation work was carried out including restoration of the war memorial, entrances, lily pond, pathways and pavilion. There's new seating, lighting and places to picnic; and a greater range of sport and play facilities including a multi-use games area and Parkour equipment, alongside the traditional bowling greens and tennis courts.

Location: Memorial Park, Warrenhurst Road, Fleetwood, FY7 6TP

The History of Memorial Park

Fleetwood Memorial Park was developed out of the earlier Warrenhurst Park, itself an early twentieth century park designed by Thomas Lumb of Blackpool for the Fleetwood Estate Company on land formerly belonging to Warrenhurst House. The company later gave Warrenhurst Park to the Borough of Fleetwood as a gift to the townspeople. In 1925 the noted town planner Sir Leslie Patrick Abercrombie, RIBA, (1879-1957) developed the park into a memorial to the Fallen of World War I and it was renamed the Memorial Park. Two years later a war memorial statue was commissioned. Designed and sculpted by Herbert Tyson Smith, it was installed in the main avenue, known as Remembrance Avenue, and the avenue was lined with elm trees (replanted in 2010), each of which was dedicated to a family in Fleetwood who had been bereaved during the war. At about this time Alex Edwards became the Park Superintendent. Edwards had previously designed the rock gardens at Kew and he, along with the next Park Superintendent, Mr Hewitson, were responsible for the installation of the lily pond and rockery, the rose garden, greenhouses, nurseries, bowling greens and tennis courts. The park was later extended slightly at its north-west corner to incorporate part of the garden of the former house known as Warrenhurst.

In the latter half of the twentieth century a number of further changes were made. Amongst the most significant were the removal of a formal park entrance on Wellbeck Avenue, the moving of tennis courts and pavilions from their earlier location flanking the south-western avenue to a position north west of the war memorial, construction of a replacement tennis pavilion, the creation of three bowling greens and construction of two associated pavilions to the south-east of the war memorial. In recent years modern railings have been installed along the boundary with Park Avenue, anti-vandal fencing has been installed around the bowling greens and a new children's play area has been created. The tennis courts are now unused and the pavilion is now used for maintenance purposes.

Gardens

To the south-west of the war memorial there is a triangular sunken rose garden with a small centrally-placed circular lawn from which paths radiate in five directions. South of the rose garden you’ll find seating and a modern children's play area.

There is an ornamental pond with a limestone rockery lining, trees, shrubs, flowerbeds and a limestone rockery. The western end of the park is devoted to a wild flower meadow.

Facilities

• children’s play areas
• Parkour
• a multi-use games area
• tennis courts
• bowling greens
• footpaths
• woodland walk
• picnic areas and seating
• sensory garden