A common blue butterfly at Shire Brook Valley Nature Reserve.
Kevin Steel
Nature has reclaimed the 100 acres of Shire Brook Valley,
on the south-east side of Sheffield, but there are still clues that nod
to the reserve’s rich heritage.
A plaque on one of the bridges crossing the Shire Brook
highlights its importance as a historical boundary stretching back more
than a millennium. The brook separated the ancient kingdoms of
Northumbria and Mercia and it was the boundary between Yorkshire and
Derbyshire for 900 years.
More recently it was also an important source of power,
with five water wheels supporting the manufacturing of knives, sickles
and scythes. The oldest water wheel was situated by Carr Forge dam, which is now a wildlife pond with a stone marking the site.
Looking out across its meadows today, it may be difficult
to imagine the site’s industrial heyday, but from the early
19th century coal was a significant part of the local economy.
By 1840, the Sheffield Coal Company had become the area’s major
employer, with several pits open in and around the valley. Around 2,000 people were employed there over the years, with hundreds of miners working
underground. Birley East Colliery closed in 1943, but it wasn’t until
1986 that the last buildings were demolished, leaving few traces.
Before 1895, untreated sewage flowed into rivers and
watercourses here. The original Coisley Hill Sewage Works opened in
1895, with a larger works opening in 1938 to accommodate a growing
population. The former office building has found a new lease of life as
the Shire Brook Valley Visitor Centre.
A walk through Shire Brook Valley.
This year is the 30th anniversary of the Shire Brook Valley
nature reserve. Thanks to the tireless work of volunteers and
passionate rangers after it opened in 1995, the site began to see
improvements. The following year, the reserve won a CPRE award and was
mentioned in parliament as an example of the successful transformation
of a derelict site. In 1999, it was officially designated a Local Nature
Reserve.
In 2024, a landscape-scale project
centred on the Shire Brook Valley was awarded a grant of just over £1.4
million from the Species Survival Fund and various partners. The
project will improve sites that cover a total area of more than 400
acres. Delivered by Sheffield City Council, the project will create, restore
and enhance habitats to support and protect the species living here, and
encourage new ones to thrive.
Work that has taken place so far includes hedgelaying,
natural flood management, coppicing, tree planting, establishing
pollinator plots and pond creation. Grazing cattle have been
re-introduced to support biosystems in the reserve’s Sally Clark’s
Meadow, Rainbow Meadow and Linleybank Meadows.
As Activity and Engagement Officer for the project, I want local people to enjoy everything the reserve has to offer.
Shire Brook Valley is a space for everyone: a place to be still amongst
the green, a place to discover winding paths through a mosaic of
habitats, and a place to connect with nature and the many species that
can be spotted here.
By the visitor centre you can see a variety of birds, from
goldfinches to long-tailed tits, blue tits to great tits, and if you’re
lucky a bullfinch. In summer, you can spot many species of dragonflies
and damselflies. Looking up in the trees you might find a great spotted
woodpecker and standing at the amphitheatre you are likely to see a
buzzard soaring above you.
Nature recovery is critical and by the end of the Species
Survival project we hope to have ensured that habitats are protected, species are supported to thrive, and local people are passionate about conserving this space for future generations of humans and non-humans alike.
Learn more
To find out more about volunteering opportunities and upcoming activities and events, including the opening of a new sculpture trail, visit the Shire Brook Valley website.
The Shire Brook Valley Species Survival Project is funded by the government’s Species Survival Fund. The fund was developed by Defra and its arm’s-length bodies. It’s being delivered by The National Lottery Heritage Fund in partnership with Natural England and the Environment Agency.