Between 2011 and 2013, the Great Orme Country Park and Local Nature Reserve and
Loggerheads Country Park (Denbighshire) received over £207,000 of European Regional Development Fund support, through the Natural Resources Wales' Communities and Nature Project.
This supported the delivery of a £462,500 initiative that improved both sites so they now offer a great experience for visitors.
The two Country Parks, lying in adjacent local authority areas, are both associated with limestone habitats and are visited by hundreds of thousands of people each year..
The information below is specific to the Great Orme Country Park:
We have made Improvements to footpaths on the headland, and interpretation signs have been provided in Llandudno and near the entrance to the Country Park which provide information about how to reach the site and what you can see there.
Conservation work has also been carried out on this headland of European significance for its habitats, including:
- controlling non-native plant species (which threaten the existence of some of the rare native species)
- managing the heathland to increase its diversity and maximise its benefits to other wildlife
- managing the population of feral goats to ensure its sustainability in the long term
However, the focus of the project has been the Country Park Visitor Centre near the summit of the headland. Energy sustainability has been a priority, and this has been achieved through fitting solar panels and an air-source heat pump. Internal insulation and a low energy lighting system have further reduced energy requirements. We have also improved the interpretation displays to include informative films and interactive touch screen information. A weather station has been installed on the roof of the building, so visitors to the centre can view live and historical information about the local weather.
Country Park staff have also worked closely with a local voluntary group, the Great Orme Exploration Society, to expose and protect some of the original features of the mines on the Orme. We have also provided interpretation of the old "Tom and Jerry" pumping system which used to drain water from the mines when copper was extracted in the 19th Century.
Why not visit the Country Park and its Visitor Centre, to explore and enjoy these improvements for yourself?
Communities & Nature is a strategic project led and managed by Natural Resources Wales and is part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund through the Welsh Government.