The Dane Meadow

The Dane Meadow is Holmes Chapel’s Country Park. The 7 hectares are adjacent to the River Dane and include the valley sides which are partly wooded: the western slopes form Cotton Wood. This meadow land used to form part of Bank Farm but was handed over to Congleton Borough Council (and later to Cheshire East Council) after the rest of the farm was developed for housing.

In 2012 Holmes Chapel Parish Council and Holmes Chapel Partnership successfully bid for funds from Natural England to make this area accessible to all. A roadway gave proper vehicular access and footpaths were created and surfaced so that it was possible to walk around the Meadow safely all year round. Further funds from WREN, a waste recycling company, provided the opportunity to make a pond, install beautiful signage, benches and add interest to the site with wooden sculptures.

WHERE TO FIND THE DANE MEADOW:

The Dane Meadow is located to the north of Holmes Chapel behind Bramhall Drive.

There are four entrances to the area which can be accessed at Ravenscroft, Bramhall Drive, Daresbury Close (accessible route) and Moreton Drive.

For local walking and cycling routes visit: https://www.hcpartnership.org.uk/walkingandcyclingroutes

THINGS TO DO:

SCULPTURE TRAIL

How many wooden sculptures can you find?

Download the trail to view the map and fill in each animal you find.

TREE TRAIL

NEW FOR MAY 2026!

Some of the trees in the Dane Meadow have been labelled so you can identify which tree is which.

Download the trail to fill in each tree as you find it.

WORDSEARCH

Find the names of the birds, plants, insects and amphibians spelt out in the Wordsearch box.

Download this page to record what you see on your trip.

COMMUNITY ORCHARD:

At the eastern end of the Dane Meadow the community group Home Grown in Holmes Chapel planted an orchard containing apples, pears, plums and damsons.

The trees have now matured and are producing a lot of fruit which can be picked for free by the community in the late summer and early autumn. The Home Grown group still look after the orchard keeping the grass down and pruning the trees as and when necessary.

TREES:

In March 2020, just before the first Covid lockdown, volunteers planted 400 trees on the northern slope. These trees are all native varieties: birch, field maple, hazel, hawthorn, blackthorn, rowan, which add to the biodiversity of the Dane Meadow and provide habitat and food for birds and insects. They were all ‘whips’ ie just little sticks when planted but are now recognisably trees.

The u3a helped with the planting to mark the 10th anniversary of the u3a in Holmes Chapel and have labelled 10 of the trees to mark the event.

WILDFLOWER MEADOW:

When the Cottons estate was built, the developers Persimmon Homes paid into an environmental fund which would enable the replacement of the meadow area that was built on.

The money has been used to create and maintain a wildflower meadow in the Dane Meadow which is managed by the Cheshire Wildlife Trust.

The main meadow was prepared and seeded and then supplemented with plug plants. It is not mown over the summer but the grass is cut in the early autumn and taken away. These plants are perennials like clovers, yellow rattle, oxeye daisies and bird foot trefoil, which have increased the biodiversity of this meadowland.

POND:

The original pond became over-vegetated and for a couple of years dried out in the summer – not a good scenario for the tadpoles!

In 2024 a new pond was excavated and a new liner installed. This has now been completed by installing coir matting, pre-planted with aquatic plants, and gravel around the perimeter. The new pond has filled up with water naturally and is now hosting a variety of creatures: tadpoles, newts, water boatmen and beetles. It seems that if you create the habitat the wildlife will find it!