Inner city allotments to become community park

An inner city allotment site in a deprived area of Bradford is being transformed into a 'pocket park' for use by the community.

Work has begun on the the 4.4 acre (1.8 hectare) Whetley Grove Community Park project in Girlington.

The £290,000 project is a collaboration between Bradford Council and a number of partners, including the Active Bradford charity.

Due to be complete by Christmas, it will feature a nature garden, green space, picnic benches and a circular footpath as well as retaining six allotment plots.

Saira Ali, from the council, said they were approached to see if they could help create a space to be used by the community.

"Somewhere they could come out and sit, somewhere they could walk," she explained.

"Somewhere where they could just come outside and have conversations and talk to people who were using the allotments."

While some of the plots at the Whetley Grove Allotment site were still in use, many had fallen into disrepair and become overgrown and targeted by flytippers.

Ali said: "We're retaining some of the allotments, changing the location of them slightly so they're easier to access.

"Then creating a haven of green space, a little pocket park where children can play."

James Brown, chief executive of the Active Bradford charity, which campaigns to tackle health inequalities across the district, said: "It's not necessarily a traditional park with your play space and your traditional swings.

"It's a space that is easily accessible.

"And if we get it right for the children and young people it's available for the full community, both families and then older generations."

Bradford District is ranked the 11th most-deprived local authority in England out of 296, according to the Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD) 2025.

More than half of Bradford residents (approximately 294,000 people), including those in Girlington, live in neighbourhoods within the most deprived 20% in the country.

Brown said: "The important things is that it is on your doorstep as much as possible.

"It's often really difficult to go out to some of the destination parks and some of the bigger areas. So ideally it's better on people's doorsteps."

Councillor Ian Walker, the council's Portfolio Holder for Neighbourhoods and Communities, said: "It's really good for the community, it's good for the wildlife, it's good for the health of the community, particularly where there are areas of deprivation."

Listen to highlights from West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North.