Park Hill

Tell us about your experiences and memories of Park Hill. Are you looking forward to its future or do you think it should be knocked down?

Tom Dean
I would quite like to live there when its done, but would have lived there as it was. To be perfectly honest I reckon they could have done a quick fix by placing a local police station on there and maintaining the old amenities.'Oh, why do the council not house me!' There knocking houses down all over the show in Sheffield, houses which could house me (as a full paying rent tenant I might add.)A building like this could work very well financially if placed next to a train station in the peak district if you ask me, but I very much doubt it would be given planning permission until the housing crisis of the homeless rears its ugly head in the not too distant future.Before the development of park hill began, which I hope will be completed, it was one of the few places a young man like myself could have got a small council flat and a bit of hope. Having only a currently ongoing (but soon to be) finished education, and the nearest thing to money being debt in this moment in time I would be very angered if it were not finished.Let us not forget this was a building built for social housing and that 75% off it has been earmarked for private housing. Being at the bottom of priority for a council house I hope that park hill is a success and that more buildings like park hill will be built. You never know I could be housed within the decade, if the economy picks up.

Mike Fisher
I lived with my in-laws in the Park Hill complex on Long Henry Row in 1971. I always remember it as a dark and dank place, it cast a very real shadow over the city of Sheffield especially so when the sun came out and the shaded parts of the complex remained very cold in comparison the sunlit sides. Some people may love it and while others do not. My suggestion would be to allow all the tenants to exchanges places with those people who are trying to re-invent it, let the 'experts' spend some time living there and then see if they still want to go ahead with the project. Would the tenants then want to leave their temporary residences and go back to Park Hill?

Jennifer Ludlam Nee Jenkinson
I remember one night comming out of that Pub Door and my husband to be fell flat on his back from too much drink. Oh what a night!!!!!

Jennifer Ludlam Nee: Jenkinson
I loved my years on the Park Hill. We moved on in 1959 to 129 Long Henry Row it was a 1 bed room flat as there was just my Mom and me. My Mom remaried my father in 1965 so we then moved to 33 Norwich Row. I moved of in 1972 when I got married but had some great times growing up on the flats and made some great friends. We had the best Fish & Chip shop,infact we had a good selection of shops. On a Sunday night we would gather on the steps and listen to Raidio Luxenburg top 20 or was it 10 any way we would be singing and dancing. It was a great place to live,I hope they can fix them up.

Cllr Arthur Dunworth
My maternal grandparents, George and Clara King, he a collier at the Nunnery pit, she a mother of 8, 6 buffer girls, 2 woodyard workers and then Coldstream Guardsmen in the Armoured Brigade during the war, all lived on Granville Lane.When these were demolished and folk rehoused in the Park Hill 'streets in the sky' my grandparents, on their own by now, were very reluctant to move to Hague Row. That said, some months later, after experiencing for the first time an indoor bathroom and toilet rather than a metal bath on a nail outside the back door, and central heating rather than a coal fire ever needing care and feeding, they were enthusiastic converts to Park Hill flats. Sadly their upkeep and maintenance was allowed to decline over the years, and their unique community spirit allowed to decline, such that keeping or retaining them became a hotly debated issue. My mother born Annie Elizabeth King lived many years in the Claywater Block of flats nearby. These were demolished and the site redeveloped some time ago.Park folk always had a very special and unique sense of place and identity. People need to know who they are, where their roots are, and develop a strong sense of community. It's the glue that keeps us civilised strong, and contributing members of our tribe, Sheffield.

Cheryl Boulding
Bring back the good old days, I was brought up on Park Hill, my children were brought up there too, and my partner Gren works on there still.

Pamela (nee France)
My Grandmother and Uncle (Hicks) lived on Parkhill Hague Row in Duke Street when they were first built for 22 years.Neighbours were brilliant content of flats deteriorated over the years and I think building should now be demolished as it is well past its sell buy date.

Tony
Did 'nt Grenville Squires Used to work on Hyde Park Flats? Driving the yellow and orange electric caretakers trolleys??

patrick neil
as a kid i can remember watching jimmy childs firm knock the old school down from my grandmothers,

a smith
how many entrances was there ? i can remember at least 12

n mckenna
what a fantastic place to live, most of my mom's side lived there or there abouts. however it did start to dip in the late 70's early 80's. lived there from 65 til 79

Anthony Crookes
I lived on the flats in the nineties, made lots of lifelong friends, and probably a few enemies too, but hey, such is life. I loved every minute of every day on there. About time it got renovated. Its full of character, and many many memories that i shall always look back on and remember. Rest in piece Leeky. Lee Fairfax 26.8.71 We miss you mate, until we meet again on the big landing in the sky...

Diane Crossland
i can remember a film crew comeing to this part of the flats whilst i was there with my daughter maybe 22yrs or so ago was it the bbc?

Diane Crossland
My uncle lived on gilbert row just above the link pic 8,remember the kings our cousins

Diane Crossland
our flat was 123 long henry just above this picture it was a large flat absolutley brilliant,spent many days on that grass beneath shouting up to my dad to throw down some money for the ice cream van as it arived ha ha oh god great times

deanna ratcliffe
i lived on the flats in the 60/70s it was great what a commuentiy very happy Childhood

ex-pond st s/o
Soory but you will never make a silk purse etc etc

elaine
mum and dad had lived on hyde park from1967 till student games caused a move they went to live on hyde park terrace then onto park hill when terrace was renovated to what it is now when they were living on park hill they hated it! but loved living on hyde park and ended there days on the terrace although they only lived on park hill for 18mths it was enough for my father to say they wanted a bomb under it . It was an eyesore then and will always be before it was closed for revamp was a slum and drug dealers heaven

chris
we lived there in 99/00,,i have god and bad to tell,great size flats,you could walk to the shops, withou getting wet,schools were excellant,most people were kind and friendly,but crime and drugs,became ripe,and then it became a unfriendly place to be!,which was a shame,loved it there,could watch my daughter playing in the playground out of my room window!,i carnt remeber the school name,the one next to the parkway pub!,got some ond memories there to! shame ,but im sure it wil look fantastic when finished,like she did when first opened,good luck!

harry
The ugliest waste of space in the country. Get rid of it - it's an eyesore I had to live with for 30yrs... besides, with all the new flats going up in Sheffield it will not be too long before the council get hold of them and start park hill all again.

jackie foster nee pemberton
growing up on the parkhill was absolutely fantastic if anyone said to me would you go back to bring your children up on there as it was i definately would the thing we had on parkhill was community spirit thats what is lacking in a lot of areas today

Pete
I,ve worked on park hill for some years now and its a place where crime and drug dealing is common place . I personally think it should be knocked down and totally new dwellings built.The old stories of communities and streets in the sky are long gone, if anything it is a more dangerous place. Just pull it down.

adam
i lived here for 7 years and i must have got stuck in the lifts about ahundred times, these flats are a part of sheffields history and its good that they are being rebuilt.

denise
Hi again, If I was 8 when we moved onto Park Hill, that would have been in 1963, so, they must have been pretty new. My parents moved out as a result of "problem" families moving in "en masse" in 1980 something. My mum worked at the school for over 20 years,as a dinner lady and eventually became head cook. I'm sure many people remember Shirley Godbehere with fond memories. I hope that the redevelopment is really successful and that the community spirit that once existed can be recreated. BUT I do ask myself if today's society can actually have a community spirit when everyone seems to be so self-centered????

Dean Rodgers
I have always admired how Sheffield created Park Hill and Hyde Park. I was sad to see Park Hills sister estate Hyde Park demolished in the 1990's. I remember seeing thousands of dotted white lights as soon as you came into Sheffield from the East high on the hillside. Its great Park Hill is being re-developed. I very clever concept of streets in the sky.

Julie
I stumbled across this site as I did some research on Park Hill, since I'd heard they were renovating them. I have to say I have very good memories of Park Hill Flats. my nanan lived there for many years, and I visited her in 1973 and 1976. (We had moved to the US in 1968). I have great memories of playing 2 ball at my nanan's flat, which was right above the Parkway Pub. Looking down you could see all the rubber balls that kids had lost as they were playing~the balls landing on top of the pub. Just going down to the stores, and the way the place felt, I have good memories. Although my Nanan moved from there before it started it's demise, and I've heard there are mixed feelings on whether to tear it down, (and the elevators did smell like pee) I am all for the renovation. I hope it doesn't lose it's character by becoming too 'Modernized'. Good luck to it, and to Sheffield embracing it. Maybe I'll buy a unit one day. :)

dean mcneil
iv lived here all my life with my children it is a great place i love it it is whealthy for evry 1 and i hope the development will be good

Michele
I worked at the link in the eighties when my uncle Ron and Rita ran it. Brings back such good memories, although I was only in my early twenties and the customers well a little older we had such good nights. There was an organist on at the weekends and all the customers would get up and sing all the old songs, at the time I couldnt wait to get of to the nightclubs after work. But I knew the old songs word for word when I left. There was flow she was the glass washer, harold collected the glasses, and harry wilde who used to sing all of tom jones songs.Wendy june & Susan behind the bar. I look back with very fond memories

lee boulding
summer times were wicked as we grew up on this estate. everyone knew everyone and it was a brilliant community

paul
have grown... i'm sure while looking out my window i did see a chap throwing seeds about like a crazy man, once the ground had been leveled after the removal of the school.

daniel knowles aka knocker
park hill is the ****s i live in 282 for about 16yr nd i loved it R.I.P PARK HILL

susan windle
park hill was a wonderful place to live.i was brought up on there and so were my children.You'll never find better people anywhere.im sure it could be like that again.

Ashley
park hill is the best place eva i went to park hill nursery and school until year5 then it got closed so i had 2 move 2 manor lodge i had loads ov mates on there and we used 2 have a r8 laf i wish they never knocked the school down that was the best and i lived on there for 3 years aswell i miss it loads

Charles Ball
When I was 6 I can remember when Park Hill Flats had just opened its doors to its new residents one of them was my sister.We lived just below the flats on Granville St. While we had the cobble stones they had modern walkways but they could not prize the pitch from between the cobbles with a stick,we could.!!!

timr
The idea that developers will regenerate the community is laughable. It is all about the $$$. Closing off public access and putting in more retail = isolated, exclusive shopping centre. This has nothing to do with community.

KATHY
i lived on park hill for nearly ten years and it was a lovely community to be apart of. up until the mid 80's when all the problem families were moved in. even though the area has a bad reputation now. i believe it can shine once again. i dont think it should be knocked down. people say its bad for crime and drugs but that doesnt mean it will stay like that. the council/goverment should stop putting problem families all in one place then maybe areas will not be dragged downwards and plagued with badness...repect to all the families n people who have made parkhill a wonderful place to live..xxxx

gary walker
lived on parkhill for the first 21 years of my life and im proud to say so. my mum dot worked in herberts newsagents for years and years . the people were brilliant and everyone looked after each other wot a community spirit . people from the outside do notunderstand this but are easy to comment about parkhill but wot do they know. me our tracie our ian and my mum have got great memories of living on parkhill and made sum lifelong freinds

Simon Braiden
I remember living in Embassy court flats across the road from Park hill about 1976( aged 10) we thought we werer posh!! the lift was opened manualy and if someone forgot to close the lift gate you had to try to find which floor it was on and close it!I used to work for the paper shop delivering papers for 80 pence a week. It was hell because everyone lived in flats and not all them had lifts, plus the enormous hills to go up and down behind Embassy court flats.....memories.....

Mrs Clarke
I remember being 12 years old and was supposed to be playing netball against Park Hill School, but on our arrival we were water bombed by the pupils and the match was cancelled. If that could happen in 1966, what would the area be like now

Steve Hudson
I was the manager at the William Hill Betting Office sited wihin the flats from 1973 to 1974. The People were down to earth, always raedy for a laugh and quick to take the mick. There was never any trouble in the shop,apart from the odd punter who had backed a winner and lost their betting slip, or who claimed I had settled their bets wrong. Happy memories.

Gordon Lenihan
I lived on Park Hill between 1980 - 1990 and from 1985 was in charge of caretaking for Housing Area 8 which included Bard Street, Claywood, Skye Edge, Hyde Park Walk & Terrace and Park Hill, the things we saw myself and 17 staff, we could write Best Sellers from them. We saw the Good and Bad, 996 Flats a little City within a City, still grossly misunderstood today as always, but for us the People who lived there, it was not this magical evil place strangers talk about, plenty of decent people lived there. I will make one FINAL POINT before i stop, not once have i talked to anyone about anything i have seen including Family and friends.

paul harrison
the more i see of this place the more i realise that the place needs leveling to the ground. get real.

Liz
Park Hill should just be demolished. No matter how much they redevelope the area it will always have problems with drugs and crime. Knock it down.

nicky
I lived near the Park Hill Flats when I was younger. I know that the people who lived there thought they were brilliant. In my student days, myself and my fellow students used to enjoy spending a few hours in the local pubs! Some good memories. My doctors was on the edge of the flats, they looked after me well when I was pregnant. I missed them when I eventually moved to a different part of the city.

denise
I've just spent a few minutes down memory lane. It is amazing how little "the flats" as we dcalled them have changed. I was 8 when we went to live on Park Hill. It was a strange place but I've always people friendly until the 80's when "problem" families were moved on in large numbers. This led to a lot of families moving to Skye edge or Norfolk Park.

anonymous
want themknocked down them flats are awful

Glyn Barker
I lived at 275 Norwich Row upto 11 years old, went to Grace Owen, Park Hill Infants and Park Hill Middle Schools. Mr Sharp was Headmaster. One thing sticks in my mind when ever you 'went out to play' you'd always find a friend or somebody you knew. Good times !!!

Janet Hewitt
I worked at Park hill school for 17 years has a dinner lady it was a very sad day when the school closed and even sadder that a new school will not be developed i miss my job and the kids but has i go passed the area i can still hear the noices of children at play and it brings a tear to my eye.

fiona
the flats are awful i lived on them as a child in the 80's and my memory of them is they smell of wee