The woodland covers an area of nearly 28 hectares (about 68 acres, or 275,000m2, or 40 football pitches), and provides:

• Natural green woodland

• 2.6km of paths - of which most are accessible using mobility devices. 

• Safe open space

• Tranquil setting for reflection

• Holistic approach to mental health

• Exercise

• Education

• Home to many animals

• Flora and Fauna

• Bird Watching

The woodland ecology

Extensive planting in the former mining site is now maturing nicely, with mixed, varied woodland and a range of habitats and species, including species-rich grassland, open water, and wetland.

The woodland area is made up of young stands of planted mixed broadleaved and Scots Pine and a mature shelterbelt on the western side of the site is recorded as being broadleaf woodland of long-established plantation origin. This means that it was first recorded on 1st edition OS 6” map and suggests that it has been woodland for at least 150 years and probably longer, but not more than 250 years since General Roy maps do not show it.