100-year anniversary celebrations at Crow Park 

This year marks the 100-year anniversary of Crow Park being bestowed to the National Trust so that everyone can forever enjoy its beautiful views and to celebrate, you are invited to take part in a special commemorative event this May half term. 

On May 26th and 27th, the National Trust and All or Nothing come together to bring you The Swings, a FREE interactive event for all the family. Set yourself down and watch as 2 aerialists perform daring acrobatics to music on a 5m high giant swing set.

After each performance members of the public will be able to try out the giant swings for themselves. 

There will be 4 performances each day, with the first one starting at 11am and the last one at 3:30pm. 

No booking required, just join in the fun! 

To ensure as many people as possible can take part, the first interactive session each day from 11:20am – 12:30pm will include an accessible bucket seat on the swing for those with reduced mobility.

Fiona Ferguson, Creative Development Director at Imaginate “Swings by All or Nothing is a joint commission by Imaginate/ Edinburgh International Children’s Festival and Merchant City Festival/Glasgow Life and is a performance we are very proud to be a part of. Jen and the team have created a show that is visually spectacular, accessible and artistically exciting”

In 1925, Crow park was given to the National Trust by Sir John and Lady Randles to look after on behalf of the nation. Ideally situated on the edge of Derwent Water, this open-access green space is a popular area for locals and visitors alike to relax and take in views of the surrounding fells down towards the Jaws of Borrowdale. It was part of an effort to protect public access to lakeshore in the Lake District at a time when that was under threat. 

This space has changed dramatically through the years, with the biggest change coming in the mid 1700s when the landowners at the time felled the oak woodlands that covered the land to raise income for the Greewich Hospital for injured soldiers. 

The felling of the trees sparked what was possibly England’s first written environmental protest: “Oct 4 – I walked to Crow Park, now a rough pasture, once a glade of ancient oaks, whose large roots still remain on the ground, but nothing has sprung from them. If one single tree had remained this would have been an unparalleled spot;” Thomas Gray, 1769 The spectacular view now revealed helped inspire the Picturesque movement with Crow Park becoming a recommended viewpoint in early Lake District guidebooks. 

In the 19th century, the local vicar, Hardwicke Rawnsley, was inspired by Wordsworth and Ruskin to defend public access to open spaces and ultimately, to co-found the National Trust in 1895. 

30 years later, Crow Park was entrusted to the charity and in 2018, it was chosen to host the official UNESCO plaque that marks the Lake District’s World Heritage Site status.

Jessie Binns, Senior Programming and Partnerships Officer at the National Trust says: “Crow Park is the perfect place for locals and visitors alike to spend a quiet moment in beautiful surroundings without having to venture too far from town. 

With its historical significance and easy access to an iconic Lake District view, we are proud to continue to care for this special place while improving access so that everyone can enjoy nature, beauty and history here for generations.” 

For more information, please visit our website at: Borrowdale & Derwent Water | Lake District | National Trust