OVER 40 youth employment opportunities are to be created in the next phase of a riverside regeneration programme.

Clyde Gateway has hailed £2.3m of Scottish Government funding, through the Clyde Mission Fund, to build on the success of the award-winning Cuningar Loop Woodland Park to create phase two, extending the forest park on the banks of the River Clyde by a further 8.53 hectare (21 acres). 

In partnership with NatureScot, the next phase of Cuningar Loop will see the transformation of previous derelict and inaccessible land into a new green space which will be designed to enable community engagement, health, wellbeing and lifelong learning as part of the local response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Cuningar Loop, developed in partnership with and managed by Forestry and Land Scotland, currently spans 37 acres of woodland, linking communities in Dalmarnock in Glasgow’s East End and Rutherglen in South Lanarkshire.

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Since it first opened to the public in 2016, it has welcomed over 500,000 visitors and provides a range of features including adventure play, bike track, bouldering zone, boardwalk and events area.

During this new phase, the local economy will also benefit from the creation of 43 opportunities for youth employment and two new jobs during construction.

The green infrastructure project will see a natural extension to the riverside park and the inclusion of 167 specimen trees, 11,000 square metres of wildflower meadow and grassland, additional linked woodland walkways with seating and picnic areas and an educational area including a pond to encourage wildlife and a teaching amphitheatre, created using tree trunks.

Alison Thewliss MP, chair of Clyde Gateway, said: “I am delighted by this welcome funding and thank the Clyde Mission for their continued support and partnership approach. Green recovery will play a vital role in our response to the pandemic and this exciting new development allows the creation of an exemplar for greenspace and low carbon which connects health and nature as a priority and one which will be worthy of being showcased on a worldwide stage.” 

Ian Manson, Clyde Gateway’s chief executive, said: “We are pleased to secure Clyde Mission's funding to unlock this next stage of investment. Cuningar Loop Woodland Park has been a focal point for Clyde Gateway, and as well as providing an immediate jobs boost in terms of construction, it will help address issues of health inequality, educational attainment and social capital which have been further impacted by Covid-19."

The additional funding will build upon the recent award from the Scottish Government’s Clyde Mission for the creation of a roadway on the Shawfield Regeneration site. The road will be constructed from the existing junction of Queensferry Street with The Clyde Gateway Road to provide 190m of new roadway, providing an immediate stimulus to surrounding development whilst maintaining and improving the access into the existing industrial and commercial businesses at Toryglen Street.

The Herald: Picture: Stewart AttwoodPicture: Stewart Attwood

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