Talk:Woodlands, South Yorkshire

Should Woodlands be a UNESCO World Heritage site?

I recently visited Port Sunlight.

That is one extensive and elaborate model village and really is a contender as possibly the best.

However, I remain biased towards Woodlands (I was born nearby).

I would say Woodlands is more "sedate" architecturally; not having entirely different styles competing for attention. The other advantages are that, whilst Port Sunlight is open plan at both front and back, ALL houses in Woodlands have their own enclosed front garden. Further, Woodlands was originally surrounded by countryside/Woodland, with the only built features being the Great North Road and "Woodlands" the Country House (which is now a social club). The colliery itself is in a dip to the WNW of the village and did not dominate the village.

Although Council Estates were later built adjacent to the village (and a further estate of less well designed tied cottages - in which I was born), two sides of the village still today back onto woodland; whilst the other two sides are separated from the council estates by wide roads and communal green land to the backs. All house on the perimeter of the village have an access path/road at the back, but then communal (or sometimes private) grassed area - as stated earlier ALL houses have a private front garden.

Houses within the village have a very large (semi communal/private) green to the back (the squares), and face each other across wide tree-lined avenues. So in front of every house they have a front garden, a pavement, a grass verge with trees, then a wide street always able to cope with two way traffic, well before the days of the motor car. In the case of "The Park", three sides of which form part of the perimeter, the rear of the houses face out of the village across the usual access road/path with the semi communal/private green behind - at the front is the usual garden, then a pavement, then a tree-lined verge, then a wide road, then a massive open green which in a way is the park itself. As can be deduced, the road around the park runs all the way around the green.

I think that, as Saltaire is a UNESCO World Heritage site, then so should be Woodlands - it is a later and more developed (much more private space etc., more modern facilities in the houses, no long terraces [though some terraces of just four houses]} model village.

I think that Stewartby (Bedfordshire) could also be a possible contender; as could the brash architectural mish-mash of Port Sunlight.

Perhaps the quality 20th Century model villages should make a joint application to be classed as a World Heritage site (albeit "split site?")

I am sorry, but I have to dismiss Bournville. It is too small and runs into other built up areas, and apparently the quality houses were only for some privileged workers. In the cases of Woodlands, Stewartby, and Port Sunlight, quality housing was available to all employees.

Merge

The Park (Woodlands) is a very short article and largely contains information already covered here. There seems to be no good reason to have two separate articles unless a strong case can be made for that article to be expanded. Rodhullandemu 22:49, 12 October 2009 (UTC)