The HLF-supported project, announced in time for Love Parks Week this 15 – 24 July, will restore much of the historic Dingle at the heart of the Grade II registered park by improving planting and facilities. The project will also make the park more enjoyable for those less mobile by providing hireable mobility scooters, as well as better paths and ramps.

Local resident Jade Greenwell, who regularly visits the park with her two young daughters, said: “Cefn Onn really is a wonderful asset - a green haven just a stone’s throw from the city centre. It is lovely to think this money is being given to help make the park easier to enjoy for who can’t necessarily walk the grounds, as everyone should be able to make the most of something we’re this lucky to have on our doorstep.”

New signs installed as part of the project will also tell visitors more about the park’s fascinating history. Laid out in 1911 by Ernest Prosser, Cefn Onn was originally intended as a woodland estate where his son could recover from consumption. Prosser abandoned his plans to build the house when Cecil died in 1922, but continued to maintain the grounds until his death in 1933. The park became well known in the 1950s and 60s for its beautiful rhododendrons and azaleas, attracting so many visitors that more frequent bus and train services had to be introduced – the Cefn Onn Halt station was opened by Great Western Railway specifically to serve the park.

The project is being funded through the Parks for People programme, which supports valued green spaces at the centre of communities to make places better to visit, live and work in.