Creating Dinton

In 1969 Berkshire County Council and the newly formed Wokingham Borough Council agreed that the Loddon Valley from Twyford to Winnersh should in the future, become "an effective and attractive recreational area for organised recreation".

Some kind of recreational park was certainly needed to meet the needs of the growing population at the eastern fringe of Reading and that of the Wokingham borough. The Dinton Pastures area of the Loddon Valley was considered ideal. As part of the River Loddon's flood plain it was unsuitable to build on, and only classified as low grade farmland.

The idea of a valley park on this land had long been talked about and was in fact a major consideration when planning permission for gravel extraction had been granted. To maximise the future potential of the site, strict guidelines were given to the extraction companies.

Rules

It was decided that the site was to be left with one large lake, not several small ones, as a large lake would then be suitable for sailing. The depth of this lake was set, at 117 feet deep, so that it would not dry out too much during long hot spells, and two islands were to be left in the middle of the lake for "visual reasons" and to "benefit wildlife". These can still be seen in Black Swan Lake today, grazed by goats and of importance to nesting birds.

Before extraction could start, the contractors had to divert a small river tributary of the River Loddon, the Emm Brook, which ran through the extraction site. The original course can still be seen in the islands that were left in Black Swan Lake, but the Emm Brook itself now flows to the side of the extraction area, between Black Swan Lake and the golf course. Another condition imposed on the gravel companies was that no trees were to be felled, except with permission, to both benefit wildlife and to ensure some remnants of the past remained.

Plans

Guidelines for development of the land had emerged from two reports published in 1971; the Haywood report, commissioned by Berkshire County Council and the Woodley and Earley Society Report, based on a local survey.

These advised that the use of the land should "meet the needs of the majority of the district's population". A wide range of recreational facilities should be provided, but should take into consideration other facilities in the Wokingham borough. Specialist interests should be catered for, provided that public access was not restricted.

With any development, the visual amenities (landscape value) of the district should be improved, along with the conservation of flora and fauna. With any plans, it was felt that an element of flexibility should be included, to allow for changes in recreational demands.

The commitment to these guidelines, by Berkshire County Council, was tested in 1973 when Major Oldfield, the then owner of the Black Swan part of Dinton, put forward a proposal for developing a private Country Park on the land he owned. These included plans for a golf course, ski slopes and toboggan run, craft centre, squash court and sailing club. Berkshire County Council rejected this proposal, as it would have limited public access to the site. It was also felt that much more would be gained from the development of the Dinton Pastures site as a whole, under one public ownership, rather than lots of small private developments.

Wokingham Borough Council

In 1974, the newly formed Wokingham Borough Council took responsibility for the area, and started planning land use at Dinton Pastures.

It was decided that the small lakes would be of little use for recreation but would be excellent for wildlife generation and conservation. Only Black Swan Lake was large enough for boating, but powerboats would be banned because of the fragile of the lakeshore. Although Black Swan Lake had been well stocked with fish, fishing and boating were seen as incompatible. Fishing was therefore developed on White Swan Lake and the River Loddon.

Use of the land was limited because less than half the site was actually land (101 acres out of the 223 acre site), and much of that was fragile artificial land around the old gravel pits. Because of this, no formal recreation was planned. In fact, even horse riding was banned. This was considered no real problem though as the majority of visitors to country parks come to walk or picnic and any further development could have reduced public access to the site.

More plans!

A year later, in 1975, Wokingham Borough Council produced the Loddon Valley Southern Sector Plan which included the Dinton Pastures area. The plan took into consideration Major Oldfield's proposals and decided that instead of the current complex ownership system (5 different parties owned different sections of the site), the land should become one recreational area.

Proposed land use included:

         i.            A comprehensive network of footpaths

        ii.            A sailing and ornithological area on Black Swan Lake – rare breeds of birds had 

                       already  been introduced by the landowner

       iii.            A fishing and picnicking area around White Swan Lake

       iv.            A sports complex/restaurant in the south-east corner of the site

        v.            A nine-hole golf course to the east of Black Swan Lake

       vi.            A children's activities area near Mungells pond

      vii.            Boating and fishing on the lake to be formed on Sandford

     viii.            Three car parks

A park is born

In 1978 Wokingham Borough Council finally completed the purchase of the 230 site for £150,000, that's nearly half a million pounds in today's money, and began development. A country park manager was appointed and work started on tree planting, trail laying, access roads, car parking, fencing, and building of toilet facilities.

Building

In 1980 building began at the site. It was agreed that two centres were necessary for the park, one for formal activities (water sports and golf) and one for informal recreation. Although cost estimates showed that it would be £20,000 cheaper to put both centres in the same location this would cause traffic congestion and detract from the enjoyment of Black Swan Lake by the general public. It was therefore decided to build a water sports centre and golf clubhouse to the north of the site and an informal centre to the south.

Attention was paid to the positioning of the car park and bridge over the Emm Brook when designing facilities at the formal centre in order to ease movement between the centre and the lake, and the golf club shop and first tee.

The informal centre, consisting of a cafeteria, an interpretation/display area, toilets, a lecture room and office for the Country Park was planned in the existing farmhouse.

In 1984 work began reconstructing old farm barns in the south of the site to cater for educational needs of the sites, providing a workshop and field study centre. A children's play area followed shortly, along with a footbridge over the River Loddon, allowing better access to the site for people living in the Woodley area.

Dinton now

Things have come along way since, with Wokingham Borough Council's Countryside Service and Dinton Pastures celebrating their 20th Anniversary in 1999. The park now receives around 500,000 visitors a year, and has a full school programme in the spring/summer term reaching about 4,500 school children. Facilities today at the site include a café, exhibition centre, workshops, education room, access trail providing suitable paths for wheelchairs and pushchairs, and halls for hire. An extensive events programme runs throughout the year, appealing to all ages and a variety of interests.