My earliest memory of green space as a young girl stemmed from brook jumping in Woodgate Valley Country Park with my older sister as we made our way to visit grandad who lived in Quinton – this was much fun. 

We would find the widest part of the stream and take it in turns jumping, I don’t remember falling in so I must have been good! Other adventures were swinging on a rope swing over the brook to jump to other side.

Some parts of the valley were overgrown, and we used to get stung walking in the nettles and had to find dock leaves to rub on our stings.

We would pick the rose bush “buds” (rosehips) and tease each other with the “itching powder” (little irritant hairs) inside the hips by chasing and catching each other and sprinkling the itching power down the back of t-shirts and giving a pat on the back (very naughty).

Growing into my teenage years, parks played a big part of my life as these were the places we would ‘hang around’ meeting friends, playing games of football or rounders, tree climbing (apple picking) and racing on the BMX track in Senneleys Park.

I remember when Cannon Hill Park (late 80’s) used to have the Radio 1 Roadshows, this is where I met Mike Reid (DJ) who was playing tennis and there was always a fair.