The restored Rochdale Memorial Gardens provide high-quality public green space in the heart of Rochdale town centre. They feature a number of significant elements, including formal gardens, sensory gardens and a popular children’s play area.
The gardens offer an oasis of calm within a busy urban environment and form an important link between the listed Victorian Town Hall, Touchstones Rochdale, Hopwood Hall College campus and the main commercial centre.
Commissioned in 1948, the gardens incorporate an impressive Cenotaph. Following a period of decline, the site has been revitalised through the re-introduction of quality horticultural features, including new flowerbeds, wildlife planting areas, and improvements to paved surfaces, seating and lighting.
A play area has also been created on the western side of the gardens, carefully designed to reflect and respect the original purpose and layout of the space.
With the involvement of local schoolchildren, an orchard has been planted, while the sunken rose gardens have been fully restored and the rose beds replanted.
H Bell and Sons continue to maintain the Memorial Gardens, ensuring the site remains well cared for, welcoming and fittingly respectful for residents and visitors alike.