Barnsley Council Central Area Team

02/09/2026

🌳💚 KINGSTONE DAY FOR THE ENVIROCENTRAL TEAM! 💚🌳

The Envirocentral Team had a busy day out in Kingstone today, giving a couple of local areas some much-needed TLC! 💪🌿

🚶‍♂️ Rockley Meadows & Laceby Court Footpath
We started the day on the footpath connecting Rockley Meadows and Laceby Court to Keresforth Hill Road, where the team got stuck in and gave the whole area a proper tidy-up! 🧹🌱

The team:
🗑️ Removed 3 bags of litter
✂️ Trimmed back the overgrown bushes
🌿 Removed a fly-tipped pile of branches
🌱 Weeded the pathway
🌿 Removed several patches of brambles
🧹 Gave the whole area a good tidy-up

Once that was completed, we headed over to Agnes Road Park 🌳🌸 to give the area some TLC too.

The team:
🌱 Cut the grass
🌿 Weeded around the plants
✂️ Trimmed back the bushes
🧹 Tidied the area

Another productive day for the Envirocentral Team, helping to keep Kingstone clean, tidy and looking its best! 💚🙌

📍 Kingstone
🗑️ 3 bags of litter removed
🌿 Two areas given some TLC
💪 Another job done!

02/09/2026

A refreshed play space in the heart of Barnsley town centre 🌿

Children visiting Spring Street play area will now find a new toddler climbing unit, a new seesaw, improved surfacing and a refreshed entrance, alongside repainted play equipment.

The work has been delivered through Barnsley Council's Love Where You Live programme and is helping keep this well-used play area ready for local families to enjoy.

Looking after our parks is everyone's responsibility. If you spot damage, anti-social behaviour or any issues that need attention, please report them so we can help keep the space welcoming for everyone.

02/09/2026

🍂 Looking for something fun to do with your little ones this autumn? 🍂

Our friends at Barnsley Family Hubs Central based in Worsbrough have a fantastic programme of FREE activities and support for families with young children throughout September, October, November and December.

From Stay and Play, Play and Learn and Little Talkers sessions, to specialist groups including SEND Brunch, SENDsory Explorers, and support for parents through New You New Us, there's something for everyone.

These welcoming sessions are a great way for children to learn through play, make new friends and develop new skills, whilst parents and carers can access advice, support and meet other local families.

📍 Best Start Family Hub Central, Bank End, Overdale Avenue, Worsbrough Dale, S70 4BD

Take a look at the timetable below and see what's on offer this season. Why not pop along and give it a try?

🍁👶🧸

01/09/2026

Today the Envirocentral team split their time between the Dodworth Ward and Central Ward due to the Bank Holiday 🚐🌳

🌱 Silver Street – Dodworth

We started the day on Silver Street, tackling the footpath that leads through to Fairway.

The team:
✂️ Cut back and trimmed the overgrown hedges
🌿 Weeded the path and banking
🪴 Strimmed the grass banking
🗑️ Litter picked the area
♻️ Collected 4 bags of rubbish

A great transformation and another footpath brought back to a much better standard! 💪👏

🌳 Rose Hill Drive

Next, we headed over to the seating area at the end of Rose Hill Drive, where we cleared away the natural leaf litter that had fallen from the cherry trees 🍒🍂.

A quick tidy-up to keep this popular seating area looking clean, presentable and ready for residents to enjoy. 😊

🥕 Harbour Hill Community Allotment – Central Ward

We then headed over to Harbour Hill Allotment to celebrate Linda’s fantastic community allotment and all the hard work that has gone into making it such a great space for the community. 👩‍🌾🌱

It was great to see around 20 volunteers all together in one place, with everyone getting stuck in and helping out. 🤝💚

There was plenty to do, with everyone helping to harvest the fantastic produce that has been grown, including 🍎 apples, 🍐 pears, 🍅 tomatoes and 🫐 blackberries!

It was brilliant to see the results of all the hard work that Linda and her volunteers have put into the allotment. 🌱👏

The allotment has also benefited from the work of different groups, including Envirocentral, Stepping Stones and Balfour Beatty, all helping to make the site more accessible and welcoming for members of the community. 💪🤝

Linda and her volunteers are doing an amazing job, not only growing fresh fruit and vegetables but also helping people learn how to grow their own food and showing how the produce can be turned into healthy and tasty meals. 🥕🍅🥔🍲

A fantastic example of what can happen when community groups, volunteers and organisations work together. ❤️🌱

31/08/2026

Take a look at the updates at Gilroyd Recreation Ground 🌿

Through Barnsley Council's Love Where You Live programme, the play area has been refreshed with repainted equipment and some improved surfacing. The play space has also been extended to make room for a new zip wire, giving children and young people even more opportunities to play and explore.

We'd love to see local families making the most of the space while helping keep it looking its best for others to enjoy.

28/08/2026

🌧️ Another Busy Day for the Envirocentral Team! 💪🌿

Today the team started the day off in the terrible rain ☔ at the Aldham House Estate, just off Simons Court, after receiving a request to cut back a well-used desire path that residents use to access the Trans Pennine Trail (TPT) 🚶‍♂️🌳

So, that’s exactly what we did! 💪

🌿 Cut back all the overhanging branches and bushes
🌳 Removed around 6ft of boundary bramble growth to help prevent it growing back
🌱 Completely weeded the path
🗑️ Put up pink litter-picking sacks for residents to use
♻️ Litter picked the path, collecting 6 bags of rubbish

Once we had finished, the team headed up to Kendray where we litter picked Hunningley Lane, starting from the 5ives Sports Club entrance all the way down to Stairfoot Roundabout 🚮

We collected 10 bags of litter from along the route! 🗑️💪

📊 Today’s litter-picking total: 16 bags! 🗑️🗑️

Another busy day making a difference across the Central Area, even in the rain! 🌧️💪❤️

27/08/2026

🌿 A Day Out in Worsborough! 🌿

The team has been busy in Sweyn Croft today, starting with a good old-fashioned tidy-up around the green area. They got stuck into the weeds and left the space looking neat, tidy and cared for. 👏

For the second job, the team tackled visibility issues at the junction. They spent the afternoon strimming the tall grass to improve visibility for drivers and make the area safer for traffic. 🚗🌱

And they didn’t stop there — an incredible 4 bags of litter were collected from this section alone! 🗑️👏

Another productive day making a real difference in Worsborough. 💚

26/08/2026

🌿✨🌿This morning, the Envirocentral team received a request from the local Councillor regarding the overgrown hedge and foliage around the school signs near Gawber Primary School, off Church Lane. 🏫🌳

So, as always, the team took action! 💪🧹

🌳 Reduced the height of the hedge and cut it back
🌿 Removed the bramble bushes along the pathway
🌲 Removed low-hanging branches from the trees
🚸 Cut back the overgrown foliage around the school signs
🌱 Weeded the pathway all the way through to the public footpath
🗑️ Litter picked the area and removed any rubbish along the way

💚 Then it was back to the Central Area for the afternoon!

With the team losing a day next week due to the Bank Holiday, we made the most of today and headed to Mottram Street, where we met up with Linda, 5 fantastic volunteers and 2 local Councillors to give the backs a good tidy-up. 🙌

The team and volunteers:

🌿 Weeded the backs
🌳 Cut down some overgrown buddleia
🗑️ Litter picked the area
♻️ Collected 6 bags of waste
🚨 Reported a fly-tip for further action

💨 We were unable to blow the bottoms of the backs down today as the wind was blowing the debris straight into the garage, so we’ll leave that until we can safely complete it without causing any issues.

👏 A great day had by all!

A massive thank you to Linda, our 5 volunteers and the 2 local Councillors who came out and helped us on Mottram Street. Your support makes a real difference! 💚🙌

Another busy day for Envirocentral, working together to Love Where You Live! ❤️🏡

26/08/2026

🍂🎃 25 Days to Go Until the Monk Bretton Scarecrow Festival! 🎃🍂

There is still time to get involved in this year's Monk Bretton Scarecrow Festival, taking place on Sunday 20 September from 1pm at Maggie's Coffee Shop, Tennyson Road.

Residents, community groups, schools and local organisations are invited to create a scarecrow and be part of this popular community event. Whether your design is traditional, creative, humorous or inspired by a favourite character, they would love to see the community come together and showcase their talents.

🏆 Prizes available: 🥇 1st Prize - £100
🥈 2nd Prize - £50
🥉 3rd Prize - £20
☕ Maggie's Café Voucher

They also have guest judge, Nicky Eaden, former Premier League footballer and current Barnsley FC coach, will be joining them to pick a winner.

👣 The Mini Scarecrow Trail is now live, offering a fun activity for children and families, with prizes to be won.

🎈 On festival day there will also be free food, refreshments and family activities for everyone to enjoy.

To enter the festival, register your scarecrow at Maggie's coffee shop

They want you to help them make this year's festival the biggest yet and celebrate everything that makes where we live so amazing.

🌾🍁

🎃🌾 ONLY 25 DAYS TO GO! 🌾🎃

The countdown is on to the Monk Bretton Scarecrow Festival, taking place on Sunday 20th September from 1pm at Maggie's coffee shop 🎉

Now is the perfect time to get creative and start building your scarecrow. Whether it's funny, spooky, traditional, or completely bonkers, we'd love to see your ideas come to life around Monk Bretton!

🏆 Fantastic prizes to be won: 🥇 1st Prize - £100 🥈 2nd Prize - £50 🥉 3rd Prize - £20 ☕ Maggie's Café Voucher

To enter, simply register your scarecrow at Maggie's Café.

👣 Can't wait until the event? The Kids' Mini Scarecrow Trail is available NOW, with prizes up for grabs, making it a great activity for families during the last of summer holidays and while the sun is still shining.

⚽ We are also delighted to announce that Nicky Eaden, former Premier League footballer and current Barnsley FC coach, will be joining us as our guest judge.

🎈 Join us on festival day for free food, drinks and activities, and help make this year the biggest and best Monk Bretton Scarecrow Festival yet!

📍 Maggie's Coffee Shop, Tennyson Road, Monk Bretton, S71 2LP

Tag your friends, neighbours and fellow scarecrow creators below and let us know what you're planning to make! 👇🎃🌟

🌾💛

26/08/2026

As part of Barnsley Council's summer activity programme, HOPE in Community are at Barnsley Baptist Church this Friday hosting a free summer youth session.

For young people aged 8 to 16, come along for a talent show, Zumba, crafts, games, baking, and more.

Book your free place at https://eequ.org/book/gca-summer-youth-session-with-hope-in-community-30974.