Ulley Country Park
Ulley Country Park opened in 1986 around the former reservoir. This was built in 1870s to provide drinking water for Rotherham. By the 1980s it was on standby only and was purchased by Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council in 1986. It can be found just off the A618 Rotherham to Swallownest Road and is an established venue for angling and water sports. The car park therefore is often very full.
July 2008
Most of the park and the facilities have reopened. However there is a great deal of ongoing
work to put right the damage from the floods of June 2007 so some areas may be closed from time
to time.
There are waymarked walks around the lake and the park can be the start of much longer rambles to explore the area. There is access to the lakeside path for wheelchairs and motorised scooters.
The Country Park contains a great variety of plants, insects, wildfowl and animals. The eastern arm of the lake is kept as a nature reserve. The reservoir is the most important breeding site for toads known in Rotherham.
A ranger service operates from Reservoir Cottage. In 2006, as a cost cutting exercise by cash-strapped Rotherham Council, the rangers are being withdrawn from Ulley Country Park. From now on the rangers will be based at Thrybergh but they will be available for special events at Ulley. Coarse fishing available, tackle is sold at the visitors' centre which also has a shop selling souvenirs and refreshments. There is a junior angling club for 8 - 16 year olds. Car parking charges.
Torrential rains on 25 June 2007 caused major flooding throughout South Yorkshire. On the night of 25/26 June engineers found that the force of water coming down the spillway from Ulley Reservoir had undermined the earth glacis and almost breached the dam. Engineers and firemen worked through the night to try and make it safe, whilst people were evacuated from villages in the potential floodpath, the M1 was closed and attempts were made to protect the electricity sub station at Brinsworth.
Visitors please expect disruption to the Country Park for some time. At the end of September 2007 Ulley Country Park has still not reopened. Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council have now taken the decision to restore the lake and the park at a projected cost of £2.5million pounds. Works will be undertaken to repair and strengthen the dam, improve the spillway and drainage and other associated alterations. It is expected that the job will take about 40 weeks so you can reasonably reckon that it is likely to be a year or two until things are back to normal.