Jersey Park is situated on the western edge of Briton Ferry in the Vale of Neath. The park lies mostly in a small valley extending eastwards, with steeply-sloping wooded ground to the south and a cemetery and housing to the north. Its shape follows that of the valley floor, being narrow and elongated. It is an exceptionally well-preserved urban public park,

The park was made on land given by the Earl of Jersey in 1908 for the purpose of a public park, opened in 1925, and extended in 1939 on further land donated by the Earl. From the 1936 Ordnance Survey map it is clear that the original layout of formal and informal areas has survived in its entirety to the present day, aside from three glasshouses.

Planting in the park is varied and interesting, with an emphasis on evergreen trees and shrubs. Sports facilities and a children’s playground form the park’s northern extent. Its southern extent is an extensive area of deciduous woodland spanning 500 acres only the lower part of which has been incorporated into the park with a network of paths.

Sources:
Cadw 2000: Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in Wales, Glamorgan (ref: PGW(Gm)62(NEP).
Ordnance Survey second edition 25-inch map of Glamorgan, sheet XXV.1 (1936).

RCAHMW, 8 July 2022

Site Record

Jersey Park, Briton Ferry