Residents share memories of city's ambitious housing estate

Joe Sheehan says his family has "nothing but fond memories" of living on a futuristic, modern housing estate in Hull in the early 1960s.

"It seemed absolutely amazing," he says.

Built on bold ambitions and modern ideas, Orchard Park was designed as a model estate for a new generation of Hull residents.

But not all of the promised amenities were delivered when the new estate was built.

Now, people who live there are sharing their memories, photographs and stories as part of a project to preserve the estate's history for future generations.

At the time, the 330-acre development, consisting of 2,500 houses, was described as the most ambitious housing scheme ever attempted in the north of England.

Newspaper reports said the estate would feature a cinema, dance hall, church, bathing pool, bus service, schools, inn and bomb-proof shelters, but these plans never came to fruition.

Joe, who is working on the project for charity Back to Ours, says the estate was based on the Radburn design - a concept born in the United States, which focuses on separating pedestrians from traffic.

The aim was to have a lot of green spaces that facilitated community by having people close together, Joe adds.

Mike Smith grew up on Orchard Park Road and says when he first saw his house, he thought: "We've got a posh house now, I feel quite proud."

He explains: "It was like being on the edge of the universe because there's nothing in front of us, just fields all the way to Beverley."

Jed Salisbury, who is also working on the Back to Ours project, remembers it as "being the most gigantic place in the world".

He grew up in the area, before moving to another part of Hull, and now lives on Orchard Park.

"One thing I've noticed about moving back is the sense of community," Jed says.

In 2022, the estate was highlighted in the House of Commons as one of the UK's left behind neighbourhoods.

In the same year, one tabloid spoke to residents who spoke about anti-social behaviour and drug dealing on Orchard Park.

Jed says it was not until his teenage years when he went to school in another area of the city that people labelled it "rough".

"I was like: 'is it?' Because I've never experienced it," he adds.

However, Joe explains, as time passed, things on the estate started to change.

He says, as neighbours left the area, someone with drug problems moved in, which created issues.

But he adds: "There were problems but also, a really positive sense of community over the years."

Despite the publicised problems and deprivation, some residents still speak highly of their upbringing in Orchard Park.

Mike says: "You couldn't wish for anywhere better to grow up."

Back to Ours worked with people over the summer to gather stories of the estate, from its beginnings in the 1960s to the present day.

Those memories have been curated into an exhibition at the Orchard Centre on display in October.

Louise Yates, artistic director and CEO of Back to Ours said: "Plenty of people have an opinion of Orchard Park: positive, negative and everything in between.

"We wanted to speak to the people who know the estate best, to tell their stories and highlight the places that held important memories for them."

Following the exhibition at the Orchard Centre, the display will later be moved to Hull History Centre.

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