A new river trail has launched along the banks of the Ouse aiming to change the way we look at York’s relationship with water.
The York rivers trail: the rivers and us combines art, storytelling and digital tech to explore how the city lives with the constant threat of flooding – and what is being done to fix it.
It also features an interactive mobile experience called Talk to the river (powered by Hello Lamp Post), which lets you text the Ouse to discover its history and secrets.
The trail winds its way through some of York’s most loved green spaces. You can track it down at:
- Homestead Park
- Leeman Park (look out for the temporary sculptural viewing frames here!)
- Museum Gardens
- North Street Gardens
- Tower Gardens (featuring permanent sculptural viewing frames)
- Rowntree Park.
The project has been co-designed with York communities, schools and artists to show how actions further up the river affect us downstream.
Cllr Jenny Kent, executive member for environment and climate emergency at City of York Council, says the trail brings York’s watery history to life.
“It shows how water connects communities, landscapes and everyday life – and how approaches such as tree planting, habitat restoration and other nature-based solutions can help strengthen flood resilience here in York,” she said
“The trail is about helping people connect more deeply with the river and understand the part we can all play in building a more climate-ready city.”
Events and exhibitions
Mark Henderson, the council’s flood risk manager, said that understanding our flood risk means looking at the bigger picture.
“York has always lived with water, and understanding flood risk means understanding the whole river system – not only what happens within the city itself.
“The York rivers trail helps make those connections clearer and more visible.”
At Leeman Park and Tower Gardens you’ll find specially designed sculptural viewing frames. They’ve been set up to encourage walkers to pause and take a closer look at the shifting landscape.
While the frames at Leeman Park are temporary for the launch, they will be put in permanently later as part of upcoming riverside pathway and accessibility upgrades.
Schools are getting involved too, with a new rivers and us toolkit rolling out to primary classrooms across York and North Yorkshire to take geography lessons out of the classroom and onto the riverbanks.
The project has been delivered by City of York Council alongside project originators Ousewem, and is funded by Defra as part of a £200 million national flood resilience programme.
A full line-up of events, exhibitions, and activities will run across the summer. You can find out more and download a trail map on the City of York Council website, and share your photos on socials using #Yorkriverstrail.
