A FLAVOUR of the great outdoors will be brought indoors when a pop-up park opens inside a shopping centre next week.

There will be artificial grass, trees, plants, sculpture and furniture to create a green oasis inside the covered mall at Airedale Shopping Centre in Keighley on Monday, December 5.

The imitation park is being created to help shoppers find out about the improvement work going on in one of Keighley’s real parks. Cliffe Castle is undergoing a major restoration funded by a £3.5 million grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund’s (HLF) Parks for the People programme.

The pop-up park is part of a consultation exercise by Bradford Council, Cliffe Castle Park Conservation Group and the HLF to find what type of events, events and activities the public would like to see in the real park.

It will also help to raise funds for the volunteer-run Conservation Group and raise its profile.

There will be a chance to meet’s staff and members of local groups such as the Airedale RSPB, the Airedale Beekeeper’s Association, the Forest of Bradford and the Cellar Trust.

Cllr Sarah Ferriby, Bradford Council’s Executive Member for Environment, Sport and Culture, urged people to visit the pop-up park to discover what was going on and add their own ideas. She said: “The pop-up park will provide a great way for visitors to get a glimpse of the future. The Cliffe Castle park project will complement the recent restoration of the museum and will help to create a wonderful asset for Keighley and the rest of Bradford district.”

The pop-up park also promotes the HLF’s Yorkshire’s Back Garden campaign, which highlights awareness of the region’s beautiful landscapes and wildlife, and helps local people to connect with them.

Drew Bennellick, head of landscape and natural heritage at HLF, said: “Nature is everywhere but few have knowledge of the vital role nature plays in sustaining our lives.”

The pop-up park will be in the former Body Shop unit in Queensway, near Costa Coffee and Burger King. It will be open for a week from Monday.

There is already a window display showing the plans for the park and historic photographs.