In the shadow of Saltaire’s landmark mill growers tend their plots.

The warmer weather brings the local alloment holders out in their droves. Come Summer this place will be a hive of colourful activity with people planting, nurturing and busying about with their vegetables and blooms.

Growing your own is the in-thing so it’s not surprising that a village whose very foundations are rooted in entrepreneurial spirit is now habited by people carrying on the legacy left by the mill magnate, Sir Titus Salt, who created and developed a place for his workers to look after and cherish.

Building houses close to his employees’ workplace – the imposing mill at Saltaire’s heart – was a practical move for a relevant purpose.

Today Saltaire is designated a World Heritage Site and the reason why it achieved such a prestigious status is simple – the community within Saltaire cares – from the family of the late Jonathan Silver who run the mill -– now a tourist attraction showcasing art work among retail such as homewear and jewellery – to the business people and residents surrounding it.

Parveen Kumari came to Saltaire in 1987 when she and her husband Karan Singh took over the Victoria Off Licence in Victoria Road.

Nestled along a traditional parade of shops, the fact the business has survived when many other local corner shops has floundered speaks volumes.

When Parveen isn’t busy serving the throng of customers she’s relaxing, tending and nurturing on her allotment plot.

While she loves living in Saltaire she sacrificed garden space for a yard. Taking on an allotment close to the canal six years ago gave her the opportunity to gain some green space where she could relax and unwind.

“Because we don’t have a garden at our shop, it is just a yard, I wanted something outside. Then we thought if we got an allotment we could work there and get some vegetables and spend some time out of the shop in the allotment,” says Parveen.

Lettuce, raddish, spinach, beans, tomatoes, beetroot and courgettes are just some of the vegetables and fruits they produce for themselves. “We just grow outside what we can, easy growing things,” explains Parveen.

“It’s fantastic by the canal and really relaxing and it can de-stress you!”

People are drawn here for various reasons, as with any destination. Convenience is one element; Saltaire has a train station – most mills were well served by rail transportation as mill owners such as Sir Titus recognised alternative ways of transporting goods other than by water.

Location is another reason. Saltaire’s canal provides a wonderful relaxing walk for those who regularly stroll it and Roberts Park, restored to its former glory in a £3.2m Heritage Lottery windfall and match-funded by Bradford Council, is a place for entertainment and enjoyment.

According to Roger Clarke, a tour guide in Saltaire and author of ‘A Penny for Going’ – a book about the village shops past and present, Sir Titus paid £13,000 to lay out the park, which was designed and landscaped by William Gay of Bradford, the designer of Undercliffe Cemetery.

Opened in 1871 as a place of ‘disciplined leisure,’ the park covers 14 acres, comprising a third as cricket ground and is the scene for band concerts from May to September.

Today, Titus’ legacy lives on in the specimen trees such as the primitive ginko and 75 varieties of holly which visitors to Saltaire were thought to have brought as gifts for Sir Titus.

According to those responsible for maintaining it, the park is more than just another park. It is one of the world’s prime examples of mid-19th century public landscaping which was endowed to the district by Sir James Roberts, another local industrialist who took over the ailing Salts empire in the early 20th century.

Malcolm Wright, parks and landscapes manager for Shipley, remarks on how wonderful it is to see the park restored to its former glory after suffering damage in previous years.

Boasting a new bandstand, play area and refurbished café – run by Saltaire Cricket Club – the park is increasing in popularity. Thousands flock here weekly earning the park its recent Green Flag Status, an award park staff, the trainee students who work here and The Friends of Roberts Park who help to maintain it, are all keen to retain.

For Sharon Ashton, chairman of the Friends of Roberts Park, the recreational space brings back fond memories of her childhood. “I live in what was my grandparents’ house in the village and I remember going there as a child with my grandfather. I can remember the rhododendrons being in flower and I can remember stopping at the sweet shop on the corner, which is now the art shop, on the way back,” says Sharon.

Since the refurbishment Sharon says locals have become extremely passionate about their park.

“People feel very protective of it. It isn’t a very big park but it is perfectly formed.

It has got everything you would want.

It has good views, heritage, lots of community involvement and we have fantastic park staff. We are very lucky,” says Sharon.

Close by stands the wonderful and imposing Saltaire United Reformed church, another landmark which the community are in the throes of fundraising for as part of an ongoing programme of restoration.

The church, the park and the mill, created by Sir Titus, define Saltaire’s historical importance. They have brought the past into the present and have become integral to Saltaire’s success on the tourism trail and its World Heritage Site status.

“Saltaire is what it used to be when you look back. You could go there and to the park and then on the tram to the glen. It used to be a day out and it has become that again,” says Sharon.