Cuningar Loop Urban Woodland Park has been named as the winner of the Excellence in Planning for Health and Wellbeing at the RTPI awards.

The accolade was announced at the prestigious Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) Awards last night where the judges said the project showed "strong vision that is a driving force to delivering economic benefits to the area".

The transformation was a partnership between Clyde Gateway, the Forestry Commission Scotland and the council.

Cuningar Loop transformed a 15 hectare area of vacant and derelict land in Rutherglen into an urban woodland, providing adventure play areas, outdoor exercise facilities, cycle tracks, an outdoor classroom, a pedestrian boardwalk, viewpoints and a bridge across the River Clyde.


The site had been left derelict for more than 50 years and had become an attraction for antisocial behaviour.

Since it opened in March 2016 the park has had more than 175,000 visitors, surpassing its original target of 100,000 visitors by 2021.

In total, winning submissions were announced in 14 categories at the awards ceremony which took place in London on Wednesday 24 April 2019.

RTPI President Ian Tant MRTPI said: "Huge congratulations to all those who won or were commended in last night’s Awards for Excellence.

"The range of submissions this year was just tremendous and truly reflected the outstanding contribution that planning and planners make to successful places, sustainable environments, and lively, healthy communities.

"Nothing speaks up for planning so well as the great work showcased by our winning, commended and short-listed projects, teams and people."