Tregoad Holiday Park in Looe, Cornwall, celebrated the completion of a raft new developments this summer by opening its doors to members of the local community. Representing an investment of £2.5 million, the initiatives were focused on sustainability, and the introduction of new ways to protect the natural world.

At Tregoad Holiday Park, Cornwall’s largest wildflower meadow bank provides nectar for pollinators

The family-owned park, part of the four-strong Waterside group, chose a Saturday in July to showcase its achievements to guests which included members of the public, senior local authority and VisitCornwall representatives, and Tregoad’s local suppliers.

New features include the creation of Cornwall’s largest wildflower meadow bank covering more than 3,000 square metres, and seeded with high pollen-bearing plants. Nectar produced by the blooms, says the park, will provide a valuable foraging resource for honey bees, butterflies, and other important pollinators.

In addition, the park has invested £300,000 in planting hundreds of indigenous plants, trees and shrubs, and installed a range of new wildlife habitats. The living quarters installed throughout the park’s grounds include three traditional beehives, duck houses, plus bird and bat boxes made from recycled materials

This year, the park is also spending £36,000 on upgrading its popular wildlife walk. The move will add an additional 2km to its length, allowing guests to explore even more of the park’s rich and varied landscape, and to uncover its wildlife secrets.

The wildlife walk at the park has been extended, opening up new opportunities to enjoy the natural world

Matt Way, General Manager at Tregoad Holiday Park, said: “An important part of our guests’ experience is enjoying our wildlife, beautiful lakes, and woodland walks. We believe we have a responsibility to nurture and enhance our natural surroundings, helping Cornwall’s natural environment to thrive and contribute to a greener future.

“As well as focusing on wildlife and planting, we’ve been assessing everything that we do at Tregoad to ensure we’re operating as sustainably as possible.

“For example, we’ve introduced a new waste water treatment facility to allow the park to be self-sufficient, installed water refill taps, and reused construction materials across the site, such as our former toilet blocks which have been crushed and reused as road infill. We’re also continuing to work with Climate Vision to identify more ways in which we can reduce our carbon footprint.”

Tregoad Holiday Park works with more than 50 local suppliers, including Flotsam Flo which creates fashion accessories from waste which is difficult to recycle. Items are taken in, including old wetsuits, which are then upcycled by Flotsam Flo to be sold in its shop. The park is the first holiday park in the UK to go ‘full cycle’ in recycling, upcycling, and redistributing in such a manner.

Through its partnership with Flotsam Flo, the park is aiming to reduce its landfill by a further 10% this year – after diverting 80 tonnes of waste from going to landfill between 2022 and 2023 through switching to alternative waste companies.

Matt continued: “Collaboration is key to helping us tackle climate change. We’re proud to be working with like-minded businesses which champion sustainability and consider their environmental impact when planning their future investment and areas of growth.

“Our sustainability efforts complement our wider enhancement works at Tregoad. Over the past two years, we’ve introduced 100 new high-quality holiday homes and invested more than £500,000 in improving our guest facilities. Our holiday accommodation and facility improvements, alongside our sustainability initiatives, are helping us achieve our core objective of delivering an exceptional quality holiday experience,” said Matt.

Tregoad Holiday Park has introduced a new and exclusive gated development this year called Samphire Cove. The space features 12 holiday homes with luxury features including private decking and hot tubs, all of which overlook the park’s iconic valley.

Part of the park’s new Samphire Cove gated development of new privately owned luxury lodges

Tregoad Holiday Park was acquired by family-run Waterside group in 2020, representing the company’s fourth holiday park and its first in Cornwall. Under the ownership of the Jacobs family since 1963, the company celebrated its 60th birthday in 2023