Goodwin Fountain
89 jets rising straight from the paving with no basin, moved here from Fargate in 1998; the children's favourite in summer and usually switched off in winter.
Eighty-nine jets of water shoot straight out of the paving, with no basin and no railing, in front of a turreted Victorian Town Hall in Renaissance Revival style, finished in 1897. On the first warm day of summer Sheffield's children run through the columns of water until they are soaked, and their parents sit on the stone steps and let them. This is the city's front room, and you neither pay for it nor plan a visit: it is on the way to everything. The square was first laid out in 1938 on the site of the demolished St Paul's Church and christened St Paul's Gardens, but people immediately called it the Peace Gardens after the Munich Agreement signed that year, a peace that lasted less than twelve months. The nickname outlived it and was made official in 1985. What you see today comes from a 1997-98 redesign under the Heart of the City scheme: the Goodwin Fountain was moved here from Fargate to become the centrepiece, and the Holberry Cascades were added, eight bronze channels at the four entrances pushing around 57,000 litres of water a day down the terraces, a nod to Sheffield's five rivers and to the molten steel that made the city's name. Around the edges sit the Bochum Bell, a 1985 gift from the German twin city, and memorials to the Spanish Civil War volunteers and the victims of Hiroshima. It is free and never closes, and fifteen to thirty minutes is plenty, but the real asset is position. Walk out of the eastern side and you are straight into the Winter Garden, the largest urban glasshouse in Europe, and from there into the Millennium Gallery, both free (the gallery closes on Mondays). From the railway station it is about ten minutes uphill along Howard Street and Sheaf Square; the Cathedral and City Hall tram stops are a few minutes away. Ramps run beside the steps, so pushchairs are fine. Come with children in summer and bring a towel and a change of clothes, because they will not stay dry. In winter the jets are usually switched off, and in November and December the Christmas market spills into the surrounding streets and the square is busier than at any other time. Be clear about what this is: a handsome urban square, not a destination, and nobody remembers it a week after they get home. But it is the natural starting point for any walk around Sheffield and the place to catch your breath between the gallery, the theatres and the shops on Fargate. On a grey wet day walk through it to the Winter Garden without stopping; on a sunny one sit on the steps for half an hour and you will see why the city is fond of it.
89 jets rising straight from the paving with no basin, moved here from Fargate in 1998; the children's favourite in summer and usually switched off in winter.
Eight bronze channels at the entrances moving around 57,000 litres a day, standing for Sheffield's five rivers and its molten steel, and named after the Chartist leader Samuel Holberry.
Europe's largest urban glasshouse begins at the edge of the square, free and warm, the perfect escape on a wet day.
Pinstone Street, Sheffield city centre, S1 2HH
On a warm day, yes: they will run through the fountains for half an hour and you will not find a better free plaything in the city centre, so pack spare clothes. In winter the jets are usually off and there is little to hold them; pass through on the way to the Winter Garden and the Millennium Gallery and do not budget time for it.
They are not really competing. The Peace Gardens are a city-centre square you cross on the way to everything else, costing you no time at all. The Botanical Gardens are a real garden on the edge of the city with Victorian glass pavilions and long walks, worth half a day if the weather holds, and you will need a car or a bus to get there.