The place where I grew up, Trentham
It was great to go home during the Christmas break and spend time with my family. During my short stay I spent a day revisiting the places my mates and I would hang out whilst growing up.
Trentham is a quiet suburb in Stoke-on-Trent that is surrounded by open space, making it feel like a village. Not much really goes on here and there isn't that much to do in terms of entertainment but that didn't limit us as kids.
It's been many years since I visited some of these places and they were almost unrecognisable. But lots of it brought back some great memories.
Longton Brook runs through Trentham, which connects the Trent and Mersey Canal with the River Trent. Under this bridge was a popular hiding place during a game of 'Man Hunt' which was essentially hide and seek with extra rules.
Trentham Cemetery.
The River Trent.
The remains of the Trentham Estate
Since 2000 the Trentham Estate has undergone major regeneration. Unfortunately this resulted in the demolition of the Trentham Ballroom and Hall and many of the other buildings fell into disrepair.
North Trentham Park
Beside the new landscape gardens lies North Park. My mates and I would ride our bikes here to race through the woods and down the hills. It was one of my favourite past times when I lived in Trentham but at the time I don't think I realised the beauty of the landscape.
One of the paths we used to race down. It seems much less steep than I remember!
The rope swing tree. There are no swings here any more but a few severed ropes can still be seen tied to the largest branch. We used to play on these rope swings which swung out over a ditch. One Autumn my friend, Andy broke his arm when we thought it would be a good idea to let go mid-swing to land in a huge pile of leaves.
The view from the rope swing tree.
Part of the restoration project includes the planting of 10,000 Sessile Oak trees. This hill has a great panoramic view of North Staffordshire.
The remaining trees of the felled pine forest and the oak saplings that will replace them.
Learn more about Trentham, it's history and plans for the future at www.trentham.co.uk
Ant Tran is product and lifestyle photographer. Currently working at END.