Yet, this once-mighty industrial powerhouse now has the greenest city centre in Great Britain, with a whopping 61% of its catchment area given over to parks, woodlands and gardens, including one-third of the Peak District National Park, with its exposed moors and scrubby heathland. While the access to the countryside may not be new, the public appreciation of Sheffield as a truly green city has grown in recent years.

A fundamental shift came in 2012 when the city made headlines after council contractors began felling a number of healthy trees to make way for new saplings, something that unsurprisingly upset many local residents. Sheffield's tree debacle rumbled on for years until December 2018 when an agreement was struck between local campaigners and the city's council. From sapling stumps, a great green initiative grew and the innovative Sheffield Street Trees Partnership (SSTP) was created in 2019.

"There has been a lot written about the felling of Sheffield's street trees," said Nathan Edwards, Chair of SSTP. "Some say that the dispute has changed the narrative in the city, connecting people to their green spaces. I think Sheffielders have always had a connection to green space. The street tree-felling incident reenergised and brought to the fore something that perhaps was always there."

Today, with around 4.5 million trees across the city, Sheffield's tree population far outstrips its human one of just more than 550,000, with more trees per person than any other city in Europe. As Edwards put it, "this translates to approximately seven trees per resident with a tree cover percentage of 18.4%. This means that nearly one-fifth of the city's surface is covered by trees."

In 2022, SSTP's work bore fruit when Sheffield was recognised as one of the international Tree Cities of the World by the eponymous organisation that celebrates councils who proactively manage their urban forests.

Visitors to Sheffield can explore the city's green side via the enormous and ambitious Tube-style Greenground Map, which aims to celebrate all 800 of Sheffield's green spaces by highlighting the countless different trails and walking opportunities alongside existing routes like the 15-mile Sheffield Round Walk and the shorter eight-mile Blue Loop.

"I can honestly say it's the coolest city I've worked with," said Estonian graphic designer Helen Ilus who created the Greenground Map in 2021. "I don't know any other UK city with so much open space and opportunities to go out and get active."

Keen to get out and about myself, I borrowed sections from the Sheffield Round Walk adding an extension into the city centre, hoping to discover both history and green innovations along the way.

My morning began with a steady, puff-inducing climb the River Don Engine would have admired up into leafy Whiteley Woods then a zigzag down the hillside to a footpath alongside the trickling waters of Porter Brook, stopping at the Shepherd Wheel Workshop.

Dating from the late-16th Century, this waterwheel powered grinding stones for sharpening blades. Watching it fill and turn, it was apparent just how inextricably linked Sheffield's natural resources are to its industrial past with weirs, dams and man-made channels visible the length of the rivers.

I then followed the long snaking path through family-favourite Endcliffe Park, with its duck ponds, stepping stones and sports fields, before walking up to the immaculate Sheffield Botanical Gardens, a Grade-II-listed site with period pavilions and a variety of garden styles, from the prim and precise Victorian flowerbeds to the riotous Mediterranean and wild rock gardens – not to mention a rare 19th-Century bear pit.

Here I met Dr Laura Alston, education officer at the gardens, who confirmed, "it's brilliant to be able to travel through so many green spaces even in the urban environment. We are very lucky in Sheffield."

Continuing north, I came to Weston Park, the city's first municipal park opened around 1873. When Sheffield was aglow with factories, this ground-breaking park – an initial acknowledgement from the state for the need for green space – would have provided pockets of clean air and sanctuary for wealthier residents.

Thankfully, the importance of access to nature for physical and mental well-being for all is now a given – something demonstrated in the area of West Bar, where an innovative "Grey to Green" rewilding and drainage project has taken root. What was a derelict stretch of road is now a thriving, biodiverse corridor of flowers, sculptures, benches, bug hotels and information plaques. The soil is made up of recycled material, while the plants have been specially chosen to improve air quality and welcome wildlife.

It's a real regenerative success story that has given life to this once-neglected part of the city. Bees buzzed in and out of their man-made sanctuaries, colourful flowers swayed in the breeze and a reassuring sense of peace and calm flowed alongside the River Don.

I continued on and up through multiple parks and green spaces to the long tree-lined drive of Norfolk Heritage Park, which Alston had recommended for its "incredible history and views". A 28-hectare Victorian creation, this outdoor community space has plenty of room to play, wander and escape the city's busy streets. Looking northwards with an arc of woodland behind me, I marvelled at how the undulating green park spilled away to the valley-dwelling city. As I took in this great expanse of greenery, I felt surprisingly far from the Saturday afternoon bustle below.

As well as being the greenest city in the UK, Sheffield is the second-greenest city in Europe after Oslo, which pips this Yorkshire city to the green post with around 72% of green spaces.