Irchester Country Park

Don't forget, our next 'Naturally Playful' event at Irchester is Friday 17th August - NOT Friday 10th. We look forward to seeing you on the 17th for a wonderful day playing in nature.

Thanks to everyone who came to our great 'Bendy Beasts' event today. We had a wonderful time making spiders, bees, butterflies, snakes and more. The 'Dancing Dragonflies' trail was fun too - we loved looking for the clues in the woods. Don't forget 'Naturally Playful' here Friday 17th August. £2 per child. We look forward to seeing you.

Here are some of the fantastic 'Bendy Beasts' we've been making this morning. Afternoon session starts at 1.30pm. See below poster for more details. We look forward to seeing you.

Don't forget our 'Bendy Beasts' event tomorrow. See below poster for more details.

Today! 1pm start :)

DATE ERROR - APOLOGIES - THE NEXT 'NATURALLY PLAYFUL' = FRIDAY 17TH AUGUST NOT 11TH AS STATED ON THE BELOW POSTER. WE LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING YOU ON FRIDAY 17TH!!

Thanks to everyone who came to our fantastic 'Naturally Playful' event today at Irchester Country Park. We had great fun making dens and sticky sticks. The bug hunting was good too and we even found a lacewing. Next 'Naturally Playful' here = Friday 17th August. We look forward to seeing you.

30th July 'Naturally Playful' afternoon session starts at 1.30pm. Drop in any time for nature hunts, bug hunting, natural art, den building, mud faces and much more. Perfect day - not too hot and not too cold so come and enjoy playing ... naturally!

All set up in the cool of the trees near the Nature Hut. Drop in and join us for our 'Naturally Playful' event today 30th July. See below poster for details.

Come along and go wild with your teddy. See if you can complete all the wildlife challenges on the trail and why not stay for a picnic with your teddy too?

Here are some of the fantastic highlights from our 'Naturally Playful' country park events so far this summer. Don't forget Irchester Country Park is host to this popular event Monday 30th July. We will be setting up in the shade near the 'Nature Hut' so come along and enjoy keeping cool in nature. See below poster for more details.

Please take note..

Thank you to everyone who came to our 'Naturally Playful' event today. We all had a wonderful time building dens, bug hunting, making mud faces, trying out the quizzes, going on nature treasure hunts and much more. See below poster for the next planned sessions.

All set up in the shade and ready for 'Naturally Playful' 24th July 10.30 till 1.00. There is a lovely cool breeze here so come and enjoy and cool off a bit in nature.

Daily between 21st July - 3rd September. Available form the Quarrymans rest cafe.

We love coming to the park, always lots to do and different walks each time we go. Great place for everyone.

This place is fantastic for kids it has lots to do and play and climb on.. and its all for free.

You can either take a picnic or eat in the cafe , the food is fairly priced and there was a kiddies tea on the menu, well worth it and very healthy. There was also a cafe van where you can buy food. Toilets and forest walks, plus activities in the trees, with people guiding. Just a lovely place

Once a month we meet up for a basset hound get together walk. Lots of hounds always have a lovely walk, plenty of space not to get in other peoples way and yet have great fun. Park always well maintained with new work being carried on. Definitely to be recommended for families with children and dogs. Cafe, ice creams toilets and picnic and play areas always popular. Even wheelchairs can get around.

Had a lovely day there with my two year old yesterday. May I thank the lovely lady in the cafe. My son was playing up and to help let me drink my coffee she read him a book. So very kind thank you!!! Xx

Fun day: lovely play area for all ages, walks to run wild & build dens, dinosaurs to climb on and sandcastles to build. Kept me happy for hours and I think the grandchildren/great nieces enjoyed it too!!!

Excellent play area, beautiful views, the food smells great. We loved it! Followed the black route and stopped to have our lunch half way around, there are plenty of benches and perfect picnic areas. I took my 6 year old daughter and 9 month old twins so I had the buggy but will definitely be back to explore the forest without the babies.

Bloody brilliant place with loads of activities! The only issue is we have to take our waste with us when leave, why can't there be a container at all? We pay for bloody car park where does that money go?

We all had a fab time yesterday, great for the little ones and older ones alike. We got there early & played in the play area then went for a walk around the forest.

One thing it lacks on is clean toilets & toilet roll not replenished. The toilets could do with a facelift and cleaned regularly as I did spot a dirty loo.

Parking £3 for the day & took a picnic. Cafe expensive but all these places are. Overall had an enjoyable day out.

Spent the day here for my sister's 3rd birthday, we had a bbq at the car while the kiddies played. We then went for a nice long walk/play in the woods, hunting dinosaurs. Finished with an ice cream and playing in the park. She had a fantastic day! Brilliant place to go for family days and exploring the woods! On down side was the girl serving us ice creams was more concerned with what was going on behind us and barely spoke to us.

Play area is great and the several wall trails you can go on. From 45 mins to 1 and half that depends who is walking with you. Our two teenagers enjoyed it as they could go around on own Pace. Stanwick lakes are better as they have bikes to hire..the cafe was excellent great full English and pizza available. Many took picnic. No bins around which I wondered way but it keeps the place clean

Lovely place to visit for a day. Did the perimeter trail which was beautiful, interesting and quiet away from the play / Park cafes etc. Husband said loos were dirty from lots of extremely muddy children but not sure what they could do about that! it was great to see so many youngsters playing. The cafe seems to be run by two young girls and definitely not fast but they were so lovely, however, they could use some help. The views over by the quarry were beautiful, we saw a deer and no sign of any dog poo not being picked up (saw this was a complaint in another review)

It's a good, well organised forest/park with a variety of walks and routes etc. Can get a bit 'swampy' in some places when damp but that's nature for you. Play park for kids is great. Cafe, toilets are OK. I would like to see them do more with the park and celebrate its history more perhaps. Check out Bewilderwood in Norfolk for an example... has a running theme throughout about nature and characters etc... not just a printed a4 laminated sheet with a picture of a (insert insect here) on it.

I give 4 stars as I travelled from Kettering with a 5.5 week old baby in a pram by bus to meet some friends and I was first to arrive and I was bursting for the toilet but could not go as the disabled was out of service(only toilet that will fit the buggy)

But also as time went on I needed to change my baby’s nappy, but although they have a changing room, it was up 5 steps and as I was by myself at that point then I could not change him until my friends arrived to help me up the steps,

It’s a bit pointless having baby changing facilities up steps



But the actual park was delightful and would visit again but this time I would try to arrive roughly the same time as my friends

I came with 6 children this week and we loved the play area and walking/climbing through the woods. It's a shame the Railway Museum was not open as the children were looking forward to it.

I gave 4 stars as I was unimpressed with the toilets. With 6 children visiting for the whole day, we went in a number of times. By the time I had the pram in, myself and 5 children, plus a queue of other parents, prams and children there simply was no room. The sink/hand drying area needs to be bigger.

Great place to visit for children and adults and dog walkers. Looks of interesting walks of different lengths and fun places to hid for the children. Parking good value £3 for all day. 2 great places to eat and plenty of room if you want to picnic. Great wood carvings as you go around ( I love them and wish you sold them ) and facts to read would be better if they where securely fixed though. Play area very good and lots of variety for all ages. Will be going to try the tree top walk soon.

Great place to go, parking price is reasonable if you are staying for a full day (£3 for up to 12 hours) but if like us, are only there for an hour it seems quite expensive.

I can't give it a 5 star review though because of the amount of dog poo on the paths. I know this is down to irresponsible dog owners (which makes me really angry) but there was a hell of a lot of it! Also, a huge number of plastic cups and ice cream spoons on the floor. Again down to irresponsible people, but when walking two 15 week old puppies this was a nightmare. Not an enjoyable walk for me & the pups as I was having to constantly move them away from plastic or poo!

On a good note, the paths are good and reasonably level for people with mobility issues, although it might me an idea to put up notices on entrances to paths to warn people that there are steps.

the park is lovely, lots of walks and a lovely play area for the children, cafe to get a snack and drinks, really nice, but the biggest let down and why i only gave 2 stars is because there seems to be so much dog poo around, when i visited on friday with my 5 year old grandson he stepped into dog poo soon as we arrived , so that really upset him and me. i didnt see any dog bins around, so am hoping i just missed them or maybe they dont do them, i shall check next time im there. please will dog owners pick up your dog poo, its disgusting to leave it, so small children step in it. rant over.

Warning to all patrons!!! There are frequently three young yobs 14 -16 using illegal air rifles in the park. Trying to shoot the wildlife and last night shooting at some youngsters sitting at a table, across a field. I have informed the police three times and the park staff twice and I see no action taken by either. Not even as much as a warning sign. Even though I have offered video footage of them in the act.I personally will be taking my dogs elsewhere in future as I'm sure it won't be long before they start taking pot shots at them.

Though I love the park and the walks I think it’s disgusting they can charge £6.40 at the The quarry man for two cokes and two fruit shoots ...



Talk about ripping your customers off !!

We love coming to the park, always lots to do and different walks each time we go. Great place for everyone.

This place is fantastic for kids it has lots to do and play and climb on.. and its all for free.

You can either take a picnic or eat in the cafe , the food is fairly priced and there was a kiddies tea on the menu, well worth it and very healthy. There was also a cafe van where you can buy food. Toilets and forest walks, plus activities in the trees, with people guiding. Just a lovely place

Once a month we meet up for a basset hound get together walk. Lots of hounds always have a lovely walk, plenty of space not to get in other peoples way and yet have great fun. Park always well maintained with new work being carried on. Definitely to be recommended for families with children and dogs. Cafe, ice creams toilets and picnic and play areas always popular. Even wheelchairs can get around.

Had a lovely day there with my two year old yesterday. May I thank the lovely lady in the cafe. My son was playing up and to help let me drink my coffee she read him a book. So very kind thank you!!! Xx

Fun day: lovely play area for all ages, walks to run wild & build dens, dinosaurs to climb on and sandcastles to build. Kept me happy for hours and I think the grandchildren/great nieces enjoyed it too!!!

Excellent play area, beautiful views, the food smells great. We loved it! Followed the black route and stopped to have our lunch half way around, there are plenty of benches and perfect picnic areas. I took my 6 year old daughter and 9 month old twins so I had the buggy but will definitely be back to explore the forest without the babies.

Bloody brilliant place with loads of activities! The only issue is we have to take our waste with us when leave, why can't there be a container at all? We pay for bloody car park where does that money go?

We all had a fab time yesterday, great for the little ones and older ones alike. We got there early & played in the play area then went for a walk around the forest.

One thing it lacks on is clean toilets & toilet roll not replenished. The toilets could do with a facelift and cleaned regularly as I did spot a dirty loo.

Parking £3 for the day & took a picnic. Cafe expensive but all these places are. Overall had an enjoyable day out.

Spent the day here for my sister's 3rd birthday, we had a bbq at the car while the kiddies played. We then went for a nice long walk/play in the woods, hunting dinosaurs. Finished with an ice cream and playing in the park. She had a fantastic day! Brilliant place to go for family days and exploring the woods! On down side was the girl serving us ice creams was more concerned with what was going on behind us and barely spoke to us.

Play area is great and the several wall trails you can go on. From 45 mins to 1 and half that depends who is walking with you. Our two teenagers enjoyed it as they could go around on own Pace. Stanwick lakes are better as they have bikes to hire..the cafe was excellent great full English and pizza available. Many took picnic. No bins around which I wondered way but it keeps the place clean

Lovely place to visit for a day. Did the perimeter trail which was beautiful, interesting and quiet away from the play / Park cafes etc. Husband said loos were dirty from lots of extremely muddy children but not sure what they could do about that! it was great to see so many youngsters playing. The cafe seems to be run by two young girls and definitely not fast but they were so lovely, however, they could use some help. The views over by the quarry were beautiful, we saw a deer and no sign of any dog poo not being picked up (saw this was a complaint in another review)

It's a good, well organised forest/park with a variety of walks and routes etc. Can get a bit 'swampy' in some places when damp but that's nature for you. Play park for kids is great. Cafe, toilets are OK. I would like to see them do more with the park and celebrate its history more perhaps. Check out Bewilderwood in Norfolk for an example... has a running theme throughout about nature and characters etc... not just a printed a4 laminated sheet with a picture of a (insert insect here) on it.

I give 4 stars as I travelled from Kettering with a 5.5 week old baby in a pram by bus to meet some friends and I was first to arrive and I was bursting for the toilet but could not go as the disabled was out of service(only toilet that will fit the buggy)

But also as time went on I needed to change my baby’s nappy, but although they have a changing room, it was up 5 steps and as I was by myself at that point then I could not change him until my friends arrived to help me up the steps,

It’s a bit pointless having baby changing facilities up steps



But the actual park was delightful and would visit again but this time I would try to arrive roughly the same time as my friends

I came with 6 children this week and we loved the play area and walking/climbing through the woods. It's a shame the Railway Museum was not open as the children were looking forward to it.

I gave 4 stars as I was unimpressed with the toilets. With 6 children visiting for the whole day, we went in a number of times. By the time I had the pram in, myself and 5 children, plus a queue of other parents, prams and children there simply was no room. The sink/hand drying area needs to be bigger.

Great place to visit for children and adults and dog walkers. Looks of interesting walks of different lengths and fun places to hid for the children. Parking good value £3 for all day. 2 great places to eat and plenty of room if you want to picnic. Great wood carvings as you go around ( I love them and wish you sold them ) and facts to read would be better if they where securely fixed though. Play area very good and lots of variety for all ages. Will be going to try the tree top walk soon.

Great place to go, parking price is reasonable if you are staying for a full day (£3 for up to 12 hours) but if like us, are only there for an hour it seems quite expensive.

I can't give it a 5 star review though because of the amount of dog poo on the paths. I know this is down to irresponsible dog owners (which makes me really angry) but there was a hell of a lot of it! Also, a huge number of plastic cups and ice cream spoons on the floor. Again down to irresponsible people, but when walking two 15 week old puppies this was a nightmare. Not an enjoyable walk for me & the pups as I was having to constantly move them away from plastic or poo!

On a good note, the paths are good and reasonably level for people with mobility issues, although it might me an idea to put up notices on entrances to paths to warn people that there are steps.

the park is lovely, lots of walks and a lovely play area for the children, cafe to get a snack and drinks, really nice, but the biggest let down and why i only gave 2 stars is because there seems to be so much dog poo around, when i visited on friday with my 5 year old grandson he stepped into dog poo soon as we arrived , so that really upset him and me. i didnt see any dog bins around, so am hoping i just missed them or maybe they dont do them, i shall check next time im there. please will dog owners pick up your dog poo, its disgusting to leave it, so small children step in it. rant over.

Warning to all patrons!!! There are frequently three young yobs 14 -16 using illegal air rifles in the park. Trying to shoot the wildlife and last night shooting at some youngsters sitting at a table, across a field. I have informed the police three times and the park staff twice and I see no action taken by either. Not even as much as a warning sign. Even though I have offered video footage of them in the act.I personally will be taking my dogs elsewhere in future as I'm sure it won't be long before they start taking pot shots at them.

Though I love the park and the walks I think it’s disgusting they can charge £6.40 at the The quarry man for two cokes and two fruit shoots ...



Talk about ripping your customers off !!