About National Trust Formby
Glorious beach with dramatic sand dunes, surrounded by sweeping coastal pinewoods
National Trust Formby Description
Rare plants and animals, prehistoric footprints and miles of coastal walks are just waiting to be discovered - part of Formby's amazing and ever changing landscape.
Enjoy breathtaking sea views or a picnic; head out on a bracing coastal walk or find out about Formby's fascinating coastal history with links to asparagus growing and the early days of aviation.
Whether you want to walk, run or ride there's something for everyone at Formby, the perfect place to get outdoors and active.
If you have any questions or comments please email us formby@nationaltrust.org. uk
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Reviews
Update on the Bonk Bonks (such a fab name) or musical instruments. They aren't repairable which is a shame. So,we're going to have a go at making a new Bonk Bonk. None of us are musical or know much about making Bonk Bonks so our question is, what type of wood should we use for the bits you hit? Hard wood such as oak or some other type of wood? if anyone can offer some advice, we'd be very grateful.
It's been a couple of days for things falling over. Sadly, the much loved "musical instrumen"t in the woods on Cornerstone Walk which has entertained young and old for at least twenty years finally succumbed to old age. We're just wondering whether to try building another (none of the Rangers are at all musical though). Any offers of help?
The other "falling over" was the giant sculptures of asparagus spears. Rot and fungus made them wobbly so we had to take them down today.
But, we've also repaired the roll out boardwalk and put it back in place at Lifeboat Road beach so that was the more constructive part of the day.
We found these two today. The "elephant"? was at Lifeboat Rd and the penguin was at Victoria Rd. They are keeping each other company but missing their people. If they are yours, we've got them safe in our office, so give us a shout.
Ranger Update It’s been a bit quiet on the Ranger News front these past few weeks. Most of our time has been spent picking up litter, emptying bins, finding lost children (horses and dogs) and fighting fires. So, it made a nice change for us the other week to have to fire up our trusty chainsaws and do a bit of woodland work. A large fairly old White Poplar tree came crashing unexpectedly to the ground over one of the paths near St Lukes Church. The tree was quite rotten insi...de and could no longer support its own weight. The sycamore next to it also turned out to have a lot of rot too so it was felt the safest thing to do was to fell that tree as well. Even though we carry out annual safety inspections of trees near paths, nature tends to follow its own timetable and things like this can happen quite suddenly. We’ve logged up the sycamore wood to process and sell as firewood but there is a good deal of debate around the quality of poplar as fire wood. An old old rhyme runs through the value of different types of wood for fuel, “Poplar gives a bitter smoke, Fills your eyes and makes you choke Apple wood will scent your room Pear wood smells like flowers in bloom Oaken logs, if dry and old keep away the winter's cold But Ash wet or Ash dry a king shall warm his slippers by.”
However, there are some people who are very happy to burn poplar. We’re just debating the possibilities of selling some this winter, any thoughts from our followers on the merits or otherwise of poplar as fuel wood? The last time we had much tree work to do was after Storm Doris, all the way back in February 2017. The effects of high winds can often seem quite random in the damage caused. Doris concentrated most of her anger on the trees lining Victoria Road, but only on the northern side of the road between the entrance kiosk and the area opposite the coffee stall. Most of the rest of the site escaped unharmed. A storm a few years earlier only caused damage in the wood near St Joseph’s care home. We’ve never really been able to establish why it happens like this, but it’s a pattern that repeats itself time and time again. Still, it’s an ill wind and all that. The timber donated thanks to Doris has been put to good use all over site, making signs and new bins and the surrounds to the bin stores at Victoria road car park. So nothing was wasted, with even the timber not good enough for building being sold as fire wood. The money raised this way all stays here at Formby and helps fund our conservation work. We’ll be starting to process and sell firewood from the end of September again so plenty of time to stock up in case the Beast from the East II hits us!
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Another thank you to the Litter Angels-27 of you came out to help and as ever, made a real difference. The next meet is Thursday 9th Aug at Lifeboat Road car park, by the notice board in parking bay 1, 7.45 pm
Don't forget-Beach Litter Angels meeting tonight 7.45pm Victoria Rd car park-everyone welcome-bring the family-it's a great way to get a bit of clean sea air and do your bit to protect marine wildlife.
Beach Litter Angels brought 31 (32?) volunteers with them last night. What a fantastic effort from everyone, thank you all so much.
Quick reminder-Beach Litter Angels-meet tonight 7.45 Victoria Rd car park-all welcome-we can provide equipment and gloves. Please feel free to join in.
We still have some places available on the Family Footprints event tomorrow morning (Friday 3rd August). Bring younger family members to find out more about Formby's prehistoric footprints. We will be searching for traces of the ancient people and prehistoric animals that lived here 7000 years ago. The event is ideal for 8 to 12 year olds and booking online is essential. More information and booking instructions at: https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/…/38ae 7de0-9…/pages/details
WILD FORMBY
High pressure has continued to bring hot, dry and sunny weather to the vast majority of the UK throughout July and recent forecasters have indicated more of the same for August. The summer school holidays usually implies our busy time here at National Trust Formby, however we have already had extremely high numbers of visitors during May, June and July.
August is traditionally a quiet month for birds, mammals and amphibians onsite but it’s the perfect time to ge...
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Yet again, thanks to the 27 Litter Angels who came out to help us last night. It was great to see such a wide range of ages. Your time and efforts make a real difference, not just to the visual appeal of the beach/dunes but also in helping protect marine wildlife. Thank you. And thank you Tracy and Amber and Carla for organising this group.
Next meeting is Thursday 2nd August-Victoria Road car park 7.45pm-all very very welcome.
It's #worldrangerday and a great chance to highlight the work done by the ranger team at Formby. Whether they are restoring the sand dune habitat, managing the woodlands for our red squirrels, creating paths and improving access for visitors or keeping the site clean and tidy the rangers are always ready for a chat about their work. Find out more about the team on our website https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/profiles /kate-martin
Sheep news. We've had a change in personell recently. The original flock of 16 ewes and wethers have gone back to Lancashire Wildlife Trust, to be placed with 10 of their rams. Spike and Arnie are back but with some alterations to their horns. We had to remove one of Arnie's horns during the winter as it got damaged so he's a bit lopsided now. And poor old Spike has had his top two horns shortened. Their impressive original length was making it difficult for him to graze or drink from the water troughs. I guess they were a triumph of form over function!
Don't forget, the group is meeting at 7.45 Tuesday 31st July and 7.45 Thursday 1st August. All welcome and all appreciated
Our car parks are now full and we are operating a one car in for one car out system. Please be aware that there are long queues and delays to get on to site.
Beach Litter Angels meet tonight 7.45 pm Victoria Rd car park-all offers of help gratefully accepted
The Formby Festival is in full swing! Come and see the National Trust staff and volunteers to have a chat and find out more about the work we do.
Proposals are being developed for the future care of the Formby coast. Your views are really important for this, so do come over and have your say.
We're busy getting ready for this year's Formby Festival. Come over and visit us at our stand,we've got kids activities, meet the Rangers and find out a bit more about our work, share your views on the suggestions for the future care of the Formby coast. Looking forward to a great weekend
Beach Angels did another wonderful job last night (19/07). Thank you Amber & Tracey for organising this and thank you to the 30 people who gave their time to help keep the beautiful beach and dunes clean and tidy. The next meet will be Tuesday 24th July at 7.45pm Victoria Rd car park-all welcome
We were first greeted by the friendly man at the kiosk and on the bunting were 2 red squirrels they were so cute we arrived in our large Motorhome 7.5 mtr and had no prob parking , beach was lovely sandy with some jelly fish that had been washed up lots of brick rubble from the collapsed old road lovely walks to asparagus fields on the walk in the woods was refreshing from the heat . Thanks
We made a special journey to Formby from Wolverhampton purely to hopefully catch a glimpse of a Red Squirrel.
We could not have been more pleased and surprised, whilst talking to the very polite and helpful man in the gatehouse, I glanced to the left only to see two Red Squirrels sitting happily on the fence looking straight at me.
Although I do believe the main car park is closed, parking was not a problem, I personally was not able to make it to the beach due to a back problem, but walked around the well maintained pathways within the woods without a problem, I cannot express how pleased I was to see for the first time Red Squirrels running happily around feeding and just doing what Red Squirrels do. I have so many brilliant pictures that I would like to share, if anyone would like to see them I have started to post them on my Facebook page, I will be re-visiting very very soon.
Very nice place. Beautiful forest,clean beach. And red squirrels are nice, but not a lot of them, maybe better to go autumn if you want to see them. We had a lovely family walk in this place )
So much to love about this place, the beautiful red squirrels the fab woodland walks. And of course my favourite number one beach, in fact that's where my profile photo was taken. I adore Formby beach.
Really beautiful... the beach is amazing and the walk through the woodland is stunning... there were crowds and crowds walking around and towards the beach and within seconds of walking in the woodland, you can't hear a thing! Such a peaceful place to visit. We went at the wrong time to see the squirrels (too busy/ late in the day) but we will definitely be back. Worth the hour drive, but I would heartily recommend getting there early, otherwise you will he queuing to park for a good couple of hours
Luv this place been goin since I was a kid so very long time 😜Took my granddaughter a few times these last few weeks an safe to say she's addicted cries when we're leaving loves the picnic area were she can play in the sand xx
Loved our day at Formby, squirrel walk was great with plenty of squirrels to be seen from the minute we parked up. Beach was fantastic, a lovely family day out..must say take a picnic if you intend to stay awhile because apart from an ice cream van that sells hot drinks and ice creams no where else close to go..will definately go again.
Love the work the Trust does here , never seen it looking so good , one minor quibble being I don't think dogs should be allowed on the squirrel walk because ive seen dogs spook them and there is plenty of other space for dogs to be walked to be fair. I saw poo bags on the walk last week early doors , I can't see the point of even using a bag if you are planning on dashing it on the trail , some people are daft. thanks for the many hours of toil and nurturing/ management of the space , it is a gorgeous part of the world , shall be cycling through early tomorrow hopefully tc bless
It was our first visit to Formby beach and definitely won't be our last. Arrived early and parked our motorhome easily which is always a plus for us. Huge beach so our dogs could have a run and grandsons aged 11 & 8 absolutely loved everything.
Im lucky enough to live in the caravan park my husband is the warden on site. I love walking through the woods its so tranquill n relaxing and see plenty of red squirrels and rabbits, the walk over the sand dunes onto the beach is breathtaking and i feel like the luckiest woman on earth to call this place my home ��
Had a lovely day, yesterday.
Met a family with a little black cockatoo that they got in Burnley. Circumstances had changed for them and they mentioned it was a little hard to have the puppy too. We'd have him in a heart beat! We're the ones with the deaf bichon. We were kicking ourselves that we didn't exchange contact details. Hoping they will see this
Beautiful beach and a wonderful place for children to paddle. The only problem being that it's really hard to get on and off the beach because of the sand dunes, so isn't suitable for prams or people with physical disabilities.
A lovely visit today, our first time but not our last I suspect! Boys and dog now worn out!
We had a great day out, parking wasn't an issue and we walked to the beach first. We came out on the right hand side of the caravan park and the beach was lovely. There were a lot of jellyfish on the beach so it made it hard to look out for the kids and the dog, but we dodged the washed up monsters as we played.
The squirrel walk was a nice setting but I'm confident there aren't any squirrels in the woods.
I was also amazed that people will happily pay for entry but will leave dog mess on most of the trails! It's such a shame as without the dog mess we had a great day!
I would love to see a cafe on the beach, but appreciate that the cost may be a limiting factor there.
4* from me
Really enjoyed our time here, the beach is so big that it never feels crowded which is great. Lots of dogs and people having picnics about. We brought our little cocker spaniel and she loved playing in the shallow sea and we couldn't get her out!
The forested walk to the beach was also very cool and there is loads to do there. The only reason why I am giving this only 4 stars is the parking not being able to handle the amount of people that they attract. We've come here multiple times and we've been told that parking lot was full and had to find parking elsewhere. Not impressed as we are National Trust members and pay to get free parking in these places!
Me&my 3 kids had a nice time today at formby beach untill we returned to the car and some one has broken in and stolen some items.
This spoiled the whole day for us BUT the beach is gorgeous and very well looked after it's just a shame about some of the visitors.
Absolutely stunning beach, fabulous walks through the forests (although some paths could be clearer signposted), have always loved coming to visit Formby sands and exploring the dunes. But today's visit has ruined it for me. The amount of litter on the dunes, the beach, the car parks, the walks... everywhere! It was appalling, and it has definitely put me off coming again anytime soon.
One and half hours waiting to park to get onto the beach and still sat waiting. What is the point in paying for National Trust membership and having a specifically named "National Trust Car Park" when you let anyone park there if they pay? I pay hundreds every year for this membership for my family and I question why whenever I go somewhere I can't get in?!! Just call it a "Car Park" instead it's better....
Travelled over 100 miles to come here and will end up spending more time sat on Victoria Road than actually seeing Formby beach. Congratulations NT!!
My daughter was walking here today and when she came back her car had been broken into and items stolen . Police not interested and no help from the Sexurity meant to be on the site. I don’t suggest parking here or single ladies visiting without others. Sad state of affairs but some great dash cam footage of the offenders!
We were first greeted by the friendly man at the kiosk and on the bunting were 2 red squirrels they were so cute we arrived in our large Motorhome 7.5 mtr and had no prob parking , beach was lovely sandy with some jelly fish that had been washed up lots of brick rubble from the collapsed old road lovely walks to asparagus fields on the walk in the woods was refreshing from the heat . Thanks
We made a special journey to Formby from Wolverhampton purely to hopefully catch a glimpse of a Red Squirrel.
We could not have been more pleased and surprised, whilst talking to the very polite and helpful man in the gatehouse, I glanced to the left only to see two Red Squirrels sitting happily on the fence looking straight at me.
Although I do believe the main car park is closed, parking was not a problem, I personally was not able to make it to the beach due to a back problem, but walked around the well maintained pathways within the woods without a problem, I cannot express how pleased I was to see for the first time Red Squirrels running happily around feeding and just doing what Red Squirrels do. I have so many brilliant pictures that I would like to share, if anyone would like to see them I have started to post them on my Facebook page, I will be re-visiting very very soon.
Very nice place. Beautiful forest,clean beach. And red squirrels are nice, but not a lot of them, maybe better to go autumn if you want to see them. We had a lovely family walk in this place )
So much to love about this place, the beautiful red squirrels the fab woodland walks. And of course my favourite number one beach, in fact that's where my profile photo was taken. I adore Formby beach.
Really beautiful... the beach is amazing and the walk through the woodland is stunning... there were crowds and crowds walking around and towards the beach and within seconds of walking in the woodland, you can't hear a thing! Such a peaceful place to visit. We went at the wrong time to see the squirrels (too busy/ late in the day) but we will definitely be back. Worth the hour drive, but I would heartily recommend getting there early, otherwise you will he queuing to park for a good couple of hours
Luv this place been goin since I was a kid so very long time 😜Took my granddaughter a few times these last few weeks an safe to say she's addicted cries when we're leaving loves the picnic area were she can play in the sand xx
Loved our day at Formby, squirrel walk was great with plenty of squirrels to be seen from the minute we parked up. Beach was fantastic, a lovely family day out..must say take a picnic if you intend to stay awhile because apart from an ice cream van that sells hot drinks and ice creams no where else close to go..will definately go again.
Love the work the Trust does here , never seen it looking so good , one minor quibble being I don't think dogs should be allowed on the squirrel walk because ive seen dogs spook them and there is plenty of other space for dogs to be walked to be fair. I saw poo bags on the walk last week early doors , I can't see the point of even using a bag if you are planning on dashing it on the trail , some people are daft. thanks for the many hours of toil and nurturing/ management of the space , it is a gorgeous part of the world , shall be cycling through early tomorrow hopefully tc bless
It was our first visit to Formby beach and definitely won't be our last. Arrived early and parked our motorhome easily which is always a plus for us. Huge beach so our dogs could have a run and grandsons aged 11 & 8 absolutely loved everything.
Im lucky enough to live in the caravan park my husband is the warden on site. I love walking through the woods its so tranquill n relaxing and see plenty of red squirrels and rabbits, the walk over the sand dunes onto the beach is breathtaking and i feel like the luckiest woman on earth to call this place my home ��
Had a lovely day, yesterday.
Met a family with a little black cockatoo that they got in Burnley. Circumstances had changed for them and they mentioned it was a little hard to have the puppy too. We'd have him in a heart beat! We're the ones with the deaf bichon. We were kicking ourselves that we didn't exchange contact details. Hoping they will see this
Beautiful beach and a wonderful place for children to paddle. The only problem being that it's really hard to get on and off the beach because of the sand dunes, so isn't suitable for prams or people with physical disabilities.
A lovely visit today, our first time but not our last I suspect! Boys and dog now worn out!
We had a great day out, parking wasn't an issue and we walked to the beach first. We came out on the right hand side of the caravan park and the beach was lovely. There were a lot of jellyfish on the beach so it made it hard to look out for the kids and the dog, but we dodged the washed up monsters as we played.
The squirrel walk was a nice setting but I'm confident there aren't any squirrels in the woods.
I was also amazed that people will happily pay for entry but will leave dog mess on most of the trails! It's such a shame as without the dog mess we had a great day!
I would love to see a cafe on the beach, but appreciate that the cost may be a limiting factor there.
4* from me
Really enjoyed our time here, the beach is so big that it never feels crowded which is great. Lots of dogs and people having picnics about. We brought our little cocker spaniel and she loved playing in the shallow sea and we couldn't get her out!
The forested walk to the beach was also very cool and there is loads to do there. The only reason why I am giving this only 4 stars is the parking not being able to handle the amount of people that they attract. We've come here multiple times and we've been told that parking lot was full and had to find parking elsewhere. Not impressed as we are National Trust members and pay to get free parking in these places!
Me&my 3 kids had a nice time today at formby beach untill we returned to the car and some one has broken in and stolen some items.
This spoiled the whole day for us BUT the beach is gorgeous and very well looked after it's just a shame about some of the visitors.
Absolutely stunning beach, fabulous walks through the forests (although some paths could be clearer signposted), have always loved coming to visit Formby sands and exploring the dunes. But today's visit has ruined it for me. The amount of litter on the dunes, the beach, the car parks, the walks... everywhere! It was appalling, and it has definitely put me off coming again anytime soon.
One and half hours waiting to park to get onto the beach and still sat waiting. What is the point in paying for National Trust membership and having a specifically named "National Trust Car Park" when you let anyone park there if they pay? I pay hundreds every year for this membership for my family and I question why whenever I go somewhere I can't get in?!! Just call it a "Car Park" instead it's better....
Travelled over 100 miles to come here and will end up spending more time sat on Victoria Road than actually seeing Formby beach. Congratulations NT!!
My daughter was walking here today and when she came back her car had been broken into and items stolen . Police not interested and no help from the Sexurity meant to be on the site. I don’t suggest parking here or single ladies visiting without others. Sad state of affairs but some great dash cam footage of the offenders!