A new era of play at Westonbirt Arboretum!
The idea behind the design for these natural play areas is to encourage all younger children, aged mainly between four to eight years of age, to engage in play that challenges and stimulates them. Whilst simultaneously providing an exciting way to socialise with other children and connect with the surrounding trees.
Collect a ‘Young Explorers at Westonbirt’ leaflet and map from the Welcome Building and enjoy the full journey of play and discovery in the arboretum.
Watch this space: Work begins late summer 2025 on another brand-new natural play area in Silk Wood!
This latest investment in our natural play areas, with more planned for 2026, is the culmination of more than four years’ work by Westonbirt's team alongside play focus groups and is jointly funded by the Friends of Westonbirt Arboretum and Forestry England.
Brand-new Exploratree is now open!
This play area provides plenty of new opportunities for imaginative play – including collaboration and investigation!
New and improved Exploratree creates an exciting natural play space for children to become explorers, weather forecasters, scavengers or plant hunters venturing out from the explorers’ ‘Weather Station ’ into the wild woodlands of Westonbirt and returning with natural treasures to investigate together in ‘Explorers’ Lab’!
This is a space for all to enjoy whilst exploring and connecting with nature through play – from toddler explorers to playful adult carer-explorers!
Branch Out
Located in the Old Arboretum, just off Circular Drive, this play area offers a new climbing, balancing challenge for children of all ages.
Nestled beneath an abundant canopy, the area features large Westonbirt oak logs with balance beams extending like roots and branches into smaller log and rope systems. This forest-inspired pattern of elevated play provides children the chase to chase, challenge and balance within the surrounding woodland.
Will your child be able to complete the Branch Out circuit without touching the floor? We hear it's possible!
Holford Hollow
This play area is found in the Old Arboretum, just off Main Drive. The play structures offer nature-inspired play space that blends seamlessly with the surrounding trees. Centred around a prominent oak tree, an elevated and wheel-chair accessible boardwalk not only gives children a bit of height in their play but also enhances accessibility.
Low-lying tree nets provide opportunities for tree canopy and sky gazing along with challenging balance exploration. Talk tubes, mimicking the mycelium root structure of fungi, provide endless 'walkie-talkie' communication fun. Climbing routes are formed from felled trees and logs and intricate carvings offer the chance for some more visual discovery.
Don't miss the new quiet hut hiding further along through the trees off Main Drive, to quietly watch and listen to nature around you, plus our well-loved Troll Bridge has been lovingly restored providing 'secret' access out to and in from the Downs. The perfect mini-adventure!
Ensuring inclusivity
Play at Westonbirt is all about enabling every child, at every stage of development, to engage in play. From toddlers learning to grapple with climbing skills to older children engaging in risky play, along with children with different abilities working to stretch their limits. It is essential that we give every child the opportunity to explore through play, and and to have fun playing together. Not forgetting that sometimes children simply love the chance to explore the world quietly in their own space, with parents and carers looking on close by.
In our recent additions of new natural-play areas, part of the design brief was to create a multi-generational inclusive and accessible spaces that help every child to reach their full potential whilst connecting with nature.
With support from experts in play design, Earth Wrights and Green Play Project, we have endeavoured to create spaces that offer a range of experiences for every child to enjoy.
Throughout Westonbirt we offer a rich variety of play experience through our natural-play areas found nestled among the beautiful trees along easy-access trails in both the Old Arboretum and Silk Wood. Providing adventurous, physical play activities alongside quieter, more creative ones. We want every child to enjoy imaginative play in this special place.
