Brooklands Pleasure Park

Updated June 10, 2025

BROOKLANDS PLEASURE PARK (Worthing): All You Need to Know

## Brooklands Pleasure Park, Worthing: Lakeside Play, Nature Trails & A Reborn Seafront Park

Brooklands Pleasure Park – now officially signed as Brooklands Park and Lake – is one of Worthing’s key green spaces, sitting just behind Brighton Road between Worthing and Lancing on the West Sussex coast. It has gone through a major transformation over the last few years: out have gone the traditional funfair rides and miniature railway; in their place you’ll find a restored lake, big new playground, fitness trail and nature-focused landscaping. & Worthing Councils

This guide focuses on what’s there now, what’s gone, and how to make the most of a visit with kids, dogs or just a coffee and a stroll.

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## Quick Overview

– Location: Brighton Rd / Western Rd, Worthing/Lancing border, West Sussex (A259 coast road) & Worthing Councils
– Coordinates: approx. 50.8205923, -0.3370427 (lake-side centre point)
– Type: Large seafront park with lake, playground, nature areas and walking/cycling paths & Worthing Councils
– Opening hours: The park itself is publicly accessible 24 hours a day (it’s open access, not gated).
– Management: Adur & Worthing Councils, with active community input from groups such as Friends of Brooklands and CYCALL inclusive cycling. & Worthing Councils

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## What Brooklands Looks Like Today (Post-Redevelopment)

### 1. Restored lake & nature focus

The lake and Teville Stream were heavily dredged and re-engineered a few years ago. Silt was removed, new free-flowing channels were cut and windmill oxygenators installed to help fish, aquatic plants and wildfowl recover. & Worthing Councils

Today that means:

– A healthier, clearer lake than in its pre-2018 era.
– Regular sightings of ducks, swans and other water birds along the edges of the lake, often noted in recent visitor reviews.
– A complete loop path around the water – officially described as a new accessible pathway circumnavigating the lake, with benches and shelters for rest stops. & Worthing Councils

This is the bit that works best if you’re treating Brooklands as a short coastal walk rather than a full day out at a theme park.

### 2. Adventure playground for kids

As part of the multi-million-pound transformation, Brooklands gained a large adventure play area with around 30 pieces of equipment, including two climbing frames over four metres high. & Worthing Councils

Key points:

– Equipment is modern and mainly built in natural materials (including ship-style structures similar to those used elsewhere on the Worthing seafront).
– There’s a focus on physical challenge – climbing, balancing, sliding – rather than coin-operated rides.
– The space is open-plan rather than fenced like a traditional toddlers’ playground, which is great for mixed-age families but means close supervision is still important for smaller children.

Recent coverage from the council and local press confirms that improvements to play areas have been completed and reopened, which addresses some of the criticism from a few years ago when much of the old equipment was stripped out during construction.

### 3. Fitness trail, glades and open lawns

Brooklands is now designed as a multi-use outdoor space, not just a kids’ funfair. Official plans and council descriptions highlight: & Worthing Councils

– A 1.55-mile (2.5km) fitness trail looping the park – good for jogging, prams and accessible walks.
– A flexible sports/events lawn for casual football, frisbee and community activities, surrounded by seating.
– A series of themed “glades” on the former golf course – including areas labelled for community gardening, nature play, “wind and winter” and more, with features like bug hotels, bird boxes and space for food growing. & Worthing Councils

In practice, this means you have a lot of open, semi-wild space behind the lake, which many dog walkers and runners now use instead of the old, more formal layout.

### 4. Sustainable lakeside café

A new sustainable café near the lake is one of the flagship elements of the regeneration scheme. It’s built from timber, with indoor seating and outdoor terrace areas planned as part of the masterplan, alongside a Changing Places accessible toilet. & Worthing Councils

Recent aggregated reviews point out that:

– The café is popular and can be very busy on sunny weekends, with queues and limited seating at peak times.
– Food and drink are generally rated as decent, but some visitors recommend bringing a picnic if you’d rather avoid queuing for ice creams and lunches.

If you’re planning a school-holiday visit with kids, treating the café as a backup, not your only lunch option, is sensible.

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## Accessibility, Inclusivity & CYCALL

Brooklands has made some meaningful steps towards inclusive access:

– The new perimeter path is explicitly described as accessible, encircling the lake with rest points and shelters. & Worthing Councils
– There are Changing Places-standard toilet facilities associated with the lakeside café development.
– The park hosts CYCALL, an inclusive cycling project that operates from Brooklands Park and provides adapted bikes and outdoor games for children and adults who might not be able to use standard cycles. & Worthing Councils

CYCALL notes that:

– It normally runs April to September, weather-permitting.
– Sessions must be booked in advance via phone or email.
– At the time of writing, the project is closed for winter and aiming to reopen in Spring 2026, so you should always check the latest update before planning a visit specifically around inclusive cycling.

For many families with additional access needs, this inclusive cycling set-up is one of the strongest reasons to choose Brooklands over a generic seafront playground.

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## A Note on Outdated Information (Miniature Railway, Boats & Karts)

If you search Brooklands Pleasure Park online, you’ll see plenty of nostalgic references to:

– A miniature railway
– Boating on the lake
– Go-karts, pitch-and-putt golf and various small amusement rides

These are historically accurate, but no longer in operation:

– The long-running Brooklands Miniature Railway was formally closed in September 2018 and the track lifted soon after.
– Urban-exploration reports from 2019 describe the park as being cleared of boat rides and mini-karts as part of the wider redevelopment. Urban Exploring Forums

Some third-party travel sites still list the mini train and go-karts as current facilities; those descriptions should be treated as out of date. When positioning the park in your content, it’s more accurate to frame Brooklands as a re-wilded, family-friendly green space with modern play and walking trails rather than as a traditional amusement park.

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## Practical Visitor Information

### Getting there

– Brooklands Park is located just north of the A259 Brighton Road, opposite the shingle beach, roughly 1.7 miles (2.7km) east of Worthing Pier. & Worthing Councils
– The official council address is:
Brooklands Park, Western Road, Worthing, West Sussex, BN15 8SA. & Worthing Councils
– Many mapping apps also show Brighton Rd, Worthing, Lancing BN11 2HP, which is the same area on the seafront road and will still get visitors to the correct entrance.

### Parking

Adur & Worthing Councils list two main car parks for Brooklands: & Worthing Councils

– A southern car park off Brighton Road (coast road), closest to the beach and lakeside.
– An eastern car park off Western Road, giving quick access to the back of the park and dog-walking glades.

Local parking arrangements (charges, time limits) can change, so visitors should always check onsite signage or the council’s “Parking at Brooklands” information before relying on older guidance. & Worthing Councils

### Opening hours & typical visit length

– As a public park, Brooklands is effectively open 24 hours, though facilities such as the café and CYCALL sessions keep their own timetables.
– Aggregated trip data suggests a typical stay of around 1.5 hours, which fits with a circuit of the lake, some time on the playground and a café or picnic stop.

For longer days out, many people pair Brooklands with a stroll along the seafront or additional attractions in Worthing town.

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## Who Will Enjoy Brooklands Pleasure Park?

Based on the current layout and recent feedback, Brooklands works best for:

– Families with under-10s who want a big playground, open space to run around, and easy pram-friendly paths around a lake. & Worthing Councils
– Dog walkers, thanks to the converted former golf course, now a generous walking area with paths being extended over time.
– Runners and walkers who want a defined 2.5km fitness loop without needing to leave the park. & Worthing Councils
– Visitors with access needs, who can benefit from the accessible path network, inclusive cycling project, and Changing Places-standard facilities when open. & Worthing Councils

It is less suited to travellers specifically seeking fairground rides, paid attractions or a traditional “pleasure park” experience – for that, you now need to look elsewhere on the south coast.

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Brooklands Pleasure Park

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