Dorset Playgrounds and Parks for Children

The playgrounds most Dorset families end up at are the two big country parks in the east, Moors Valley at Ashley Heath and Avon Heath at St Leonards, the timber play park on the Great Field in Poundbury, and the pirate-ship park at Lodmoor in Weymouth. Below are those four and ten more, from Lyme Regis to Swanage. Every entry was checked on 27 October 2026 against the page of the council, Forestry England or National Trust site that runs it.

We have not tested these playgrounds for this guide and nothing here is our own verdict. Each entry sets out what the body that looks after the play area publishes: the equipment, the ages it is meant for, whether it is fenced, toilets, parking and charges, and dog rules where they are stated. Where a council page says nothing about toilets or dogs, we say so rather than guess. This guide covers the Dorset Council area; Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole are not included.

Country parks and big days out

Moors Valley Country Park and Forest, Ashley Heath

Moors Valley is run by Dorset Council and Forestry England, and the park’s own site lists “two large adventure play areas”, a one-mile Play Trail of wooden play pieces through the forest, and an “accessible Bee Hive play structure”. Forestry England says you can “climb inside a giant ‘Hawk’”. The play areas are included in a visit; you pay for parking, which at weekends, bank holidays and in school holidays is £5.70 for an hour, £11 for two and £17 for the day, with cheaper off-peak and winter weekday rates. There are toilets, an accessible toilet, baby changing, a café open 9am to 6pm, 13 accessible parking spaces and wheelchairs to borrow. The steam railway runs at weekends, and Go Ape’s ropes courses are charged separately. Dogs are allowed. Horton Road, Ashley Heath, BH24 2ET.

Avon Heath Country Park, St Leonards

Dorset Council’s page for the play area says: “From zip wire to sand pit, there’s plenty to occupy any child.” It lists a zip wire, climbing wall, sand pit, tree house, giant insect climbing sculptures and a trampoline, close to the café and visitor centre and “only a short walk from the car park”. The council has consulted on a masterplan to refurbish the play area, including a possible toddler section and inclusive equipment; we found no date for the work. The park gates open 8am to 7.30pm and the visitor centre 10am to 4pm. Parking in the school holidays is £3.80 for up to two hours, £6.70 for four and £9 all day; after October half term the off-peak rates are £2.80, £5.30 and £7.50. Brocks Pine, St Ives, Ringwood, BH24 2DH.

Kingston Lacy, near Wimborne

The National Trust estate has two play areas inside the paid visit. The Trust says children can “scramble, clamber and slide” in the Woodland Trail play area, where the equipment might be a castle, a ship or a fort, and that the Kitchen Garden play area “takes inspiration from its surroundings for younger children”, with a buddy swing “suitable for even the smallest babies”. Under-5s are free; a child of 5 to 17 is £11.50 and an adult £23 without Gift Aid, and members are free. Parking is free. There is a buggy-friendly route round the Woodland Trail, baby changing, family toilets big enough for a buggy, and a children’s menu and high chairs at the Stables Café. On 26 October the Trust said sections of the Woodland Trail were closed after storm damage, with a 1.5-mile woodland route still open; check the Kingston Lacy page before you go. Dogs on leads are welcome on the woodland walks, not in the formal garden. Wimborne Minster, BH21 4EA.

Dorchester and Poundbury

Dorchester Town Council runs fifteen play areas; its play areas page describes each one. These are the four with the most on offer.

Borough Gardens, Dorchester

The play area in Borough Gardens, the town-centre park, is “fully enclosed”, with “facilities for all age groups”, the council says: baby and standard swings, rockers, a mini spinner, two kinds of slide, a multi-play structure and a seesaw. A splash pool opens on warm days, there is outdoor gym equipment nearby, and seating both inside and outside the fence. A kiosk beside the play area serves hot and cold food and snacks. The council’s page does not mention toilets or dogs. Borough Gardens, Dorchester, DT1.

The Great Field, Poundbury

The Great Field play park is built from large “bespoke wooden structures” based on Poundbury’s landmark buildings and offers “challenging play for all ages”, according to Dorchester Town Council. The timber play company Timberplay names the Buttercross tower as its centrepiece. The charity-run pavilion beside it has a toilet and serves refreshments, open Tuesday to Sunday, 9am to 5pm. Walk in from Peverell Avenue East, or take the bus to the Mansell Square stops. If you want to go indoors afterwards, 100 Giggles Coffee and Soft Play is in Poundbury too. The Great Field, Poundbury, DT1.

King’s Road, Dorchester

Dorchester Town Council’s King’s Road play area sits next to the football pitch, is enclosed, and is meant for “a mixed age group”. The equipment listed is baby and standard swings, a roundabout, two kinds of slide, a seesaw, a trampoline and a tree pole climber, plus what the council calls “a colourful original steam roller” for climbing on. There is football and basketball equipment nearby. The council lists no toilets or café here. King’s Road, Dorchester, DT1.

Castle Park, Dorchester

Castle Park has two halves. The fenced area is for “children up to the age of eight”, with rockers, a seesaw, baby swings and a junior multi-play structure, Dorchester Town Council says. Outside the fence on the large grassed area are a bigger multi-play structure, swings, football goals, a skate ramp and a BMX dirt track, which makes it one of the few Dorchester parks with something for older children. The council lists no toilets or café. Castle Park, Dorchester, DT1.

Weymouth and Portland

Lodmoor Country Park, Weymouth

Weymouth Town Council’s Lodmoor page says the Galleon Play Area “includes a large timber pirate play ship which caters for children aged 5+”, with bird’s nest swings, a springy seesaw and a slide on a hump, and a timber gym for children beside it. The council added a rope-end swing, a springer and a rotating climbing frame in its recent £70,000 upgrade of seven Weymouth play parks. The park also has a 2km green gym trail, the Rio Grande miniature railway, a nine-hole pitch and putt in summer and a small outdoor café. Public and disabled toilets are “open 24 hours a day all year round”. Dorset Council’s Lodmoor car park (satnav DT4 7SX) is pay and display from 8am to 6pm: from 1 November, £1 for 30 minutes, £5.60 for four hours and £9.50 for up to ten. It is about 15 minutes’ walk from the Esplanade through Greenhill Gardens.

Louviers Road, Weymouth

Weymouth Town Council’s play area on Louviers Road has a free skate park, which the council describes as “a quarter pipe, middle ramp, grind box, grind rail and half pipe”, and green gym equipment for adults, so it suits families with a younger child and a teenager. The council’s page lists no further equipment detail, toilets or dog rules. The council manages 18 play areas across the town and asks people to report a serious defect to parks@weymouthtowncouncil.gov.uk or 01305 239839. Louviers Road, Weymouth.

Easton Gardens, Portland

Portland Town Council calls its Easton Gardens playground “a well equipped secure play area set in the heart of Easton Gardens”, close to the shops and cafés of Easton. Dorset Council’s page on the gardens puts it at children aged 5 to 10. The gardens have held a Green Flag award, and the town council’s asset records list a toilet there. For older children, the council’s play areas page points to Grove, off Grove Road next to the Grove sports field, which has a large climbing frame, a zip wire and separate sections for younger and older children, and to Westcliff, the first play area the council refurbished, which it describes as a “brand new accessible play area”. Easton Square, Portland, DT5.

The coast: Lyme Regis and Swanage

Anning Road Playing Field, Lyme Regis

Lyme Regis Town Council’s parks page calls Anning Road its main children’s play facility: a “Jurassic and pirate-themed park”, refurbished in 2015, which “includes equipment for children of all ages and physical abilities, with a pirate ship at its heart”. There are public toilets and changing rooms at the Candles on the Cobb Pavilion on the field. Dogs are not allowed on the playing field or in the park. For toddlers the council points to Henry’s Way, a smaller park with equipment for toddlers and small children which it says is “completely enclosed”, also dog-free. Anning Road, Lyme Regis, DT7.

King George’s Field, Swanage

The play area on King George’s Field was rebuilt by Sutcliffe Play and officially opened on 20 May 2022, Swanage Town Council says. It has “two new fortress and tower themed multi play units with climbing and slides”, a variety of swings, a 20-metre timber trail, a four-way seesaw, and shaded seating and paths, and the old willow shelter was kept. The skate park is next to it. The field is beside Swanage’s Main Beach car park, a few minutes from the sands; the original gates on Victoria Avenue still stand. The council’s page does not give dog rules for the play area. Victoria Avenue, Swanage, BH19.

North Dorset

Langton Road, Blandford Forum

Langton Road is the largest of the four play areas Blandford Forum Town Council runs. The council says the site’s size allows equipment “suitable for children up to 12 years old”, including equipment for disabled children, and it was refurbished in March 2013. For under-6s the council’s Park Road play area, also with equipment for disabled children, and Larksmead, which has a swing for disabled users, are the smaller alternatives. The council’s page lists no toilets or café at any of them. Langton Road, Blandford Forum, DT11.

East Dorset

Redcotts Recreation Ground, Wimborne

Wimborne Minster Town Council’s Redcotts Recreation Ground has a children’s play area alongside a petanque pitch, a basketball area, a half-pipe skate ramp, a football kick-about area and a table tennis table, which makes it the town’s best bet for mixed ages. Council papers from 2024 and 2025 record work on the multi-play frame and quotes for restoring the “doughnut” play equipment. The council also runs a play area at Leigh Park Playing Field. Its page does not list toilets or dog rules. Redcotts Lane, Wimborne Minster, BH21.

How we chose

These are the play areas with the most published about them, chosen to spread across the county: the two big country parks and the National Trust’s Kingston Lacy in the east, and the main playground run by each of the larger town councils. They are not ranked. Each one was checked on 27 October 2026 against the page of the council, Forestry England or the National Trust; where those pages do not say whether there are toilets, a café or dog rules, the entry says so. Parking charges are the published charges and change with the seasons, and storms close country parks at short notice, so look at the park’s own page on the morning you go. Run a place that should be here, or spot something that has changed? Email newsdesk@dorsetpost.co.uk.

For more ideas, see things to do in Dorset, October half term in Dorset, what’s on in Dorset this month and Dorset’s dog-friendly beaches. For longer outings, read walks in Dorset, and for somewhere to eat afterwards, our guides to Dorset cafes and brunch in Dorset. Local businesses are listed in the Dorset Post directory.

Frequently asked questions

What is the biggest play area in Dorset?

Moors Valley Country Park and Forest at Ashley Heath has the most play of anywhere on this list: Forestry England lists two large adventure play areas, a one-mile Play Trail through the forest and an accessible Bee Hive play structure. Play is free; you pay for parking, £5.70 for an hour or £17 for the day at weekends and in school holidays.

Which Dorset playgrounds are fully fenced?

Dorchester Town Council describes the Borough Gardens play area as fully enclosed, and its King’s Road play area as enclosed. Castle Park in Dorchester has a fenced area for children up to eight. Lyme Regis Town Council says its Henry’s Way toddler park is completely enclosed, and Portland Town Council calls Easton Gardens a secure play area.

Are there free playgrounds with toilets in Dorset?

Yes. Weymouth Town Council says the toilets at Lodmoor Country Park are open 24 hours a day all year, and the pavilion beside the Great Field play area in Poundbury has a toilet and is open Tuesday to Sunday, 9am to 5pm. Lyme Regis has public toilets at the pavilion on the Anning Road playing field. All three playgrounds are free; Lodmoor’s car park is pay and display.