Old Park Hill view of a footpath in the woodland with trees overhanging from above
©Ray Lewis

Old Park Hill

Old Park Hill has a range of habitats but needs to be managed and restored to return it to its early 20th century character, when most of the site would have been open chalk land.

Opening times: open at all times.
Best time to visit: April to May, June to July.

  • Dog walking

  • No facilities

Size: 40 hectares.

Grazing animals: Cattle and Konik ponies.

Walking trails: Very steep and rugged, scarp slopes, the site is heavily scrubbed.

Dogs: On a lead

Not Wheelchair accessible. There are kissing gates and steep slopes from the car park. The reserve paths are rough with steep slopes.

About the reserve

Kent Wildlife Trust and the Port of Dover are restoring Old Park Hill by converting overgrown scrub into a mosaic of scrub with chalk grassland.

This site has a range of habitats including woodland, scrub, chalk grassland and neutral grassland. It has the potential to be a site for wildlife such as Adonis blue butterflies, reptiles and orchids.

Old Park Hill has not been actively managed for over a decade and as such the landscape interest of the site has been greatly reduced by the encroachment of scrub onto the chalk grassland and the neglect of the woodland areas.

Suitable conservation management would restore the site to its early 20th century character, when most of the site would have been open chalk grassland with scattered scrub and grazed with animals.

Volunteering

Volunteer work parties take place at Old Park Hill on Tuesdays and Thursdays (occasionally Saturdays) undertaking habitat management. Be aware that essential management can sometimes be noisy and if you are concerned it may disturb your visit consider visiting on a different day. If you would like to get involved, please visit our volunteering page.

Contact Us

If you need to get in touch regarding Old Park Hill, for any reason, please get in touch:

Karen Weeks
Contact number: 01622 662012
Contact email: karen.weeks@kentwildlife.org.uk

Environmental designation

  • Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB)
  • Local Wildlife Site (LWS)