8 Best Parks and Playgrounds In Leicestershire

Not really. Most of the leading entries are Leicester's own parks, and the county beyond gets a thinner showing, with Hicks Lodge and the farm entries as the main exceptions. That reflects what gets listed rather than what exists, because market towns have perfectly good rec grounds that never appear in any directory. If you live out in the county, use this as a list of places worth driving to rather than as a map of what is near you.

Open, uneven and much bigger than it looks from the car park. Bradgate Park Leicester rewards children who will walk and watch animals from a sensible distance. There is no equipment to speak of once you are into the middle of it, so a child expecting swings will need managing. Pushchairs cope on the main path and struggle off it. It makes a good half-day and a poor quick stop, and the difference is worth planning for.

The indoor marker covers four of the eight, though that number flatters the list. It includes the two farm entries, where indoor means a barn, and the trampoline park, which is indoor by definition. Among the genuine parks, an indoor marker usually amounts to a visitor centre or a cafe. If the forecast is the deciding factor, the misfiled entries are the ones that will genuinely keep you dry, and the parks are a coats-and-boots decision.

By what you want from the visit. Abbey Park Leicester has the most going on of the three, Victoria Park Leicester is open green space that suits a ball and a picnic, and Goldhill Adventure Playground is a purpose-built play site, not a park with equipment in one corner. Their ratings sit within a tenth or two of each other, so the score will not decide it. Proximity and whatever your child is currently in the mood for will.