Combe Valley Countryside Park

The Combe Valley Countryside Park spans approximately 2.3 square miles between Hastings and Bexhill on the East Sussex coast. Footpaths and cycle and equestrian routes offer good access to the Park from many locations in the surrounding area.

At Groundwork South we manage the Combe Valley Countryside Park Community Interest Company (CIC) and the Discovery Centre at the Gateway to the Park near Bexhill. We plan infrastructure improvements and run environmental education programmes in the park including the popular seasonal holiday clubs from our Discovery Centre and Café at Freshfields, Bexhill.

Volunteering in the Park

The Park offers a fantastic opportunity for local people and businesses to get involved in action-packed outdoor volunteering events. For businesses we can tailor unique team-building volunteering experiences for your employees. Please get in touch with ben.coles@groundwork.org.uk to hear more.

We also work closely with the Friends of Coombe Valley who coordinate regular park maintenance and habitat protection activities. If you’re an individual interesting in volunteering in the park, please visit the Friends of Coombe Valley Facebook page for the latest opportunities and information.

‘Recovering Combe Valley’ project receives National Lottery Heritage Fund and Defra support
Thanks to generous funding received through the Green Recovery Challenge Fund (administered by NLHF with funding from Defra), the ‘Recovering Combe Valley’ project began at the end of 2021. The programme aims to provide green job and training opportunities whilst providing a range of biodiversity enhancements across the park.

Working in partnership with Groundwork and the Friends of CVCP,  the CIC’s new programme ‘Green Teams’ will provide paid training opportunities for 10 local 16-24 year olds not in employment, education or training, utilising secured match-funding from the government’s Kickstart scheme. They will participate in a broad programme of environmental renewal projects, learning landscaping and horticulture skills to help secure employment whilst delivering park biodiversity enhancements.

‘Recovering Combe Valley’ will carry out a range of improvements including tree and hedge planting, wildflower planting, pathway clearance, and habitat enhancement right across the park. Having adopted a 5-year park activation plan, the CIC will continue striving to ensure that ‘Recovering Combe Valley’ is a very significant piece of a much bigger programme of sustained work and improvements over the next 5 years and beyond.

For more information on this latest project, please contact ben.coles@groundwork.org.uk.


For more information about the park, find us online:
To discuss getting involved in volunteering opportunities, the ‘Recovering Combe Valley’ project, or for any other enquiries, please contact: ben.coles@groundwork.org.uk
Thanks to our valued partners and supporters; including The Combe Valley CIC, The Friends of Combe Valley, Defra, Heritage Lottery Community Fund, Sussex Community Foundation, Foreshore Trust, Tesco Bags of Help and Hastings Direct.