The Nature Discovery Centre

24/09/2026

Our annual stargazing evening is back on Friday 16 October!

Experts from Newbury Astronomical Society will host an evening of star-gazing and astronomy. If the night sky is clear, there will be telescopes set-up on the patio area for everyone to view the night sky, including planets and more. In the event of cloudy or wet weather, join us inside the visitor centre to enjoy two talks about astronomy.

There will also be telescopes and other equipment to view and experts on hand to answer your questions. The visitor centre shop and cafe will also be open.

Tickets are £6 for adults (children under 12 free).

Explore the night sky at the Nature Discovery Centre!

23/09/2026

Our Apple Day is back this year on Saturday 10 October! 🌳🍎 However, the harvest in our orchard has been poor, and we're now on the look-out for apples. 😢

If your trees have produced a glut and you can donate them for our open day, please drop them in. Thanks! 🙏



Image (c) Ross Hoddinott 2020VISION

12/09/2026

Have you seen this amazing purple drink? It's an iced Ube - it tastes a little like coconut but is also totally different. Try it out next time you visit the cafe - it's delicious!

11/09/2026

🎂 Our Nature Memories Café is two years old!

The Nature Memories Café provides a supportive space for West Berkshire residents living with dementia, together with their loved ones and carers.

We were able to restart these monthly sessions in September 2024, thanks to the generosity of local and national charitable trusts and individual donors, and have been going strong ever since.

If the weather suits, you'll find us outside the Lakeside Room enjoying the views, having a stroll, or maybe feeding the ducks 🦆

This coming Tuesday (15th September) our theme is 'Bees' so we'll hear about bee-keeping and have some bee-themed activities. And of course, celebrate our second birthday 🐝

The free drop-in sessions are run by staff and volunteers who are on-hand to welcome and chat with guests, and help them with nature-themed crafts and activities.

👉 New attendees are welcome and should contact [email protected] or 01635 874381

10/09/2026

We're winners! 🏆 Last night we attended the Newbury In Bloom Awards event, and won a Silver in the Community Project category.

Thank you to all our volunteers and community partners (Eight Bells for Mental Health, Thatcham Cancer Support and Engaging Potential) for all your hard work this summer. 🥰

09/09/2026

📚️ Calling all summer readers! We're running low on our stocks of pre-loved adult fiction books and would love any of your donations! Also wanted are children's books, nature-related non-fiction and jigsaws. Thank-you! 😘

04/09/2026

🌻 It's been a tough year for gardeners - the hot weather has been a challenge and we're all learning what plants are drought-resistant (the hard way!)

The flower beds around the visitor centre have been tended to by a small army of volunteers, not only our own, but also those from Eight Bells for Mental Health, Thatcham Cancer Support Group and students from Engaging Potential. They've done a great job, keeping as much alive as possible, watering much of the time by using lake water.

Next week we'll be attending the Newbury in Bloom Awards evening - keep your fingers crossed for us! 🥰

02/09/2026

Our team of volunteers spent much of yesterday taking advantage of the low water level in the lake, and worked along the vegetation in front of the patio area, reducing the height of the shrubs.

The before and after photos give a good idea of how much of the view across the lake had been obscured! 🥰

01/09/2026

Getting ready for back to school and missing a water bottle? 🍶 Lost a hat or sunglasses? 😎 We've found a multitude of lost property over the summer and would love to reunite as much as possible!

Please drop in to collect your items or enquire by email at [email protected] with a detailed description.

We will donate or recycle items after three months. 😍

31/08/2026

Monday morning reminder - we're open today! 😍

Today is the last Monday we'll be open, as the kids return to school this week. The visitor centre and cafe will be open from 10am - 4pm today.

We look forward to seeing you!