So Bucknell play park is a brand spanking new play park just down the road. If I’m honest i never knew that Bucknell was even the name of the area or that they had a play park to begin with. Its very well hidden despite going through the village regularly.
Its A Bitch To Find
As i mentioned its very well hidden and a bit of a bitch to find. I Will add the sat nav directions below which should hopefully make it a bit easier. Its directly opposite the church (That i didn’t know was there either). Just keep an eye out for the gate opposite and walk through there its not signposted at all yet but you should be able to see it down the path behind another gate.
Parking is sparse. Its on a residential road with no specific car park so i just park along the church wall. If you do plan to go try not to be dicks about it and be courteous of the residents.
The park is a beast. Its great for all ages so you’re in luck if you have both older and younger ones. They will be happy. So will you if you have young ones because this bad boy is fenced in and away from main roads. Little Houdini’s going no where.
The Bucknell Play Park Express
The 2 frames are timber structures along with a few other bits of equipment. Elliot however shot straight for the bight colorful train. I don’t normally like this type of play equipment because it fades and looks horrible after a while. But its brand new and it looked great. They don’t just have the train either. They have the train station with a ticket office which i thought was a great addition especially as Elliot’s really enjoying role play at the moment. Another good thing about the train….My arse will also fit in it so your’s is bound to too.
The see saw is pretty cool and not too strenuous on the legs because it doesn’t go all the way to the ground. I normally avoid seesaws with the kids because its like doing squats and i only squat when it involves either picking my kids up or my food that i dropped. This seesaw is more like a giant springy face twatter. Talking of springy face twatters this play park has 2.
Small Play Frame
The smaller frame is great. Lovely and safe for the smaller ones and less chance of them falling off face first (not saying impossible though) The slide is plastic thank god. We all know metal slides, sun and shorts don’t mix well. Oh and the slide is fast! Elliot for a brief moment believed he could fly.
The smaller frame also has a cool cargo net (a firm favourite with my two) a little house underneath and also a large variety of swings next to it too. I was pretty impressed with the swing choice because normally you have to fight over the 1 baby swing this park has 2 baby swing and 2 older swings along with a cargo swing in the middle. The cargo swing is so new it has no sag in it yet (Unlike my boobs after 2 kids).
Bigger Play Frame
Right the big bugger. The older kids frame. Its pretty big and pretty cool. The older kids will love climbing all over it. It has a cool slide the same as the smaller frame one only bigger and faster, A cool rope bridge, High balance beams, Huts to hide in and some rope pully uppy things. Its amazing it really has been designed well for the older kids in mind. However……….
If like me you have toddlers that can climb well you’re fucked (unless they listen to you) You wont be able to take your eyes off them as they manage to climb the wide, steep ladder. If they then manage to climb that without falling to their deaths (exaggeration for drama calm your tits) Then they will surely fall straight off the high rope bridge. In all fairness the gaps at either end i could have probably fit thought and I’m not small.
What I’m trying to say is you really need to scope out the larger frame before you let little people toddle off on their own while you have a gin and a catch up on Facebook. I managed to be able to sit down on one of the plenty of benches in the park and threaten Elliot enough that he didn’t keep trying to go on the big one while i sat on my arse for a bit.
Fucking Wasps!!!
This didn’t last long because it turns out that after being stung 3 times by wasps last summer (damn them all to hell) Elliot has developed a phobia of wasps! poor little thing shit himself and nearly threw himself from the top of the slide in terror. He bawled his eyes out until we left the park. Summers going to be fun unless i can somehow convince him (aka Lie to him) and tell him that not all wasps are fuckers. I doubt i’ll even be able to look him in the eyes when i spin that lie.
Bucknell play park is in the corner of a pretty huge field and that field also has other play equipment and sporty bits.
You’ll find a basket/netball hoop, some football goals, a table tennis table (take your own bats and ball, Lots of gym bits which if I’m honest i don’t know what they’re all for but if you’re healthy I’m sure you’ll figure it out and last but by no means least a zip wire!
The zip wire is pretty high up if you ask me which i loved as it saved my back when i had to run along side holding onto Elliot so he didn’t hit the ground like a sack of shit.
The Grass Is Greener On The Other Side
The fields not in the greatest of condition, The grass isn’t the greenest I’ve seen but its good enough for a run and kick about on. There is a big metal basket thing cornered off in the corner of the field too. Not sure what it is but it looks like an old fashion beacon of some sort that they set fire too….hope i haven’t given anyone any ideas there.
Unfortunately you’ll have to keep old furry bollocks at home (the dog) as dogs aren’t allowed in the field or the park. If you’re looking for dog friendly parks have a look at the park map HERE or drop me a message.
Bucknell Play Park Stats:
Distance from Bicester: 6mins
Sat nav: Bainton Rd, Bucknell, Oxfordshire, OX27 7LS, United Kingdom OX27 7LT this is the closest address to where the play area is.
Wheelchair friendly: Yes
Equipment upkeep: 10/10 Brand new
Cleanliness: 7/10 The fields a bit messy in areas
Facilities: 5/10 No Toilets close by.
Age range: All ages
Safety: 7/10 common sense needed in places and watch smaller kids on the bigger frame
Fun factor: 10/10
Dog friendly: No
Conclusion
Bucknell play park is a brilliant park its great because of how close it is to Bicester and its newness. Its got a great range of equipment which should keep all ages happy as well as plenty of space for running and ball games.
If you fancied taking a picnic there’s loads of benches in and around the park. Otherwise you could pop to the Trigger Pond which is a lovely looking pub I’ve not had the best experience with food there but some people rave about it. Feel free to read the review HERE
AOB
The map of all the free play parks that we’ve reviewed are HERE
If you know of any other parks in the area please pop a message on the Facebook page HERE
We hope everyone enjoys our park this bank holiday weekend. Please remember that a small group of parents maintain and fundraise to keep the park open for the residents of Bucknell. Any contributions would be most welcome to help our efforts.
Please also:
TAKE YOUR RUBBISH WITH YOU or PUT IT IN THE BIN PROVIDED
DO NOT TAKE DOGS INTO THE PARK OR FIELD AREA
PARK RESPECTFULLY. DO NOT BLOCK NEIGHBOURS ACCESS TO DRIVES OR HOMES
DO NOT BLOCK THE ENTRANCE (emergency vehicles may need access).
Thankyou!