Recreation Ground in Local Attractions

Stunning Views

A park at the heart of the town

Perched above Shore Road with views across Swanage Bay to the Isle of Wight, the Recreation Ground is one of the most historically rich and well-used public spaces in the town, a place where music, memory, and community life have converged for over a century.

The land was originally occupied by Eastbrook Farm. Acquired by the town before the First World War, it was only properly developed as a public space in the years that followed, shaped in part by the town's need to commemorate those it had lost. The War Memorial was unveiled in August 1920, the bandstand installed in 1923, and the ground gradually took on the character it retains today, a well-tended park that manages to be both a place of quiet reflection and a venue for summer celebration.

Access is possible on foot from Shore Road, Victoria Avenue, and Horsecliff Lane. The nearest car park is Mermond Place, immediately behind the Recreation Ground, where public toilets are also available. A residents' car park runs adjacent to Horsecliff Road. Both are pay and display.

In recent years the Recreation Ground has seen significant investment. The bandstand was fully restored in 2019 following a decade of neglect and storm damage, the Trevor Chadwick Memorial Statue was unveiled in 2022, and the children's play park bears his name. Together these additions have reinforced the ground's character as a place where Swanage's past and present meet.

Restored 2019

The Bandstand a sunken stage since 1923

The Swanage Bandstand is one of the most architecturally distinctive features of the Recreation Ground, a sunken cast-iron structure, deliberately set below the level of the surrounding ground to improve acoustics in the open air. It was built in 1923 by Scottish cast-iron manufacturers Walter Macfarlane & Co at the Saracen Foundry in Glasgow, to a design catalogued as the MacFarlane 224. It is one of only four surviving examples of this design in the country, the others are in Leamington Spa, Uxbridge, and Sevenoaks.

For much of its life the bandstand was a focal point of summer life in Swanage, hosting concerts by the Swanage Town Band and visiting performers. Storm damage in 2012 removed its roof and left the structure in a deteriorating condition, prompting concerns that it might need to be demolished. A determined campaign by local resident Alan Houghton and the Friends of Swanage Bandstand reversed that fate. Over two and a half years, the group raised more than £145,000 through donations and fundraising events, with significant contributions from Swanage Town Council, the Talbot Village Trust, and the Coastal Revival Fund. Specialist restorer Lost Art carried out the work, faithfully reinstating the original green and white colour scheme and the historic finial that had been lost.

The grand reopening ceremony took place on 26 October 2019, somewhat baptised by an autumn storm, yet attended by around 500 people. The Swanage Town Band and other performers now play a full programme of summer concerts there from May through to the end of August, and the bandstand has once again become the musical heart of the Recreation Ground.

Unveiled 1920 Grade II listed

The War Memorial a cairn of Purbeck stone

Swanage's War Memorial stands prominently in the Recreation Ground, overlooking the bay from a raised position that gives it the weight and visibility the town's sacrifice demands. It was first unveiled on 1 August 1920 and takes the form of a tapering cairn of natural Purbeck stone, a local material that feels entirely right for a monument rooted in this particular landscape. Stone tablets at the front and sides carry the dedication and the names of the fallen.

The memorial records the names of 99 Swanage men who died in the First World War of 1914–1918, and 65 men and women who lost their lives in the Second World War of 1939–1945. Unusually, it also names civilians killed in the bombing raids on the town during the Second World War, and a local man who died while serving in Palestine in 1948, a breadth of commemoration that reflects how comprehensively the wars reached into the life of this small coastal community.

The memorial is Grade II listed on the National Heritage List for England. In 2014, it was carefully relocated within the Recreation Ground to reduce the risk of collapse due to land movement. Annual Remembrance Sunday services are held here, and the memorial serves as the focal point for Armistice Day and other commemoration events throughout the year.

Unveiled August 2022

Trevor Chadwick the Purbeck Schindler

Standing beside the children's play park that now bears his name, the bronze statue of Trevor Chadwick is one of the most poignant and significant recent additions to Swanage's public space. Sculpted by local artist Moira Purver and unveiled on 29 August 2022, it depicts Chadwick with two children, a quietly powerful image that speaks directly to what he did.

Trevor Chadwick was born in 1907 and worked as a Latin teacher at Forres, his family's private school in Swanage. In January 1939 he travelled to Prague to bring back two refugee boys who had been offered places at the school. What he witnessed in Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia changed his life. He returned, working with the British Committee for Refugees from Czechoslovakia and alongside Nicholas Winton, who coordinated the operation from London, to select children in danger of deportation to concentration camps, secure their papers, and organise their transport out of the country. When official documentation could not be obtained in time, Chadwick sometimes forged permits to ensure children could travel.

By early June 1939, when it had become too dangerous for him to remain, Chadwick saw off a final trainload of 123 children and left Prague. He is credited with helping rescue 669 children in total. Nicholas Winton, who was himself knighted for this work, was explicit about Chadwick's contribution: "My associate Trevor Chadwick was in a much trickier situation. He did the more difficult and dangerous work after the Nazis invaded. He deserves all the praise."

Chadwick died in 1979, largely unrecognised. The statue, funded by a community campaign that raised £80,000, ensures that the town he called home remembers him properly. He is depicted looking out to sea towards the lifeboat station, a deliberate reference to his other role as a volunteer lifeboat crew member.

For younger visitors

The Chadwick Play Park & Santa Fe Fun Park

The children's play park in the Recreation Ground was renamed the Chadwick Playground in honour of Trevor Chadwick, and the Trevor Chadwick Memorial Statue stands overlooking it, a connection between a wartime story of rescuing children and a place where Swanage children play today. The enclosed play area is suitable for younger children and provides a safe, level space adjacent to the wider green.

Alongside the Recreation Ground, the Santa Fe Children's Fun Park offers a more colourful and commercially run experience for younger visitors. The Santa Fe features a Jurassic-themed crazy golf course, small rides for young children making it a popular destination for families looking for a few hours of activity near the seafront. Both the play park and the Santa Fe are within easy walking distance of the bandstand and the memorial, and the combination of green space, play facilities, and sea views makes the Recreation Ground one of the most family-friendly areas in Swanage.

Summer concerts in the bandstand

The Swanage Town Band and visiting groups play a programme of summer concerts at the bandstand from May through to the end of August, a free, open-air tradition that has defined summer afternoons in Swanage for generations.