Ledsham Bank nature reserve

What it’s like

A quiet limestone bank where kids can hunt for butterflies, wild orchids and rare pasque flowers on a free walk.

This one's a slow amble rather than a big day out. There's no play equipment, no café, no ticket booth, just a bank of grassland where you go looking for things. In summer that means butterflies, marbled whites, skippers, commas, both blues, and the site reckons you'll spot orchids too, pyramidal and common spotted, with autumn lady's tresses turning up later in the year. Get there at Easter and the pasque flowers are apparently the reason people make the trip, so that's the one to time your visit around if you can.

Winter has its own quieter draw, finches, thrushes and little owls, which suits a family who fancy a proper look rather than a run about. It's an hour, maybe less if your kids lose interest in flowers fast, and it's free, which makes it an easy add-on to another plan for the day rather than the main event.

Cattle and sheep graze here at certain times of year, so it's worth keeping an eye on younger kids and dogs around them, the site's clear that you shouldn't disturb the animals. Dogs are welcome on a lead, and there's free layby parking on Holyrood Lane, no faffing about with a car park machine. Pack a picnic if you want to make more of the hour, there's nowhere on site to buy food.

Facilities

Need to know

Parking

Free layby parking on Holyrood Lane

How long to allow

1 hour

Dogs

Allowed on a lead

• Pasque flowers appear around Easter, that's the best time to catch them
• Cattle and sheep graze the site seasonally, so keep dogs and kids close
• There's no shop or café, so bring your own food and drink
• Parking is free in the layby on Holyrood Lane

Plan your visit

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