Bradbourne Lakes in Sevenoaks will shut to the public from 28 September 2026 until early summer 2027 while the district council carries out what it describes as the most extensive overhaul of the five ornamental lakes since they were created nearly 300 years ago.

Residents who walk, birdwatch or let their children play at Bradbourne Lakes — including those near Betenson Avenue who use the surrounding paths daily — will lose access to both sides of the park for the best part of nine months. Sevenoaks District Council announced the closure date on its official channels, saying the site must be fully shut so the work can be carried out safely.

The project, which the council is branding “Bradbourne Re-bourne”, will drain and restore all five lakes, repair sluices, bridges and lake banks, remove accumulated silt, and upgrade paths. A new natural play area, an accessible toilet, and new habitats for bats and birds are also planned. Planning permission for the works was granted on 19 February 2026.

The bill for all of this is not small. The council has secured a grant of £1,633,549 from The National Lottery Heritage Fund — its main source of outside money — with the total project budget put at around £2.1 million, with additional funding drawn from housing developer contributions. Historic England is named as a partner in the wider heritage engagement around the scheme, alongside organisations including Kent Wildlife Trust, West Kent Mind and South East Rivers Trust.

The council says the work will fix long-standing structural problems and improve water flow and quality into the River Darent, which runs nearby. Those are genuine gains. But the closure is a real loss in the short term — a well-used green space disappearing from the map for nearly a year, affecting walkers, families and anyone who relies on the lakes for a quiet hour outside.

Any criticism is likely to land on exactly that point: is nine months of lost access worth it? The council’s answer, in effect, is yes — the lakes have structural and ecological problems that have built up over centuries, and patching them piecemeal is no longer enough. Whether residents near the site feel the same may depend on how far they have to travel to find alternative open space in Sevenoaks during the closure.

Key information

  • Closure date: Both sides of Bradbourne Lakes will close to the public from 28 September 2026
  • Reopening: The park is expected to reopen in early summer 2027
  • National Lottery Heritage Fund grant: £1,633,549 secured for the project
  • More detail: Sevenoaks District Council’s Bradbourne Lakes project page carries full information on the scope of works and the closure arrangements