Visiting Brockhampton Estate with your dog

Visitor with her dog on a walk at Lyme Park, Cheshire — You're welcome to bring your dog with you | © National Trust Images/Chris Lacey

The estate at Brockhampton is dog-friendly, with miles of woods and parkland to explore with your four-legged friends. Here’s everything you need to know about bringing your dog.

Our pawprint rating system

We’ve been working on making it easier for you to find out how dog-friendly your visit will be before you and your four-legged friend arrive. To help with this, we've created a new pawprint rating system and given all the places in our care a rating. You can find this information in the National Trust members’ handbook.

Brockhampton is a two pawprint rated place.

These places have water bowls, dog bins and dog-friendly walks. You’ll be able to take your dog into some areas, but not everywhere. If there’s a food and beverage outlet, you can have a cup of tea with them, probably outside. Read on to discover exactly where you can take your dog.

Where can my dog go?

You can walk your dog in the grounds at Brockhampton and on any of the waymarked routes. You’re also welcome to bring them into the courtyard, where there are water bowls, as well as through the orchards and around the outside of the manor house.

As Brockhampton is a farmed estate, you must keep your dog on a lead at all times. Livestock is moved around the estate during the year, so you’re sure to see roaming animals.

Deer also breed in the woodlands and it is important that dogs are not let off their leads where they can startle or chase the wildlife. Even if your dog has perfect recall, please keep them under close control at all times.

A flock of sheep with their lambs roaming the countryside in spring at Brockhampton — Lambing season at Brockhampton | © National Trust Images / Andrew Butler

Where can’t my dog go?

The only place we ask you not to take your dog is inside the manor house and inside food catering outlets, although they are very welcome to sit outside with their owners.

Facilities available for my dog

In both car parks you’ll find a dog waste bin. Please bag up and dispose of dog waste in the bins provided. If you forget to bring some poo bags, feel free to ask at visitor reception, where we keep an emergency supply.

Water bowls are dotted throughout the site while the lower courtyard, near the manor, also has water taps for muddy paws.

The Canine Code

We’ve worked with our partner Forthglade to come up with this Canine Code, which helps to make sure everyone can enjoy their day:

Keep them close: using a short lead helps to keep your dog from disturbing ground-nesting birds and farm animals. It's essential to use a short lead around sheep. But if cattle approach you, it's best to let your dog off the lead, and call them back when it's safe to do so.
Pick up the poo: please always clear up after your dog. If you can't find a bin nearby, take the poo bags home with you.
Watch the signs: keep an eye on local signs and notices wherever you're walking. They'll tell you if a beach has a dog ban, for instance, or if a path has been diverted, or if you're in an area where dogs can run off-lead.
Stay on the ball: remember that not everyone loves dogs, and some people fear them. So make sure your dog doesn't run up to other people, especially children.

Keeping control of your dog

Our definition of close or effective control is:

Being able to recall your dogs in any situation at the first call
Being able to clearly see your dog at all times (not just knowing they have gone into the undergrowth or over the crest of the hill). In practice, this means keeping them on a footpath if the surrounding vegetation is too dense for your dog to be visible
Not allowing them to approach other visitors without their consent
Having a lead with you to use if you encounter livestock or wildlife, or if you are asked to use one