Donnington Castle: A romantic ruin perfect for family picnics (Newbury, England)

Our autistic kids loved clambering over this castle's royal castle and picnicking in the sun.

DONNINGTON CASTLE

Newbury

We visited Donnington Castle (now maintained by English Heritage) with our two autistic children in 2024. It was a sunny bank holiday morning and the ruins were just 2 miles outside Newbury, only a 10minute drive from East Ilsey - where we were staying for the long weekend. (You can read my blog on Autism friendly activities for Families in Berkshire here.)

Donnington was once an imposing castle with royal connections dating back to King Henry VIII and Elizabeth 1. It was destroyed by order of the Parliament in 1646 after a 20 month siege during the English Civil War and now all that remains is the castle gatehouse and some of the ruins' foundations.

The walk up the steep hill was a challenge for the boys, however it great to see their real sense of achievement when they made it to the top. The view across the Kennel Valley was just beautiful, and despite comprising mostly of ground works the footprint of the castle still retained unique atmosphere, like stepping back in time. It was great to stand quietly in the centre of the space and imagine what it would have been like in Tudor times, with all the royal splendour and pageantry of state.

There was also plenty for the boys to enjoy, and they particularly liked jumping off the walls, clambering into interesting sunken spaces and crawling through window gaps and arches.

It was actually hard to get them to leave, and they only gave in when we agreed to walk down the far side of the hill towards the woods at the bottom. They had great fun running down the steep slope, 'getting lost' in the trees, and having to use their exploring skills to find their way back to the car park.

If you are in the area and have an hour of so spare I would highly recommend stopping by for a visit - whether you run wild like the boys, or sit quietly in contemplation - the medieval spirit of Donnington will find its way into your heart.

WERE STAFF FRIENDLY and WELCOMING TO OUR AUTISTIC CHILDREN?

The castle ruins are exposed to the elements and the gatehouse is not open for entry. The site is managed by English Heritage on a light touch basis - there were no staff or facilities on site.

WAS THE VENUE ACCESSIBLE? DID IT CONSIDER AUTISTIC CHILDREN SPECIFICALLY?

This is not an accessible venue. It is situated at the end of a long single lane track. From there visitors must climb a steep, rocky hill to the castle gatehouse - which is all that remains standing. Once at the top the ground is uneven and care must be taken while exploring the site, particularly in wet or windy weather.

WHAT WERE THE FACILITIES LIKE?

The are no facilities, only an information board.

DID WE HAVE TO QUEUE? WAS IT BUSY?

Visitors make their own way via one of two routes up the hill to the castle ruins so there is no queuing. Although there were plenty of families on site making the most of the sunny May weather there was plenty of room to spread out so it did not feel overly crowded.

The car park is small so parking is not guaranteed. While we were able to find a park it is hard to say what availability would be like during the summer.

DO THEY OFFER DISABLE CONCESSION ENTRY PRICE

Entry is free, there is a small charge for parking.

For more information please visit https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/donnington-castle/