Crowborough - Sport and Leisure

Sport and Leisure

Crowborough has several recreation grounds, perhaps most notably Goldsmiths, which is the site of the local leisure centre. The Goldsmiths Recreation Ground was given to the parish by private owners in 1937. The town council has since purchased additional land and has developed the ground into a much needed recreation centre for the whole community. The ground houses a sports centre including a swimming pool, a boating lake and a miniature railway.

The largest public recreation space within the town boundary is Crowborough Common. This ancient common covers over 220 acres with public granted access "for the taking of air and exercise". The common is owned and maintained by Crowborough Beacon Golf Club. Most of the common is heathland and woodland, with less than half of the total area comprising golf links. With care, the public may access all areas of the common on foot, including the golfing areas.

The Crowborough Players, established in 1933, are the resident community drama group at the Crowborough Community Centre (opened in June 2012). After resting between 2009 and 2011, the group has 60 members . The Players are putting on their first production in their new home in December 2012; the pantomime, Cinderella.

Crowborough Athletic F.C. and Jarvis Brook F.C. are the town's main football clubs, and Crowborough currently play in Sussex County League Division One.

Crowborough Rugby Football Club won promotion from the Sussex leagues in 2006 and now plays in the London South 2 division.

Crowborough Tennis and Squash Club has nine outdoor all-weather tennis courts and four squash courts, as well as offering racketball and other sporting activities. The club competes in county leagues in both tennis and squash, with the club's first team in squash playing in the Sussex Premier League.

Crowborough Scout Group, the third largest in the UK, is actively involved with the Crowborough community.

Crowborough Country Park is a 16 acre nature reserve located in the southern part of Crowborough. The park started life as a clay quarry serving the Crowborough Brickworks that closed in 1980. Evidence of its industrial past can still be seen by the interesting topography on the site. The site of the brickworks was developed into Farningham Road industrial estate and housing in the area of Osborne Road. For nearly 30 years the quarry was left to natural regeneration and local people used it for informal play, with stories of swimming in the ponds and losing Wellington boots in the wet areas of the site. In 2008 Crowborough Town Council acquired the site with the intention of developing it for use by the Public for informal recreation and also to enhance the site's biodiversity. In 2008 work began in the Country Park with a stone track and bridges installed. The site was declared a Local Nature Reserve in 2009 ensuring the future management of the site for the benefit of the wildlife and for people to enjoy quiet recreation.