Visiting Uppark with your dog

A tan and white corgi stands on a gravel path attached to a red lead, with a green lawn and trees in the background. The dog is facing slightly to the right with its ears upright, while the lead rests across the gravel in front. — Stretch your legs, and your dog's | © Annapurna Mellor

Our garden and meadow are free to enter and make the perfect place for a stroll with your four-legged friend.

Walking at Uppark

You're welcome to explore the garden and meadow as well as pop into our café kiosk for refreshments. Uppark is set up high on the ridge, overlooking the South Downs - breathtaking views await!

We ask that dogs are kept on short leads at all time. Assistance dogs only in the house and historic tunnels. The meadow is sometimes grazed by livestock, please keep this in mind when exploring this area.

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 pawprint rating system and given all the places in our care a rating. You can find this information in the National Trust members’ handbook.

Uppark 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.

Facilities available for my dog

Water bowls are provided around the property. There are dog-waste bins by visitor reception and by the meadow.

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 avoids tripping up other visitors and 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