Churwell Woods

Churwell is a suburb of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, between Leeds city centre and Morley. It is 3 miles (5 km) southwest of Leeds city centre and 1.5 miles (2 km) away from the Leeds United Elland Road Football Ground.

Interestingly, Churwell still has a semi-rural feel to it, with a number of farms in the area. Which is great considering its proximity to the city.

Churwell Wood is packed with things to do. It is a very family friendly woodland, and the community has put a lot of effort into maintaining it.

Woodland Walks

There are a number of mapped trails that can be walked in Churwell Wood. These can be seen on the signs at the entrances of the wood. Most namely is the short 2.5km route that starts by the miniture tailway and loops past Japa Wood and along to Jubilee corner.

Of course, don’t be forced into following tradition. We would recommend having a proper explore!

Churwell Woodland Miniature Railway

The woods has its own miniture railway! It is a 7 1/4″ minimum gauge railway.

Operating on a few Saturdays each month, Churwell Woodland Railway is a community run 7 1/4” gauge miniature railway. Built and maintained by a group of volunteers given responsibility for the maintenance and development of the woodland in Churwell, comprising Clark Springs Wood, Japa & Daffil Woods.

The railway generally runs on two alternate Saturday afternoons a month, April to October, and on special event days such as Halloween. There is occasionally food that can be bought from a stall by the railway station.

The railway was officially opened by the then Mayor of Morley, Clr. Robert Gettings, on Sunday October 9th 2016.

Activity Trail

Adults and children can playfully navigate the activity trail that runs next to the woodland pathway. This environmentally conscious installation will take the walker over stepping stones, on tight ropes, across see-saws and over balance beams.

Day Out with the Family

Churwell Wood is a perfect place to go for a day out with your children. There are lots of well- though out activities that connect them with nature, such as pond-dipping, a sensory garden, and a bird hide. Head to Jubilee Corner to find the sensory garden and pond dipping.

Walking the Dog

This narrow wildlife corridor is a good place to step off the concrete streets and let your dog sniff at nature. And will probably be more enjoyable for you as well. There are several dog waste bins to help keep the woods clean.

The name Churwell is first seen in 1226 in the forms Churlewell and Churlewall. The names comes from the Old English words ceorla (‘free man of the lower class, peasant’) and wella (‘well, spring, stream’).

Putting that all together – Churwell means  ‘spring of the peasants’.

Natural Spring

Churwell Environmental Volunteers, a local voluntary group discovered two small troughs where natural springs emerge from the ground. They found them whilst putting in new paths for the wood. The troughs are believed to date back to late 18th century

There are no toilets on site, or bins within the woods. On the entrance by the Community Field Centre there is a dog waste bin.

There is nowhere to get any food or drink within walking distance from Churwell Wood. However a little distance away on Victoria Road there is the Nelsons Fisheries. A fish and chips shop serving up some of the best battered goodness in Morley. Directly next door is the Nelsons Arms, a local pub with a great selection of beers.

There is no car park on site, but there is a small amount of on-road parking at Westwoodside, Churwell – Postcode LS27 7UQ (Google Map Link).

The main paths around the woods are packed earth, and where possible made to be wheelchair friendly. Some of the smaller side paths have not had this same treatment so we don’t recommend navigating the area with a pushchair or wheelchair after rain.