Sevenoaks community news
Sevenoaks community news, newest first: events, fundraising, heritage and the volunteer groups keeping the district's halls, clubs and theatres going.
Top story
Sevenoaks Rugby Club rent cut to peppercorn, £11,740 grants
Sevenoaks Rugby Club's £3,750 ground rent drops to a peppercorn after 25 December, and eight local charities share £11,740 in town council grants. Who got what.
Places and events to plan around
Bonfire Night
Fireworks near Sevenoaks 2026: 8 Displays, None on the 5th
Fireworks near Sevenoaks 2026: Nizels 6 Nov from £16, parking pre-book only; Tonbridge £11 advance to 23 Oct; Swanley free. Eight dates, none on the 5th.
Christmas
Pantomimes near Sevenoaks 2026: Robin Hood at the Stag
Pantomimes near Sevenoaks 2026/27: six shows priced, from £16 at the Stag to £28 at Bromley, with the cheapest dates and every relaxed night.
Days Out
Hever Castle day out: £25.50 an adult from 2 September
A Hever Castle day out is £25.50 an adult booked online from 2 September, up £3.15 as the summer VAT rate ends. Verified 2026 prices, hours, mazes and boating.
Days Out
Chartwell house tickets: £24 from 2 Sep, free on 14 Sep
Chartwell house tickets are £24 an adult from 2 September, £17 for garden and studio, £6 to park, and free on 14 September. Verified hours, dogs, buses.
Days Out
Ightham Mote: free on 17 Sep, then £19 adult, £4 to park
Ightham Mote is free all day on Thursday 17 September. Normally £19 an adult, £4 parking, no booking needed. Hours, dogs and buses, checked at source.
Days Out
Heritage Open Days Sevenoaks: Emmetts free 19-20 Sep
Emmetts Garden free 10am to 5pm on 19 and 20 September, Quebec House free all weekend. Knole and Chartwell have gone; two Westerham talks are still bookable.
Days Out
Lullingstone Castle: £10 World Garden, house open twice more
The World Garden is £10 and open Thu to Sun until 31 October. The house opens twice more in 2026, and the Roman villa next door is currently free to visit.
Christmas
Sevenoaks Christmas Lights Switch-On: Sat 28 November
The Mayor switches on the Sevenoaks lights at 4.30pm on Saturday 28 November. The High Street shuts from 1.30pm to 7pm, with rides, stalls and a grotto.
Remembrance
Remembrance Sunday Sevenoaks 2026: Sunday 8 November
Remembrance Sunday falls on 8 November 2026 and the Vine memorial has been restored. The service time, parade route and road closures are not yet out.
Days Out
Emmetts Garden tickets: £15 now, £11 from 1 November
Emmetts Garden is £15 an adult until 31 October and £11 from 1 November, with free parking. Hours, dogs, the Autumn Festival and the walk from Ide Hill.
Days Out
Penshurst Place: from £45 a family, and it shuts 1 November
Penshurst Place is £17 an adult and £48 a family, with free parking. The house and gardens close for winter on 1 November: what is left and the costs.
Latest stories
Council
The Stag: 600 pledges top £117,000, beating £100k target
Over 600 pledges worth more than £117,000 beat the £100,000 target to help Sevenoaks Town Council buy the Stag's £650,000 freehold. What happens next.
What's On
What's on in Sevenoaks this weekend, 2 to 4 October
A free food festival on the Vine, Sevenoaks Town at home, a Sunday tea for the over-55s, and the Leigh road closures for the half marathon.
News
Sevenoaks community news: Stag pledges beat £100k target
Stag pledges reached £117,000, beating the £100,000 target. Bradbourne Lakes is shut until summer 2027, and £5,000 grants close at noon on 6 October.
What's On
What's On in Sevenoaks: a Free Food Festival, Then Half Term
Free food festival on the Vine, Saturday 3 October, then Knole's autumn dates, Remembrance on 8 November and the Christmas lights on the 28th.
Sevenoaks
Pride & Prejudice goes Wild West at The Stag, 7 and 8 Nov
A line-dancing Pride & Prejudice plays The Stag, Sevenoaks, three times on 7 and 8 November. Tickets £35 plus a £1.50 fee, and there are no fixed seats.
Council
Greatness Pavilion up for grabs: ideas due 31 December
The old Greatness football pavilion is free and Sevenoaks Town Council wants ideas by 31 December. What is inside, what it won't allow, how to bid.
Otford
Hospices of Hope, Otford: 35 years marked with a carnival
The Otford charity behind hospice care in Romania and five other countries turns 35. Carnival on 10 October, board games at its bistro, then a wreath workshop.
Sevenoaks
Sevenoaks in Bloom wins three golds at Wisley awards
Sevenoaks won three Gold awards at South & South East in Bloom on 25 September, and the House in the Basement youth café was rated Outstanding.
Westerham
Westerham padel courts: five-court bid, comments by 13 Oct
Padel Up has applied for four covered courts and one open court, with floodlights, on King George's Field. Comments close 13 October, decision by 3 November.
Sevenoaks
Greatness pavilion: who paid the £2.1m and who built it
The Greatness pavilion cost £2,130,154 and opened on 18 September, top floor and all. Who paid for each part, who built it, and the playground next.
What's On
What's on in Sevenoaks this weekend, 25 to 27 September
A free Dolly Parton tribute on the Vine bandstand, Sevenoaks RFC's league opener, two markets, and a Sunday rail closure to plan around.
Crime
Westerham robbery inquiry: four arrests, 300 items seized
Four arrests and more than 300 exhibits seized, including weapons and suspected cloned plates, after an attempted motorbike theft in Westerham's Market Square.
Council
Vine PSPO extended to 2029 as Halstead consultation agreed
Cabinet confirmed The Vine's ASB order until December 2029 on Tuesday night, and agreed an October consultation on extending the Halstead car-meets PSPO.
Council
The Vine PSPO: order stays until 2029 as ASB falls
Cabinet approved the extension on 22 September: the order now runs until December 2029. ASB reports at The Vine fell from nine in 2023 to one last year.
Council
Silver Sevenoaks: free over-55s events October to December
Free leisure centre Sundays, a Silver Celebration tea on 4 October, a free Christmas party and 25% off golf: the over-55s programme and how to book.
Sport
Greatness Football & Community Centre opens after £2m build
Sevenoaks Town FC's new clubhouse at Greatness was opened on 18 September. What is inside, who paid the £2.1m, and the playground coming this autumn.
Sevenoaks
Hollybush football goals: petition open until 17 October
Residents want football goals on the big field at Hollybush in Sevenoaks. The district council ePetition is open to sign until 17 October. How to add your name.
Schools
Ightham Primary graded strong in all seven Ofsted areas
Inspectors found attendance extremely high and pupils achieving highly at the 206-pupil village school, with safeguarding met and no area needing attention.
Planning
Brittains Lane 284 homes: now for the Local Plan inspector
Comments on the 284 homes off Brittains Lane closed on 17 September. What sites ST4-4 and ST4-5 allocate, and why the inspector now has the final word.
Swanley
Swanley's Cherry Avenue playground reopens after £100k refit
New swings, slides and sensory panels are open now. National Lottery money paid £64,727 of the £100,000 rebuild of Swanley's Cherry Avenue play area.
Council
The Stag: £100,000 pledge appeal opens, closes 1 October
Sevenoaks Town Council wants £100,000 in pledged donations by 1 October to help buy the Stag's freehold for £650,000. How it would be paid for, and how to pledge.
Council
Sevenoaks community grants: £5,000 open now, close 6 October
Voluntary groups in Sevenoaks district can apply for up to £5,000 until 12 noon on 6 October. Who qualifies, the two application routes and every key date.
Council
The Stag: town council drops legal action, may pay £650,000
Sevenoaks Town Council has dropped its legal challenge over the Stag and is weighing a £650,000 freehold buy, funded by a loan, reserves and fundraising.
Council
The Stag Sevenoaks: officers back £650,000 transfer
Officers recommended handing the Stag to Sevenoaks Town Council for £650,000, or a 30-year lease. A late commercial bid complicates the 16 June vote.
Earlier stories
September 2026
August 2026
- Halstead Nursery graded strong in all six Ofsted areas
- Sevenoaks children can design a real Christmas light
- Sevenoaks School boarding house: listed consent granted
July 2026
- Hundreds turn out for Bradbourne Lakes festival as time capsule is buried in the park
- Free Family Fun Days return to Sevenoaks villages across the summer holidays
- Free Bradbourne Lakes summer festival returns to Sevenoaks on 11 July