Sence Valley Forest Park (FE)
Terrain: Sence Valley Forest Park is a wonderful example of how a disused opencast colliery can be transformed into a diverse wildlife haven. After being planted with over 98,000 trees this 150-acre site was opened to the public in September 1998 as part of The National Forest. The park contains woodland, lakes linking to the River Sence, grassland and a wildflower meadow.
Parking: Parking Charges for parking. up to 1 hr £2 ,2hrs £2.50, 4hrs £3 and all day £4 Use phone app Ringo, 31072 some card only machines on site. Parking charges and payment
Safety: Refer to the Safety advice sheet.
Groups: make sure you have agreed your plans with Forestry England (FE) They will advise on safety aspects. Forest England has access charges for groups using the woodland for competitions or large training exercises, eg a whole school class. Normally FE won't allow use of the area from March to August for environmental reasons and requests to use the area must be made well in advance.
Score Courses: These courses are finding as many as you can in 45 minutes, with penalties for lateness. These are good courses for groups as you can all start at once and get back about the same time. You can also come back and try the course out again with a plan to do more.
For further information and known issues relating to controls, please see the Leicestershire Orienteering Club
Missing Plaques: Several replaced April 2025.
In summer it's likely some posts in the woodland will be obscured by vegetation
Map updated: Autumn 2019, revised map planned for summer 2025.
Courses Minor Updates April 2025
|
Course |
Controls /Length (km) |
Suitable for |
Estimated (mins) |
|---|---|---|---|
|
White |
11 /1.9 |
Beginner most children will need shadowing |
15-30 |
|
Yellow |
11 /2.4 |
A child with some experience |
25-50 |
|
Orange |
10 /2.8 |
Adult beginner /confident junior |
30-55 |
|
Light Green |
12 /2.8 |
Confident Adult or experienced junior |
30-60 |
|
Green |
15 /3.5 |
Experienced Adult, very experienced junior |
35-70 |
|
Score Easy |
24 |
Adult or child, beginners may find some sites too hard. |
45 |
|
Score |
24 |
Adult or child, beginners will find some sites too hard. |
45 |
Lengths of courses shown are in straight lines between controls, and the estimate of times are for someone running to someone walking. Both will vary depending on your route choice and ability.
Download a full map legend at Legend.
Feedback: Do let us know about any damaged or missing control points, please use our Feedback Form However our volunteers may not be able to remedy this quickly.
| 30 minute score | FREE | |
| check letters | FREE | |
| Green | £0.50 | |
| Light Green | £0.50 | |
| Orange | £0.20 | |
| Safety Risk Assessment Advice | FREE | |
| Score 45 | £0.50 | |
| Score Easy | £0.20 | |
| White | £0.20 | |
| Yellow | £0.20 |
| 30 minute score | FREE | |
| check letters | FREE | |
| Green | £0.50 | |
| Light Green | £0.50 | |
| Orange | £0.20 | |
| Safety Risk Assessment Advice | FREE | |
| Score 45 | £0.50 | |
| Score Easy | £0.20 | |
| White | £0.20 | |
| Yellow | £0.20 |
For more things to do at Sence Valley visit the National Forest .
Courses under test
Use the Maprun app. Maprun app Garmin watch owners may wish to use the sister app MaprunG, you will need a printed course map.
Your phone (watch) beeps when you get close to the feature (a virtual control detected by your GPS signal). Upload your results to see your position on the leaderboard.
We suggest you download a map from here but you can just use the one on your smartphone.
|
Course |
Length (km)/ Controls |
Expected Time (minutes) |
Suitable for |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Score |
4km 20 controls |
20 -40 |
Beginners, |
| Orange | 30-60 | For those with some experience |
Beginners there are a couple of features to help you navigate: Before the start' the location and track are always shown. Once you pass the start the location and track disappear ... unless you have enabled 'show track' or 'show location'. These features can be enabled in 'Options and settings' before you start. For some courses, we had added a ‘show me’ feature. Where it's available there is a button on the screen but you can only use it a few times.
To access the maprun map scan the QR code on the map. When you get near the start your time begins once your phone beeps.