Families in Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent, will be able to enjoy a free community fun day on 6 June 2026. The Tunbridge Wells & Rusthall Commons Conservators are hosting the event at Rusthall Common to celebrate the town’s historic green spaces.
The day will feature local stalls and family activities near the cricket pitch. Visitors can also join guided walks to see Toad Rock and other sandstone outcrops found across the common.
This celebration comes as the Friends of Tunbridge Wells and Rusthall Commons continue a campaign to bring the land into community ownership. The group is raising funds following Targetfollow’s decision to market the Commons for sale: Targetfollow notified Tunbridge Wells Borough Council of its intention to sell on 26 September 2025 and issued a statement on 23 October 2025 that the 256-acre site was being marketed.
Organisers say the event is a way to remind residents that they have a right to use the land. The Commons are protected under the Tunbridge Wells Improvement Act 1890 and are listed as an Asset of Community Value (and registered as Village Green land), protections that enshrine public access and make development highly unlikely. The ACV listing also triggered a statutory ‘right to bid’ moratorium, giving local groups until 26 March 2026 to assemble any community offer.
While the borough council manages formal parks such as Dunorlan Park and Calverley Grounds directly, the Commons are managed by the Conservators and are kept in a more natural, ‘wilder’ state. This fun day highlights that distinct character compared with the town’s more formal parks.
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