Public Sector Challenge - Surrey 2025

Follow the below directions using the interactive map:

1. 10am, meeting point

Meet at: Reigate & Banstead Borough Council Town Hall Car Park, Reigate, RG2 0SH.

• Leave Town Hall via footpath 25a through Castle grounds, behind High Street.
• Follow West Street until Footpath 30 which follows the Greensand Way north.

2. 11am, Colley Hill (2.6 miles)

• Follow Greensand Way around base of Colley Hill, before steeply climbing up to Colley Hill, past the Inglis Memorial.
• Join the North Downs Way with great views across Reigate, Leith Hill and towards the South Downs.

3. 11.20am, Sportsman, Mogador (3.6 miles)

• Leave the North Downs Way when you reach an access road and follow it north to Mogador and the coffee van in the Sportsman Pub garden for those that need a caffeine fix. The pub doesn’t open till noon, but for later starters or slow walkers, it gives a potential toilet stop.
• Then follow edge of Banstead Heath before crossing the historic Walton Heath golf course. Host of Ryder Cup in 1981, US Open Qualifiers more recently and past members include royalty (the first club Captain was King Edward VIII) and Prime Ministers such as Winston Churchill.
• Sharp left turn to head across a wide footbridge over the M25.
• Turn west above Buckland Hills slightly elevated above the actual North Downs Way route.

4. 12.30pm, The Coombe, Betchworth (Near Station) – Late start or early finish point (7.2 miles)

• Cross the bridleway to join Bridleway 98a in SW direction, which then joins up with the North Downs Way. Turn left onto Pebble Hill Road. There is a short section of footpath above the road.
• Turn right following signs for North Downs Way. This is just north of Betchworth Station for anyone who wants to finish early/join later/water station.
• The path climbs and you pass the historic Betchworth Lime Kilns at Betchworth Quarry.

5. 1.30pm Brockham (9.5 miles)

• The North Downs Way climbs up towards Box Hill. Instead you take some steep steps down to a lower footpath along the base of the ridge.
• Continue along the footpath avoiding all paths off. Worthwhile short detour up to Brockham Quarry, Surrey Wildlife Trust nature reserve. Turn south across the railway, cross the A25 and the road opposite leads into Brockham.

6. 1.30 - 2.15pm lunch

• Follow Brockham Lane into Brockham village and the Village Green. This is the suggested lunch stop with a choice of pubs and a tea room or a large green to eat a picnic.
• Lunch options in Brockham:
  • bring your own picnic and sit on the green
  • Reading Room Coffee and Cake House, Brockham
  • The Inn on the Green Pub (The Grumpy Mole)
  • The Royal Oak Inn and Meerkat Retreat Brockham
  • The TapHouse bar in village hall
• From the north east corner of the green, follow the footpath (Bridleway 52) across the River Mole which leads to the village of Betchworth. The path goes through the graveyard of St Michael’s Church, also the filming location for wedding no.1 in Four Weddings and a Funeral.

7. 2.40pm, Betchworth (Dolphin Pub) (10.5 miles)

• Cross the road past the side of the pub (The Dolphin pub in Betchworth is another refreshment opportunity) and as you reach the river, there is a footpath away from the road on the left hand side. Follow this through a field then turn left up Sandy Lane.
• Follow Sandy Lane north until a T-junction at Old Road. After a few metres follow a footpath to the right which climbs up steep steps (Footpath 466). After a few fields with horses in them, cross a stile and follow the indistinct path across the field. There is an electric fence with an insulated rubber handle grip to get through the electric fence to the stile at the other end.
• Cross the bridleway to a metal kissing gate and continue Footpath 466 across another field to link up to Dungates Lane. This field has a livestock sign but there were none at the time I walked the route. At Dungates Lane, turn right onto this quiet road and walk through Dungates Farm. The road becomes a track.
• At a junction of paths turn right which leads onto Reigate Heath Golf Course. Cross the course and head for a path up to the clubhouse and windmill. There is a chapel at the base of the windmill and anyone can visit by asking for the key from the clubhouse.

8. 3.30pm, Reigate Heath Windmill Skimmington Castle (12.5 miles)

• Pass the side of the clubhouse, past the windmill and follow a footpath south east which crosses a road and leads to the Skimmington Castle pub. This rejoins the Greensand Way.
• At a junction bear left which crosses a river. When you reach some houses and stables, take a footpath on the left (which avoids a narrow steep road)
• Just after some allotments, cross Park Lane to enter Priory Park. Pass around the top of Priory Pond and when you reach the Pavilion (which has toilets), turn left around the tennis courts north which brings you through the Morrisons supermarket car park.
• Climb the steps up to the High Street, cross the road and there is another footpath directly opposite. This brings you back to the castle grounds, turn right back to the starting point at the Council Offices.

9. 4pm, Reigate & Banstead Borough Council Town Hall Car Park, Reigate, RG2 0SH (14.3 miles)

Approx time to complete the full walk: 6 - 7 hours

End drinks

Pilgrim Brewery – The Cage by Morrisons Supermarket or Taproom at other end of High Street overlooking Cricket Club

Other information

Toilet Facilities/Refreshments:

• Reigate Town Centre - lots of refreshment options
• Reigate Town Centre toilets - Town Hall if open / Priory Park / Public toilets in park cafe
• Sportsman Pub - coffee hut in pub garden, pub opens at noon
• No toilets until Brockham
• Dolphin Pub, Betchworth
• Skimmington Castle Pub, Reigate Heath