The Country Park is located on land originally named Andrews Farm which dates back to mediaeval times. The farm was sold in 1890 and became the Southwater brickyard owned by CJ Mills. The site was taken over by Sussex Bricks and Estates Co. in 1907 who changed their name to Redlands Bricks Ltd in 1958. The railway yard in Southwater served the brickyard and was closed in 1966 as part of the
Beeching cuts. The brickworks closed in 1981 after producing 1,000 million red engineering bricks from Southwater clay. The brickworks chimney was blown up by a lucky resident who won a fund raising draw. In the 1920s the bones of a dinosaur (
Iguanodon) were found at the brickyard, fossilised in the clay. To commemorate this find, the statue of an
Iguanodon was created and is displayed in Southwater's Lintot Square. The sculpture is named 'Iggy'. To further celebrate Southwater's dinosaur history, a dinosaur themed children's park was created at the country park for families to enjoy. Other historic items have been found at the park dating back to 500 BC. The country park was finally finished and ready for the public in 1985 and had nature trails, lots of paths, seating, a beach to paddle, a dipping pond and two beautiful lakes. Lennox Wood had been within the brickyard since the 1960s. A new lake named Cripplegate Lake was man made from the quarries that were used to subtract the clay needed to make the bricks. Cripplegate Lake is over 30 ft deep at its deepest point. Southwater Country Park is a 70-acre site with three lakes and numerous access paths located close to the centre of the village. The Park contains a visitor centre with information displays, and also a café, a skate park, and a children's adventure playground, and Southwater Water Sports Centre with facilities for sailing and canoeing. The Country Park and the Southwater Area Community Centre both have direct access to the
Downs Link footpath/cycleway. Over the years the lakes have become home to an abundance of fish and many water fowl. Lennoxwood is a fishing lake which has
pike,
perch,
tench,
roach,
chubb and
carp up to 25 lb. Crucians and eels also live there. The park includes a beautiful wildlife area 'The Quarry', which is managed for nature conservation and supports wildlife such as lizards,
kingfishers,
nightingales,
herons,
buzzards,
red kites,
cormorants and various butterflies and dragonflies. There used to be a small pond used for pond dipping by groups of local schoolchildren.
Great Crested Newts were found which are an endangered species. The endangered
Bee orchid has also been found at the park. A pair of breeding
mute swans have lived on the park lakes for many years and they regularly travel between the lakes of the park. In 2021, the local authority erected a fence around the perimeter of the main lake which restricted the travel of the swans and led to an increased risk to the swans of dog attack when travelling between the lakes. This was especially dangerous for any cygnets travelling with the parent swans during spring and summer. A local resident, Amanda Botting, set up a petition to have the fence removed which gained 3,300 signatures. The petition was handed to the local authority, who recognised the concerns of the residents and installed a new Swan Gate in the fence to provide the swans easier access to and from the main lake in spring 2022. ==Church==