Beale Wildlife Park and Gardens is situated by the River Thames, between the villages of Pangbourne and Lower Basildon in Berkshire, England. It has three main areas of attraction: collections of small exotic animals, farm animals and birds; landscaped gardens and woodlands; and children’s play areas.
In 1956, Beale Park was formed by Gilbert Beale who decided to give the 350-acre (140 ha) Thames-side park land to ?the people? by converting it from private farmland into a non-profit making, charitable trust. In those days it was little more than a track and a couple of ponds.
Over recent years, the park has expanded to accommodate a wide variety of visitors, especially the youngest ones. The park has recently built a Roplay area, a pets area, sand pits, paddling pools, Little Tikes Play Area, and the Beale Railway, a 1-mile (1.6 km) section of 10 1?2 in (267 mm) narrow gauge railway on which is run a diesel locomotive, “Sir Humphrey Davy”; and previously a steam locomotive, “John Remmy”, each capable of pulling 5 carriages and 50 people. Thirteen people were injured when a steam train crashed on the Beale Railway on Saturday, 27 June 2009.
For older visitors, there are the gardens, lakes, and the model boat exhibition.