Major UK theme park announces immediate closure after nearly 40 years

One of the UK's biggest theme parks has closed its doors

Oakwood Theme Park in Pembrokeshire nearly closed back in 2008, but was saved after a £25m investment.

However, in a statement, the park confirmed that they were not opening for the 2025 season due to a drop in visitors.

Aspro Park, who own the theme park, said that "future investment is unsustainable".

"All possible avenues have been explored to avoid the closure, and we fully recognise the impact of the closure on the local community and the loss that will be felt as a result," they added.

The company said that "unrelenting economic challenges" made up of electricity costs, food and drink inflation, the cost of ride parts and changes to national insurance have influenced the decision to shut.

"Unfortunately, we could no longer see a sustainable way forward and will seek to improve our other parks using the assets and where possible team elsewhere," Aspro Parks said.

They added that they felt 'sad' for those who were losing out on "a rite of passage for many young visitors".

Per their LinkedIn page, Oakwood Theme Park employed up to 200 people.

The Treasury responded to the closure and said "we understand this will be a concerning time for workers at Oakwood Theme Park and their families".

They added that the Budget meant "more than half of employers will either see a cut or no change in their National Insurance bills".

Oakwood first opened in the 1980s, and was best known for its four big rides - Megafobia, Vertigo, Speed, and Hydro.

Hydro was later renamed Drenched after a 16-year-old girl died after falling 30m from the top of the ride. A 10-year-old boy was also injured.

The coroner ruled out unlawful killing, and gave a narrative verdict.

In 2008, the park was fined £250,000 and ordered to pay £80,000 costs when it came out that staff had been largely ignoring safety measures while running the ride.