Center Parcs staff member dies at Woburn Forest resort

Police were called to reports of a collision between a vehicle and a member of staff on Friday

A female member of staff has died at a Center Parcs resort in Bedfordshire.

The woman was taken to hospital for treatment on Friday after the incident at Woburn Forest resort, but died later that day.

Police confirmed they are investigating a “reported collision between a vehicle and a member of staff”.

“We are deeply saddened to hear of the passing of one of our team at Woburn Forest, our thoughts are with her family, friends and her colleagues at this time”, a spokesperson for Center Parcs told The Independent.

“We are in contact with her family, and we are offering support to them and any of our colleagues at Woburn Forest who have been affected. Center Parcs is working closely with all the relevant authorities following this incident.”

The incident happened at the Woburn Forest resort on Friday night (Mike Peel/Wiki Commons/CC-BY-SA-4.0)

Detective Sergeant Craig Wheeler, from the Bedfordshire Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Serious Collision Investigation Unit, said: “We are investigating a reported collision between a vehicle and a member of staff at Center Parcs Woburn Forest on Friday (22 September).

“The member of staff was taken to hospital for treatment but sadly died later that day. Our thoughts remain with her family.

“Anyone with any information about the collision is asked to contact us via the Bedfordshire Police website or call 101, quoting Operation Latymer.”

A popular holiday destination offering accommodation, sports activities and restaurants, Woburn Forest is one of several Center Parcs locations across the UK. The chain also has resorts in Cumbria, Nottinghamshire, Wiltshire and Suffolk.

In June 2023, a woman in her 30s died following a medical incident at the Elveden Forest Resort.

Suffolk Police were called to the site on Wednesday 7 June following reports of a medical emergency. The death was treated as unexplained.

Woburn Forest is one of several Center Parcs locations across the UK (Mike Peel/Wiki Commons/CC-BY-SA-4.0)

In 2022, a four-year-old boy died at the Wiltshire resort on Christmas Eve. He was believed to have suffered a “serious medical incident” at a swimming complex in the holiday village at Longleat Forest. Center Parks UK said that its staff had provided “immediate assistance.”

A mother-of-five staying at the leisure complex said the atmosphere was “very quiet” following the four-year-old’s death, and that the park’s TV channel was displaying a message that the pool was closed.

“Thankfully we didn’t see anything,” said the holidaymaker. “We noticed a big crowd all leaving the plaza, we were headed back to our lodge to have lunch before swimming.

“I checked my phone and saw the pool was closed due to an incident. The plaza is all open, the parc market, gift shops, etc, there is just a temporary barrier across the entrance to the pool itself.”