Page 13 - The Land Trust Annual Review 2016-17

Learning life skills 42 WORK

Outdoor learning has a positive impact on young people’s
development and our work with schools and colleges helps EXPERIENCE DAYS
to build on these opportunities. Following an open day
visit to our Hassall Green Nature Reserve near Sandbach, AT WELLESLEY
Cheshire, a group of home schooling parents has also
embraced this philosophy. The nature reserve, normally WOODLANDS FOR
closed to the public, has now created new monthly
volunteer work party opportunities for a group of six parents
and ten children, aged 5-16 years, delivering health and LOCAL COLLEGES
educational activities and a valuable opportunity to socialise.
Other sites including Rabbit Ings, near Barnsley, also
work with home schooled children and their parents.
Our sites are also regularly used to host Duke of Edinburgh
Award and Prince’s Trust groups, as part of personal
development programmes.
Andy Hunt, Hassall Green Ranger, said:
“ Some of the children are very shy, but
working alongside other volunteers
has been a great way to learn about

nature and also built their confidence.
These sessions are described as
the highlight of their month.” Supporting secondary education
Our sites provide an ideal natural classroom to enhance secondary
and higher education. Many of our sites, including Beam Parklands
in Essex, provide opportunities for secondary schools to bring
science and geography to life with survey and identification
techniques in the field. Wellesley Woodlands in Aldershot,
Hampshire and Silverdale Country Park in Staffordshire have
both worked with local colleges and universities to provide study
sites and work experience which helps students gain practical
skills towards their degrees. Additionally, many of our sites are
used by study groups. Greenwich Peninsula Ecology Park was
this year visited by the Countryside Management Association to
share professional knowledge on the challenges and benefits of
creating urban wildlife sites. Northumberlandia is frequently visited
to learn about mining and landform art, whilst Fort Burgoyne, in
Dover, although closed to the public, holds regular historical tours.

Tony Day, Greenwich Peninsula Ecology Park Ranger, said:
“ The day went really well. It was very
interesting to meet people who work
in the same field but who are facing
different challenges at their sites –
we learnt a lot from each other.”

7,500 PEOPLE

TOOK PART IN

EDUCATION

ACTIVITIES

ON OUR SITES

the Land Trust Annual Review 2016/17 13