Hartshill Hayes Country Park is top of the class for educational visits after it was awarded the prestigious Learning Outside the Classroom (LOtC) quality badge for the first time.
The beautiful Country Park, outside of Nuneaton, joins two of Warwickshire’s other country parks – Kingsbury Water Park and Ryton Pools Country Park – in receiving the quality badge for outdoor educational services.
Hartshill Hayes Country Park is a hidden gem with its 137 acres offering woodlands, open hilltop meadows, and panoramic views over the Anker Valley.
The Park has a long history of human use and habitation, and the woods are ancient and species-rich; a fantastic place for learning about wildlife, nature, and history. Facilities on-site that including a playground, toilets and an outdoor shelter. It currently offers five school programmes and is looking to expand this offer in the future.
The LOtC quality badge recognises both the quality of the learning outside the classroom, and also the safety of the setting.
The LOtC Quality Badge was launched in 2009 as part of the Learning Outside the Classroom Manifesto, a national initiative to ensure young people are given more opportunities for varied outdoor experiences as part of the curriculum.
The award is given after a rigorous assessment process to ensure six quality indicators have been met:
- A process is in place to assist visitors to plan their learning experience effectively.
- Accurate information is provided about the activities on offer.
- Activities, experiences or resources are provided which meet learner needs.
- The experience is reviewed and feedback is acted upon.
- The needs of visitors are met.
- Robust safety management process are in place to manage risk effectively.
Cllr Heather Timms, WCC’s portfolio holder for Environment and Heritage and Culture said: “Educational trips are among the most memorable experiences in a child’s school life and there is a wealth of evidence to support the benefits of learning outside the classroom. We are passionate about developing young people and bringing adventure into learning in the outdoors to transform and inspire lives. We are delighted our hard work has been acknowledged with this award for Hartshill Hayes Country Park and we are looking forward to welcoming more schools visiting us.”
Many of the activities offered at Hartshill Hayes not only support the curriculum, but also teach important lessons such as leadership skills, environmental awareness, personal responsibility and teamwork.
The Department for Education guidance on Health and Safety during educational visits recommends that schools look for the LOtC Quality Badge when choosing external providers of educational visits. Almost 1,000 organisations have already been awarded the LOtC Quality Badge including museums, adventure and field study centres, places of worship, art galleries, visitor attractions and farms.
To find out more about WCC’s country parks, or to enquire about organising a visit please visit: https://countryparks.warwickshire.gov.uk/countryparkseducation
To find out more about Learning Outside The Classroom award scheme visit http://lotcqualitybadge.org.uk/