Schools landscape literacy project
Mend the Gap has strengthened schools’ connections to the National Landscapes
- We have taken 3 secondary schools into the National Landscapes
- Created 10 baseline reports for over 10 hectares of school grounds
- Offered over £200,000 in grant funding for school grounds enhancements and visits to the National Landscapes.
- Supported in the region of 6500 young people to have quality outdoor experiences in their school grounds and the National Landscapes
Getting started
Schools in the target programme area were offered an audit of their grounds and the opportunity to apply for a grant. These advisory visits, carried out by industry leaders Learning through Landscapes identified ways that the school grounds can become functional and inspiring places for learning and play and actively support students’ personal development. The schools are being supported to apply for funding from Mend the Gap to implement the audit’s recommendations, which might include anything from habitat creation to interpretation of the area’s local heritage.
Secondary schools have also had the opportunity to take part in a school- based discovery workshop hosted by The Visionaries, which encouraged students to develop an understanding of their immediate landscape at school and acquire the vocabulary to describe and engage with it. Students took part in an off-site workshop at the Hardwick Estate in the Chilterns, where they were introduced to a variety of landscape management techniques and had the chance to explore the unique nature of the site.
So Far...
Three groups of secondary students have attended a full day festival of activities at the Hardwick estate, including shepherding, willow weaving and fermenting vegetables from the market garden for the winter months. These students then took part in further workshops to finalise their school’s grant proposal.
We are now supporting the schools to write their grant proposals.
Baseline whole site reports with consultation
The primary schools and three secondary schools have had visits and reports from Learning through Landscapes, this is a baseline report created in consultation with staff, students and other school community members.
Learning through Landscapes visit
Grants Issued
The following schools have received grant offer letters and are in the delivery stage:
- Whitchurch Primary for nature recovery and outdoor learning.
- Langtree Secondary for natural flood management, shelter and seating.
- Wallingford Secondary School – Red Kite food project and Wildlife enhancements across the school grounds
- Woodcote Primary School – pond and wildlife area enhancements
- South Stoke Primary School – wildlife area enhancements
- Cholsey Primary School – Monastic pond and whole site management plan, Orchard creation
- Streatley Primary school – Farm to fork project and wildlife enhancements
- Pangbourne Primary – Early years outdoors Access to nature and sensory development project
- Denefield Secondary – Sixth form outdoor mental wellbeing space
Learning through Landscapes visit
Still to come
We have scoped out forms with:
- Basildon Primary school – pond and wildlife area enhancements
- Little Heath Secondary School – access to nature and inclusion enhancements
Take a look at our gallery below, we will keep posting images of this project as they develop.
A family planting a tree at a recent Mend the Gap funded event in South Stoke
Download
Mend the Gap - outdoor learning help sheet
Image gallery
