The Wildlife Trust
For Lancashire, Manchester
and North Merseyside

Brockholes Education Project Offers Free School Workshops

The Wildlife Trust for Lancashire, Manchester and North Merseyside has been funded by Natural England through Defra's Aggregate Levy Sustainability Fund to deliver a series of interactive workshops and off site visits to schools in the Ribbleton and Brockholes areas of Preston.

The Trust has purchased the former Brockholes quarry site close to junction 31 of the M6 and the site is currently being developed into a flagship nature reserve. Features of the site include a floating eco visitor centre and a wealth of different habitats which aim to attract a variety of species.

The £8.6 million of regeneration funding was provided for the Brockholes Wetland and Woodland Reserve project has been granted under 'Newlands' - a £59 million, Northwest Regional Development Agency and Forestry Commission programme to transform brownfield land into durable community woodland, which act as catalysts for economic, social and environmental gain.

The Lancashire Environmental Fund awarded £446,000 for the development of the education facilities, hides and infrastructure on the site. Tubney Charitable Trust granted £350,000 for Biodiversity and Natural England DEFRA's Aggregates Levy Sustainability Fund awarded circa. £300,000.

The Brockholes Education project aims to introduce pupils to the themes that surround Brockholes Nature Reserve, linking to its past usage, current state of development and future plans. The Project also aims to inform local schools of the site's new ownership and to spread the word on the exciting plans the Trust have in store for the land.

Through four different visits available to the schools, pupils will be able to explore topics ranging from quarrying and the aggregates industry to the effects of climate change on bird migration.

The visits include two full day outreach visits from the Brockholes Education Project Officer, who will deliver exciting interactive workshops within school, and two half day off-site visits. The first of the off-site visits is to Lower Brockholes Quarry. Hargreaves staff at the Quarry have kindly offered the unique opportunity for pupils to witness first hand how an active sand and gravel quarry operates. The second site visit allows pupils a first glance at the development of the Brockholes Nature Reserve.

Based at the Penwortham Environment Education Centre, the project will be delivered by our well established Education team. The Trust's education team have been delivering activities at the centre for the past ten years and reach over 7000 children a year. The centre has also supported several very successful outreach education projects over the years including the first phase of the Brockholes Education project delivered in February and March 2009.

The project is due to run until the end of March 2011, by which time we hope to have visited up to 15 local schools. The availability for the off-site visits is limited and will therefore operate on a first come first served basis. For any more information or to book a visit, please contact Project Officer Zoe Garland on the details below;

zgarland@lancswt.org.uk
Penwortham Environment Education Centre
Howick Cross Lane
Penwortham
Preston
PR1 0NS
01772 749403

You can see more new aerial shots of Brockholes in our Discovery Centre