Standon Bowers Outdoor Education Centre

What will students see and do?

A provider of outdoor experiences, Entrust Outdoor Education believes that every young person should be encouraged to venture into nature more and explore the world around them.

One of its sites, Standon Bowers, is surrounded by the beautiful English countryside and has been a home-away-from-home for young people since 1885.

It is steeped in history and old-time charm but continues to offer outstanding outdoor learning through more modern facilities, including a state-of-the-art BMX track designed by Olympic specialists.

The company offers five learning programmes at the site:

• Three- or five-day adventure residential: Pupils enjoy an action-packed itinerary filled with adventure activities such as archery, bushcraft, BMXing, bridge building, climbing, caving, high ropes, offsite excursions, low ropes, mine exploration and scrambling. They can then finish the day by toasting marshmallows around a roaring campfire.

• Twilight Explorer (two-day residential): Pupils will learn about shelters, fire lighting techniques and camp cooking over an open fire. In the evenings, they then participate in either a night walk, songs by the campfire or a drumming lesson before retiring to the dormitories for a peaceful night’s sleep. Pupils can also craft a keepsake using nature’s bounty to take away with them.

• Wilderness Academy: Working in teams, pupils will have the opportunity to immerse themselves in nature, camp in the woods and take part in a range of exciting activities. These include shelter building, fire lighting, navigation, learning wilderness first aid, tracking games, making camera traps and water purification. Evenings will be spent sitting around the campfire, sharing stories and reviewing their experiences.

• Rescue One Zero: Working as members of an elite crisis response team, pupils will spend the day tackling a series of fun, practical team-building tasks and problem-solving activities. The day offers an exciting, fast-paced combination of challenge, learning and adventure.

• Flint and Fire: This programme focuses on primitive living skills and nature awareness. Pupils will have the opportunity to take part in fun, practical activities that explore how man created fire and what tools he used to hunt, gather food and survive.

How does the trip link to the curriculum?

Entrust Outdoor Education’s multi-activity programmes provide a number of benefits. By challenging pupils, the activities will help them build confidence, develop communication and learn skills for life, while also inspiring them to respect nature and conserve the natural world.

Young people these days also spend a lot of time indoors away from natural light, which has a profound effect on mental health. The outdoor programmes ensure students spend a substantial time outdoors, helping to improve their wellbeing and inspire them to explore the natural world themselves.
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Different programmes can also encourage the development of additional interpersonal skills. For instance, Rescue One Zero’s team-based challenges promote collaboration, cooperation, decision making, problem-solving, perseverance, resilience and reflective learning. Flint and Fire also links to the Key Stage 2 Prehistoric Stone Age unit, exploring historic tools and tactics used to create fire, hunt, gather food and survive. At the end of the programme, pupils will be able to apply their knowledge back in the classroom when learning about prehistoric times.

In addition to these, Entrust Outdoor Education is an Approved Activity Provider (AAP) licence holder and can provide Duke of Edinburgh’s Award (DofE) expeditions on foot, by canoe and bike in all regions. These give young people the chance to develop skills for life and work, fulfil their potential and have a brighter future.

Subjects covered

Details of risk assessment

Entrust Outdoor Education does not publish its risk assessments or operating procedures to help protect its clients from legal repercussions if an incident were to occur and reduce the need for excess paperwork. The risk assessment contains technical terms and acronyms that are specific to outdoor education and may not be fully understandable to all. Get in contact for more information.

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