Croxteth Hall & Country Park Web site

Key Stage 3 and 4

Self guided
The park is a great resource for studying environmental, history, social history and geography topics. Consider using the resource for more in depth studies of citizenship issues, leisure and tourism or maybe as a venue for field studies and survey work. The surroundings also provide inspiration for drama, art, photograpy and other media topics.

Orienteering Courses
Specially designed to be school friendly, the courses are free to use, but must be booked in advance. Two different scale orienteering maps are available with courses of varying length and difficulty.

1:8,000 (the whole park is mapped). Courses range from 1.0Km graded as 'Orange' or medium difficulty up to 6.5Km 'Red' hard course
1:5,000 (map of the inner area around the Hall). Courses on this map range from 1.7Km 'Yellow' or easy, up to 3.0Km 'Orange' or medium difficulty courses. This is the most popular version with schools.

Each Orienteering course map costs £1.20

Guided Visits

NEW for 2010 - Visitor Attraction Tour
Available: April to September
Duration: 10.00 am to 2.15pm
Charge: £4.50 per student (Max group size: 30 students)
Minimum charge: £112.50 per group 

The visit will offer students the opportunity to investigate and describe the key features of a UK regional visitor attraction, its appeal to different users and groups and how the facilities are used by different user groups. Aspects such as footfall, health and safety, customer care, retail opportunities and income generation and how these might fit a basic business plan for site management and venue development will be discussed. A room is provided as a base for the day.

Following a brief session hosted by a Ranger to introduce the attractions on offer at the park and give a brief overview of visitor facts and figures and how the Park is staffed and managed, the group will have a brief guided tour of key visitor areas, including the Hall, the Home Farm, the Walled Garden and retail outlets. (fact sheets will be provided to all students).

After lunch and with the teachers' supervision, the students are then asked to assess the site and think about implications of customer management, customer requirements and service, staff training, management of conflicting demands on delivery and resources, management of staff and partnership requirements, income generation streams, site resources, risk assessments, signage, interpretation and marketing. This period is tutored by the schools own teaching staff.  At 2.00pm the group will reconvene and a Ranger will be available to discuss and summarise findings with completion at 2.15pm.

NEW for 2010 - Heritage Tourism
Available: April to September
Duration: 10.00 am to 2.15pm
Charge: £4.50 per student (Max group size: 30 students)
Minimum charge: £112.50 per group  

The visit will offer students the opportunity to investigate and describe the importance of Heritage Tourism and give them the chance to investigate aspects of managing, conserving, developing and making accessible a heritage site with various products and services offered to attract paying visitors. A room is provided as a base for the day.

The visit looks at conservation, restoration and visitor management with key site features outlined in a short tour of the main visitor areas with a Ranger guide. Croxteth Hall and Country Park is a historic site managed by Liverpool City Council. The site has to meet the demands of a diverse user base whilst at the same time be sensitive to the conservation of  historical assets.

After lunch and with the teachers' supervision, the students will be asked to make an assessment and evaluation of how negative impacts to the heritage site are minimised whilst visitor numbers are maintained or increased. Discussions will lead to recommendations for protecting and enhancing the heritage of Croxteth Hall & Country Park whilst making it more available to wider audiences. At 2.00pm the group will reconvene and a Ranger will be available to discuss and summarise findings with completion at 2.15pm.

Home Farm - Why Farm? (January to October)
Duration: 1½ hours
Charge: £3.80 per pupil. Minimum charge: £95.00 per group.
Farms are the source of almost all of our food. Find out how our food is produced and discuss with our farmer the reasons for farming, touching on contemporary environmental, animal welfare and health concerns. Some aspects of growing plants for food could be investigated in the Walled Garden. Teachers notes for Why Farm. Croxteth Risk Assessment. 

Environmental Study - Eco-challenge Post Residential Course follow up visits. (Available throughout the year depending on availability of practical conservation work).

Some schools and colleges are moving towards delivering fieldwork sessions from which pupils gain the skills necessary to complete their own projects at school or else contribute to ongoing conservation work in designated sites.
We have a variety of habitats and land uses available for study which are easily accessible and have additional facilities to meet the needs of educational visits - toilets, study areas, etc.

The field work is created and led by the Ranger Service, working with class teachers and our Parks and Green space Conservation Officer. The projects are managed by way of a post residential course visit, typically three single days over a three or four week period. The visits are funded by the Field Studies Council so no charges apply to the schools - which must have completed a three day residential course in one of the Field Studies Council centres, the nearest being in the Lake District or North Wales. Schools must arrange their own transport to Croxteth for follow up sessions.

Habitats
Croxteth Country Park has woodland, wetland, ponds, river, pasture and parkland available for study. Discuss your requirements and charges with us.

Activity Days (May to July)
Duration: 3½ hours from 10.00am to 2.30pm (includes 30 mins for lunch and two 15 min breaks)
Charge: £8.00 per pupil. Minimum charge £200.00 per group - up to a maximum of 100 pupils. 

Our KS3 Activity Days have gained in popularity over the last few years, especially as they provide a healthy team challenge with a difference. Each is tailored to your needs based on a combination of observational quizzes around the Hall, Farm & Walled Garden, mental and problem solving activities and history and geography based quiz trails. Also available out of term time for Gifted and Talented and summer camps. Contact us (telephone 0151 233 6912) well in advance of your proposed vist to discuss requirements. For example risk assessments please see relevant area risk asessments. 

Arts in the Environment
Opportunities exist for the study of various art based topics covering sculpture, painting, drawing, construction with natural materials, nature forms, light and landscape, arches and archways, architectural forms, animals and plants. Our 'Window on our World' worksheets present accessible drawing opportunities and a framework (literally) in which to view The Hall, Farm Walled Garden and Country Park. 

Customised Visits - can we help you?
It may be possible to 'customise' a visit to your particular requirements.
We regularly adapt elements from one or more programmes to cater for schools specific topics. We have successfully incorporated Theatre In Education, art and drama workshops in programmes for Secondary and Tertiary Education.
We also work with schools, colleges and universities to provide work placements, assistance with projects and teaching topics ranging from GNVQ Leisure and Tourism to Countryside Management.
Please call the Education Officer or Senior Ranger to discuss your requirements.
Dates, duration and charges: dependent on type, resources required and duration of visit.

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