School trips at Shortenills
Based in the lovely Chilterns Village, Chalfont St Giles, Shortenills provides a quiet and gentle setting of parkland, mature woods and ponds. Facilities include two large dormitories, a yurt, large dining hall and two classrooms. For schools this provides a magical, safe environment for residential and day visits, enabling schools to integrate outdoor learning into their ‘broad and balanced’ curriculum. We deliver high quality, creative and exciting learning experiences across all areas of the curriculum ensuring the holistic development of all our visitors. Using the ‘awe and wonder’ of nature to inspire and motivate learners, we empower them to achieve, to challenge and to make changes for a better future. At the moment there is a real focus on readiness to learn and resilience, and luckily these have always been at the core of what we do, as we aim to ensure that every child that visits us leaves Shortenills more resilient and ready to learn when they are back in their classroom.
A visit to Shortenills is a very tailored, bespoke experience, as we work with teachers to create a programme that covers any areas of the curriculum that they want to focus on. We can offer a range of day visits, such as our Anglo Saxon or Stone Age programmes, as well as residential stays that ensure your students get the most out of their trip.
Set within 10 acres of varied woodland, meadows and ponds the grounds are managed to improve bio-diversity and offer a safe and secure location to explore and learn. These learning opportunities are enriched by; an extensive range of sustainable technologies, the use of 50 acres of adjacent Woodland Trust forest, visits to the neighbouring livestock farm, investigations in the historic village of Chalfont St Giles and the Chiltern Open Air Museum that nestle close by.
We offer:
- Day and residential programmes for EYFS to key stage 2, all linked to the new curriculum
- An approach that puts sustainability at the heart of the experience
- High quality, creative teaching staff with a wealth of expertise in the outdoors
- A supportive planning process to tailor our programmes to meet your pupil’s needs and learning outcomes
- A holistic approach to learning enabling our visitors to develop; academically, emotionally, socially, physically and build their self- esteem, confidence and a sense of independence
At Shortenills we pride ourselves in offering a range of approaches to LOtC:
- Earth Education,
- Forest School,
- Field study skills,
- Bushcraft
- Curriculum linked learning out of the classroom.
Resources and classrooms
We have two spacious well –equipped classrooms with ‘smartboards’, data projectors, data logging equipment, specimens, live animals and a range of scientific instruments. An environmental monitoring system logs the productivity of our sustainable technologies: PV array, solar thermal panels and bio-fuel boiler
We also have recently acquired a fully heated yurt (monoglian tent)
…and we have closed circuit wildlife cameras for our visitors to gain an insight into the secret world of the animals living in the grounds at Shortenills.
Residential accommodation
Simple but well equipped, our accommodation provides all you need for a safe, enjoyable and comfortable stay. The set-up of two single sexed dormitories allows for an effective way to manage and supervise your groups overnight.
We have:
- Capacity for 50 pupils
- Two single sexed dormitories
- Each dormitory has two staff bedrooms and adjacent shower rooms and toilets.
- A large dining room which doubles as an evening recreation area.
- Staff room with Wi-Fi access
All our creative and inspiring teachers have an infectious enthusiasm and never ending passion for Learning Outside the Classroom.
All have freelance expertise in outdoor learning and together we share an impressive range of skills and subject knowledge:
- Geologist and archaeologist who has regular TV appearances,
- Forest school leaders,
- Innovative trainers in the field of outdoor learning,
- Experience in education for sustainability and global issues,
- Adventure and expedition leadership skills,
- EYFS to university teaching,
- SEN teaching and work with PRUs.
All our staff carry a current DBS and First Aid training.
With so many options on offer we appreciate that booking a school trip can be a daunting task – so you can always call our bookings team on 033 03 03 01 01 or email [email protected]
