16 Sep Land of the Fanns and Essex Wildlife Trust announce partnership in outdoor Learning
The Land of the Fanns Landscape Partnership Scheme is delighted to be working in partnership with Essex Wildlife Trust to develop a package of outdoor learning across the Scheme’s area.
The Land of the Fanns is a unique five-year Landscape Partnership Scheme begun in 2016, bringing together nine partner organisations with a commitment to work towards a shared goal of enabling local people to discover, restore and enjoy what’s special about the local landscape. It has a dedicated commitment to celebrate the heritage and natural environment across an area covering Brentwood, Thurrock, parts of South West Essex and the London Boroughs of Barking & Dagenham and Havering. Essex Wildlife Trust has a long track record of working with both children and adults to teach them about the natural world and the environment around them.
This work, which is funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, will see Essex Wildlife Trust offer specialist training to schools and educators across the Land of the Fanns to help foster a connection between children and the environment around them. Starting from September, this will be delivered through a combination of INSET, formal training and taster sessions along with a small pot of funding for equipment such as tools, outdoor gear and log seating. Ultimately the Land of the Fanns Landscape Partnership Scheme wants to enable those involved in education to be able to make use of their own outdoor spaces and also explore local hidden gems that may be overlooked but offer great potential for children to learn and develop new skills in the outdoors. The partnership with Essex Wildlife Trust is a significant step towards achieving this aim.
Outdoor education brings a different dimension to the school curriculum, especially as everyone emerges from lockdown, and can have a huge benefit to children’s confidence and learning. Essex Wildlife Trust has offered outdoor education for more than 20 years and has worked with more than 70, 000 children. This experience will support and benefit teachers, site staff and home educators to make the most of their own outdoor spaces, their local open spaces and enrich teaching across the curriculum.
Anna Gordon, Community Engagement and Education Advisor, Essex Wildlife Trust said “Essex Wildlife Trust are thrilled to be working with the Land of the Fanns on this exciting project to increase opportunities for learning outside the classroom in this beautiful Landscape”
Benjamin Sanderson, Land of the Fanns Scheme Manager said “The value of engaging young people in the outdoors is crucial, especially at a time when we need to look for safe and engaging ways to get children back to school or education. Hopefully this project will offer the opportunity to help teachers and others involved in education gain the confidence and some of the skills to take children outdoors as part of their regular activities”
Thames Chase Trust is the lead partner in Land of the Fanns project. The other partners are: Forestry England, Thames Estuary Partnership, Brentwood Borough Council, London Borough of Havering, Essex County Council, London Borough of Barking & Dagenham, Thames21 and Thurrock Council.
