FRANK CHAPMAN OUTDOOR EDUCATION CENTRE
The Frank Chapman Centre is set in 90 acres of beautiful ancient oak forest, creating an adventurous setting for exploring and learning in the outdoors. The centre was purpose-built to provide high quality residential visits and in recent years has seen investment in a climbing wall, high ropes and a fabulous glamping village.
The children have learnt more about themselves here in a week than we could do in a whole year.
We will use the approaches they have learnt here to become well rounded people who embrace challenges and don't shy away from something that makes them uncomfortable.”
Lead Teacher, Sandwell
Accommodation:
Glamping pods
40 participant beds across 10 pods around an outdoor living / dining area
Camping
Camping is available in the grounds with kitchen, showers and toilets.
Facilities:
The centre was purpose built as a residential education venue. In the main building, bedrooms are on a single corridor (accessible by lift) with the dining room, kit store and additional toilets downstairs making it simple to navigate and to look after a group. The glamping village has been thoughtfully laid out to ensure easy overnight supervision, alongside easy access to toilets and showers. Facilities include:
104 participant beds: 64 in the main building + 40 in our glamping village.
Groups have sole occupancy of the main building or glamping village.
Staff bedrooms are very near to dormitories for easy night time supervision.
The Glamping Pods are perfect for small, specialist groups.
Comfortable staff room for group leaders with wifi and kitchen area.
Large dining room for a home-cooked meal each evening.
All specialist / technical kit is provided where needed.
Classroom, fundraising gift shop and changing areas all available.
Wheelchair access, along with an all-terrain wheelchair, wet room and lift. Read more about accessibility here.
Recreational areas include adventure courses, low ropes, playing fields, picnic areas, camp fire and forests to explore.
Additional Needs and Accessibility:
Accessible facilities and activities are available at The Frank Chapman Centre so that participants can use our beautiful environment to build new skills, make new friends, increase confidence and have fun. We realise that we are still learning, so if the detail below does not answer your questions about accessibility please do contact us to discuss any additional support required.
Entrances to the main centre are flat or they have purpose-built concrete ramps.
Accessible parking and drop-off are near the entrance of the main residential building.
The ground floor has a disabled toilet with access from both the front and rear of the building.
Dormitories, toilets and showers on the first floor are accessible via a lift. The wet room contains a shower seat, changing table, grab bars and a hoist.
Corridors throughout the centre are wide with a 70cm gap through doorways and flat floor surfaces throughout.
1 all-terrain wheelchair is available. Please note this isn’t suitable for all users.
A folding telescopic ramp is used around the centre and site when needed.
One glamping pod has wheelchair ramp access. There is a small step into the pod itself.
The shower block is approximately 25m from the pod, with ramped access. It has a wet room facility with seat and grab rails.
Main group sheltered area is accessible via a wooden permanent ramp. This area open sided and can exposed to the environment.
You know your students best; we'll speak with you to see whether we are able to provide an appropriate environment, programme, and experience for your group. You would be most welcome to visit the site to take a look around and learn more.
We have experience of delivering a wide range of activities and learning opportunities to groups with additional needs. These have included physical impairments, sensory impairments, learning difficulties (ADHD, ASD, MLD, SLD, PMLD, and more), challenging behaviour, acquired brain injuries and life limiting illnesses. Our practitioners have received training on how to communicate and encourage personal and social development for all abilities.
Visits range from activity days to week-long residential through structured, progressive programmes. Inclusive activities for participants with additional needs include:
Team tasks are a fun range of problem-solving activities focusing on a model of teamwork which consists of five elements - communication, co-operation, trust, planning, and leadership. Delivery is flexible and there is a wide range of tasks.
Orienteering and Geocaching consists of navigation and exploration. Groups develop the skills needed to independently guide themselves around our site which has been made accessible to our all-terrain wheelchair.
Our archery sessions are fully inclusive. A typical session will feature archery games and coaching, as well as learning about the equipment and the sport.
The climbing wall has a range of options for people of all abilities. There is a low angled slab for easy climbing, a high angled slab as well as vertical and overhanging routes.
Our High Ropes course consists of various elements, such as a crate stack and "high all aboard" tower. Elements can be chosen and adapted to give all participants an appropriate level of challenge. We also have an adaptable hoist system that a climber can use to ascend with assistance or fully assisted.
Woodland Skills studies the environment and how to best adapt to it. Immensely variable, our sessions focus on survival skills as well as environmental knowledge. Sessions can include fire lighting, shelter building, environmental games, nature walks, cooking, cordage, tracking and tool use. Cooking in particular provides for an enjoyable sensory experience that also teaches transferable practical life skills.
We have adventurous onsite routes to explore that can be navigated using our all-terrain wheelchair. Journeying can be adapted to include bug hunting, team tasks, navigation, and learning about the local environment
Gallery:
Programmes:
Our programmes are tailored to meet the needs of the group and to help participant recognise what they are capable of achieving. At the Frank Chapman Centre we offer.
Key Stage 1 to adult / professional development programmes
Non-school group activity programmes
Day Visits: thematic / wellbeing / transition / Family Learning Days
1 to 4+ nights all-inclusive residentials
Venue hire for self-led programmes
Curriculum enhancement: geography, history, RE, science, numeracy.
GCSE, BTEC & OCR units
John Muir Award
DofE
Revision retreats
Activities:
Our activities are a vehicle to enhance learning or to acquire new skill, and we think about them in 5 categories:
Adventure
Active, fun filled, challenging, and daring. From climbing trees and high ropes to making fires and mountain biking, there will be plenty of adrenaline and we use them to help understand ourselves better.
Outdoor Education
Making the most of the incredible surroundings, classic outdoor education sessions include orienteering and geocaching, team work and problem solving, and treks in the woods.
Discovery
Learning about the environment, the outdoors and yourself through nature art, geography and field studies.
Curriculum
Give us a topic or story and we’ll bring it to life. Use a bouldering session for maths, the woodland for habitats and classification, the Wyre Forest for river studies, construct a ballista for science or history, identify the stars at night, conduct a river flow or bird study.
Environmental / Conservation
Using the outdoors to practically connect, conserve, enjoy and find awe in the natural world. Pond dips, food chains, habitats and conservation activities, deer tracking and exploring the forest; sessions can be there for the sheer love of the environment. We also work in partnership with The John Muir Trust to deliver the John Muir Award.
Activities include:
High All Aboard
Jacobs Ladder
Crate Stack
Mountain biking
Climbing & abseil
Treking and expeditions
Bushcraft
Archery
Geocaching
Tree climb
Orienteering
Challenge Course
Problem solving & team building
Environmental Education
Location:
The centre is near to the small Georgian town of Bewdley with its beautiful churches and river walks. It's around 25 miles south-west of Sandwell and Birmingham, and easily accessible from the M5 and A456.
The Worcestershire Way is accessible from the centre, and the Wyre Forest has hundreds of miles of walking trails
A mile from the centre is The River Severn, one of the finest rivers for canoe journeys. Hampton Loade to Blackrock is perfect for a day's paddle.
Frank Chapman Outdoor Education Centre
Park End
Bewdley
Worcestershire
DY12 2TY
01299 403292
frank_chapman@sandwell.gov.uk
