Knaresborough Forest Park has been successful in its application for a £15,000 from the Waugh Trust, managed by the Rotary Club of Knaresborough.
The application was submitted by Mark Flood, Knaresborough Forest Park team member and Long Lands Common Board member, who carried out background research by consulting local teachers and community groups.
The Waugh Trust, a legacy left to the Rotary Club by local teacher Alan Waugh in 2021, supports educational initiatives in the Knaresborough area.
The Rotary award will fund equipment to enable groups to access the land, including compost toilets, seating for 32 people, hand washing facilities, off-grid power using solar panels, a secure storage area and two movable outdoor shelters.
One of the aims of the Knaresborough Forest Park project is to open up the site to local groups, including school and youth groups as well as organisations which enhance adult physical and mental health.
Broadly the educational focus of the Long Lands Community (LLC), to which Knaresborough Forest Park (KFP) belongs, reflects UNESCO's Four Pillars of Education which are intended to guide education throughout life.
These are:
- Learning to know - to understand the world and oneself
- Learning to do - to develop occupational skills and talents
- Learning to be - to develop a wholesome personality and self-identify
- Learning to live together - to live harmoniously with others and determine oneself
The 100 acres comprising the community estate can provide a venue for primary, secondary and special needs education, for local mainstream schools, alternative provisions and specialist colleges.
It may also offer space to young people for social & training opportunities at a time when youth services locally have experienced cut-backs and closure.
Local schools have told the group that opportunities to access outdoor learning are essential to provide learning opportunities in non-core curricular education, and the provision of this is becoming increasingly expensive and difficult to fund.
They have also said that having Knaresborough Forest Park within walking distance of both Knaresborough and Starbeck will facilitate an ongoing opportunity for pupils to learn on the site.
Still in its early days, the group is proud to celebrate the following initiatives:
- Orb Community Arts, a local mental health charity, has already walked the footpaths for a year-long 'Pathways: Mapping The Commons' project and is keen to continue to access KFP.
- Local scout groups are already involved with activities on the Long Lands Common site, and are interested in working with KFP.
- Veloheads in Starbeck, an organisation which aims to support young people to develop skills for life and for work through a two-year programme including functional skills and qualifications and work placements, has also started working on the KFP site.
Mark Flood said:
“We are hugely grateful to the Rotary Club of Knaresborough and the Waugh Trust for showing this faith in us and recognising the educational value of the Knaresborough Forest Park site.
“This award means that while we are still paying off the bridging loan for the purchase of the site, we can now begin to look ahead to sharing it with the local community”.
The target to pay off the bridging loan has now reached £15,000, through the generosity of the community in buying shares, supporting fundraising events and giving private donations.
If you are involved with a community group and would like to contact the Long Lands Community about visiting or working on the land, please contact info@longlandscommon.org.
For further information about the Knaresborough Forest Park project, visit: https://www.knaresboroughforestpark.org/
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