Hill House Christian Centre Somerset

What makes us a great choice for education?

We pride ourselves in being that ‘Home from Home’. We will give your group our undivided attention, so that each pupil has the chance to grow in confidence and to develop their individual skills and abilities through our active, fun and educational program. 

Our team will greet you on arrival and are dedicated to work with you throughout your visit to make you feel at home. All our staff live on site and are available 24 hours a day.

We encourage you to visit us prior to the residential and to let us visit you. We view this as an important time to talk to staff, parents and pupils and to begin building and establishing relationships with your school.

We are happy to work with your school on any particular aspect of the curriculum that staff may want to cover.

We are ‘famed’ with our current schools for the excellent ‘home cooked’ meals and snacks.

Accreditation and Awards

The relevant staff members are Archery GB and RLSS Lifeguard accredited.

What is typically included on our school trips?

Facilities include:-

Games Room with table tennis, table football, pool, giant connect 4

Small indoor games hall with 15m traversing wall, badminton & unihoc

Outdoor swimming pool

Archery

Games field and football pitch

Adventure playground

Woods

Nature area

Maze

Activities include:-

Team Building challenges

Survival Skills

Nature Activities

Quizzes

Craft Activities

Reflective Activities

Giant Puzzles & Games

Basketball Hoop

Off-site activities include:-

Caving

Climbing

Kayaking / Canoeing

High and low ropes

Raft building

All games equipment such as footballs, basketballs, rugby balls, cricket, rounders, croquet, parachute, smite and kwik cricket is provided.

Group Sizes Catered For

We can work with children and young people of all school ages. Our KS2 program is tailored to a minimum of 18 and maximum of 36 pupils.

Activity group sizes vary depending on the activities planned. For example, Archery works on a 1-12 ratio, whist some activities incorporate the whole group.  Group sizes may be adjusted due to the weather, ability of the group or any other factor which can be discussed prior to your visit. 

Photography, Filming & Audio Restrictions

We are happy for memories to be recorded on camera or video etc. We can also take photos on the schools behalf but abide by the staff ruling of the visiting school. There are no copy write restrictions.

Risk Assessment Details

We provide a full set of risk assessments for all our programmed activities. However, teachers and group leaders are very welcome to visit to undertake a pre visit risk assessment themselves. 

Pricing Information

      KS2  - 4 night stay, full program included £218 per pupil.

      KS2 – 3 night stay, full program included £192 per pupil.

      KS2 – 2 night stay, full program included £108 per pupil

      1 free staff place for every 10 pupils.

Please contact the office 01278 652289 for any other pricings eg; accommodation only, activity day, or self-catering options.

First Aid Information

All staff have QA Level 3 Award in Emergency First Aid at Work (RQF).

Three staff members also hold NPLQ (National Pool Lifeguard Qualification), which has a greater in depth knowledge of first aid.

Available Facilities

Both the Manor House and Annexe have:-

A professionally equipped kitchen

Dining Room

Conference room with PA equipment, projector, keyboard & drum kit. 

Lounge / Small group rooms

Free Wifi

Toilets and showers

Other site facilities:-

Tuck shop / Small group room

Gift shop

Drying room

Games Room with table tennis, table football, pool, giant connect 4

Small indoor games hall with 15m traversing wall, badminton & unihoc

Outdoor swimming pool

Archery

Games field and football pitch

Adventure playground

Woods

Nature area

Maze

Catering – All meals and snacks are home cooked on site. They are of an excellent quality, nutritious and good portions. All dietary requirements are catered for.  They are included in the residential prices but please contact the office 01278 652289 for day only prices.

Accessibility & Disabled Facilities

We try to accommodate disabled visitors to the best of our ability.  

The Manor House has ground floor wheelchair access only. The Annexe has wheelchair access throughout and bedroom 12 has a disabled wet room.

We are not DDA compliant or have SEN staff.

Opening Hours & Information

We are open all year round apart from Christmas Day and Boxing Day.

Testimonials

Collaton St Mary School

“A superb venue:  Wonderfully well organised with every second designed to give the children the best experience possible.  Well- chosen activities, which increased teamwork and boosted confidence. Sleeping accommodation was fantastic. Lovely light and airy rooms and it was so much fun for the children to share rooms in large numbers.  The food was another highlight and was enjoyed by all. The team really cared about the children’s wellbeing.  Their patience and calm purposeful presence were evident throughout the week. Hard to beat this residential experience. The children were treated like royalty.  The children made memories that will last them a lifetime”.

Paul Bagnall Yr6 teacher

Truro High School for Girls

“Excellent as always, it challenged the children in an encouraging, friendly and safe environment. Hill House is the best residential that we have been on (many in 25 years of teaching!). The Team are fantastic and make is a pleasurable experience for all involved!"

Kate Roberts Yr4 & Liz Symons Yr3 Teachers

Galmpton CofE Primary School

"During our recent residential visit to Hill House Christian Centre, it became crystal clear how beneficial such a residential can be to those who take part. I visited with a group of twenty one children, my teaching assistant and a father.  As the week progressed, not only did the father realise how complicated and varied our job as teachers is, but we, as paid members of staff, also fully recognised characteristics of the children that do not come out in a regular school day. Some children, who will volunteer little in the normal routine, became leaders and gained respect from their peers that had not been obvious before. Others, who are normally dominant, had to accept a change of role in the group as they experienced different activities. Memories of a generally quiet child laughing and playing around with his peers will stay with me for a long time.  I had been expecting him to find time away from home difficult.  Instead, he flourished and gained confidence daily. This child, among others, is testimony enough to the value of such a residential.  I feel it is crucial to a child’ development and their awareness of their own abilities, to be able to express themselves outside the classroom routine."

Debbie Trewern Yr5 Teacher

TRURO HIGH SCHOOL FOR GIRLS

"We are a very experienced staff and between us we have notched up very many excellent and varied school residential trips, but we are all in agreement that our visit to Hill House was the best yet.  This was echoed by our pupils, most of whom agreed that they preferred Hill House to the other centres they had visited.   The accommodation was extremely clean, well maintained and carefully thought out, and the teachers were particularly pleased that there were no bunk beds to be fought over or potentially cause accidents.  The children loved their dorms, describing them as friendly, comfortable and homely with wonderful views.  The food was simple, nutritious, locally sourced very child-friendly and unanimously enjoyed by all, which is quite an achievement! There was a huge range of activities to choose from, all brilliantly organised and fun yet educational.  Our pupils enjoyed the fact that they were kept very busy, were encouraged but not forced, and that the activities allowed them to use their own initiative and ideas. However, the most important and impressive part of our experience were our hosts Jacqui and David who could not have been more accommodating, and their warmth and experience shone through from the moment we decided to book through to waving us off as we left. All in all we had a wonderful time and would thoroughly recommend Hill House to any other school group."

Alison Miller Head of Prep Truro High School For Girls 

St Andrew’s CofE Primary School Weymouth 

"We keep coming back to this fabulous place.  Since our first visit,  our Year 6s have experienced the many delights of a residential at Hill House, in Spring and Summer, and so have the teachers-first visitors always want to return and staff have volunteered for next year already! The setting is safe and luxurious.  The children are always agog at their accommodation-single beds, en-suite showers in the annexe, incredible food with the chance of seconds-some children eat food they never touch at home and are amazed at how good it tastes!  The main house itself is large and rambling, and the children love finding their bearings to begin with, as they make their way to the meeting/conference room prior to meals and activities.  The extensive grounds are fun to explore with many varied areas, including habitat walks, fields for games, woodlands and an outdoor swimming pool, which our children ventured in May-twice! The members of staff are our friends, as they welcome us back each year, and are quick to perceive the needs of individual children and work as a team with us in supporting and encouraging them all to grow and develop in the four days we are with them.  With the many challenges on offer, from an incredible range of team activities on site (watching the children on Titanic is hilarious and always a highlight for me) and archery on site, to high ropes and kayaking at Black Rock- a short coach ride away-the days are full and challenging and the children enjoy every minute, participating whole-heartedly and finding strengths and abilities they did not know they or others had. The activities carry on in the evenings, ending, on the last night with a poignant camp fire where the children’s (and adults) moving sentiments and tributes are voiced about the great time that has been had and how much they have learnt and changed. It is four days which does change children’s lives-they return to school full of confidence and determination, knowing they have achieved much, ready for their next big challenge of transferring to secondary school. It is a joy to return to Hill House each year and we enjoy being a part of its evolution, as we believe is a centre of  excellence for residential-we were Jacqui and David’s first primary school visitors and they continue to develop our experience from year to year, enhancing our visit every time. If the teachers enjoy it and look forward to it too, it must be good! A residential experience not to be missed!"

Karen Johnstone Year 6 Teacher and Organiser

Other Information

In the development of our school residential program we worked with school teachers, the RSPB and other residential centres.

Location Information

Hill House Christian Centre is ideally situated, just 15 minutes from Junction 23 & 24 of the M5. Perfectly placed for visiting a range of places of interest, such as:

• Steart Marshes– Wildfowl and Wetland Trust.  Accessible via a public footpaths from Hill House http://www.wwt.org.uk/wetland-centres/steart-marshes/
• River Parrett – accessible by footpaths from Hill House
• Quantock Hills- 20 mins away 
• Kilve Beach–  a site of geological and scientific interest. 20 mins away. http://www.quantockhills.com/education/packs/Kilve_pack.pdf
• Blackrock Outdoors Activities– 20mins http://www.blackrockoutdoors.co.uk/
• West Somerset Railwayat Minehead 45mins away
• Cheddar Gorge & Caves– 45 mins away http://www.cheddargorge.co.uk/
• Glastonbury Tor– 50 mins away https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/glastonbury-tor
• Clifton Observatory, Suspension Bridge & Avon Gorge – 55 mins away https://www.cliftonbridge.org.uk/clifton-observatory
• Bristol Zoo– 60mins away http://www.bristolzoo.org.uk/
• SS Great Britain– 60mins away http://www.ssgreatbritain.org/your-visit
• @ Bristol Science Centre– 1hr 10mins away https://www.at-bristol.org.uk/
• Bristol Aquarium– 1hr 10mins away http://www.bristolaquarium.co.uk/
• Lyme Regis– 1hr 15mins away
• Bath Roman Baths– 1hr 30mins away https://www.romanbaths.co.uk/
• Bristol City Centre– 1hr away
• Taunton City Centre – 30 mins away

Room Sizes and Facilities

The Manor House can sleep up to 68 people. The bedrooms are spacious, dormitory style rooms, ranging from 2-9 single beds in each room. All bedding is provided with plenty of storage space, mirrors and electric power point. The rooms are light and cosy and have been newly refurbished in 2019.

The Annexe consists of 12 twin bed en-suite rooms with the first 4 rooms accommodating a third bed, offering a sleeping capacity of 28. Bedroom 12 has wet room facilities. There is plenty of storage space, mirrors, power points, a small desk and relaxing chair.

If you wish to use us as a base for your own program, we can cater for up to 96.

Booking information

Contact: Jacqui Stephenson

    Email: hillhouse@hillhouse.org.uk

    Tel: 01278 652289

    Website: www.hillhouse.org.uk

    Address: Hill House Christian Centre, Otterhampton, Bridgwater, Somerset TA5 2PT