New Forest Wildlife Park Southampton is located in the New Forest (National Park), your school or educational group will enrich their learning and understanding of Europe’s largest collection of otters, owls, deer, badgers, lynx, mink, polecats, foxes, Scottish wildcats, pine martens, wild boar, wolves & many more species of indigenous wildlife.
South East
Deerleap Lane, Longdown, Nr Ashurst, Southampton, Hampshire, SO40 4UH
MONTHS OPEN
January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December
DAYS OPEN
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday
AGE GROUPs
PreSchool, 5 to 7 years, 8 to 10 years, 11 to 13 years, 14 to 16 years, College, University
Listed under: Adventure Playgrounds| Animal Experiences| Animal Welfare| Biology| Citizenship| Conservation| Day Trip Destinations| Ecology & Green Awareness| Environment Centres| Environmental Studies| Geography| Outdoor Education| Parks and Gardens| Picnic Areas| Wildlife and Nature Reserves| Wildlife Parks|
What we offer on a school trip
It is our aim to provide you and your group with an enjoyable and informative day out. Our arrangements are flexible to cater for individual preferences.
On arrival, our Guides will welcome you to the New Forest Centre. Your guide will show you to our study room where you will be given an introductory talk. There will then be a tour of the Park (maximum distance is just over a mile. This can be shorter if required). Next, students can enjoy lunch. This may be eaten in the study room or outdoors in the picnic areas. The afternoon is when group leaders can reinforce the experiences of the day. This is flexible to meet your needs. You can then visit our souvenir shop, if required. As the shop is quite small, we suggest groups of no more than 15 children at a time. There will then be a closing discussion/question time.
A Visit to the park is a cross curricular experience with relevance to many aspects of the curriculum. During the tour, the group will learn about the nocturnal, diurnal and crepuscular creatures that live in the British countryside and see a variety of habitats. They will learn how animals are adapted for life in their particular environments; about animal behaviour, how they eat, where they live, why they have fur or feathers, and how they cope with different weather conditions. They will find out about herbivores, carnivores, omnivores and detrivores; producers, consumers and life processes. The group will encounter threatened and endangered species and will become aware of the issues surrounding environmental changes and pollution and the need for wildlife protection and conservation. They will be encouraged to use their senses to look, see, listen, hear, and smell everything around them. We hope they will develop an understanding and respect for the creatures of the countryside while gaining personal benefits from their close contact with nature.
new forest Wildlife Park Southhampton
wildlife park Southampton
new forest wildlife
What makes us a great choice for educational groups
The Park is set in 25 acres of ancient woodland in the New Forest, now a National Park and Southern England’s most extensive area of unenclosed land. Here, you will find Europe’s largest collection of multi-specied otters, as well as owls, deer, badgers, lynx, mink, polecats, foxes, Scottish wildcats, pine martens, wallabies, wild boar, wolves and many more species of indigenous wildlife. The circular forest trail meanders along wooded pathways between the animal enclosures. An opportunity to experience wildlife in its natural surroundings. Whilst many of our talks and tours relate to aspects of the National Curriculum we aim to enthuse and inspire the children about wildlife and the natural environment in general
What is typically included on our school trips
For visiting groups, there are two options available:
Option 1 – FULLY GUIDED VISIT
An experienced member of staff will stay with your group throughout your visit and will take you on a conducted tour of the park. The Education Centre will be available for your use, where your group will be able to leave belongings and have lunch if required. If you wish to extend your visit, you may use the Education Centre for a teaching session to reinforce the experiences gained from the tour. This session should be teacher- led, but your Guide will be on hand for advice and to support your activities. Pencils, crayons, etc will be available for your use.
Option 2 – NON-GUIDED VISIT
This is for groups who do not require a Guided Tour but would prefer to make their own way around the park using our fact finding trail. Please note: Groups booking a non-guided visit are not allocated a Tour Guide and do not have access to the Education Centre. Picnic facilities are available outside the Education centre or outside the Woodland restaurant. Children must be accompanied by an adult at all times.
Group Sizes
We can cater for groups sized between 15 and 60.
Materials, Resources & Keystage Information
Teachers who have not visited the park before are welcome to arrange to have a free pre visit in order to become familiar with the site and activities for a well organised and safe visit. A detailed teachers pack containing information to help with the planning of a visit, background information about the animals and a full risk assessment is available on our website.
Photography, Filming & Audio Restrictions
Children are encouraged to take photographs as a record of their visit.
Risk Assessment
There is a full risk assessment for educational group visits but teachers are welcome to carry out their own as part of a pre-visit.
Education Officer
Our Education Officer is Shanna Dymond.
Pricing
Please visit our website for the latest prices.
Group rates are available on request.
Clothing Requirements
The children should be dressed appropriately for a day outdoors. We recommend stout shoes or trainers. (Children who wear wellington boots often complain of cold feet). In the summer months we recommend sun hats, etc. and light waterproofs. In the autumn and spring the children need very warm clothing and good waterproofs.
First Aid
A first aid kit is available at the Cafeteria for your use. We recommend group supervisors to carry first aid kits with them on the Guided Tour.
Available Facilities
Picnic facilities are available outside the Education centre or outside the Woodland restaurant. For guided groups lunch may be eaten in the education centre. The souvenir gift shop has a wide range of quality gifts at prices to suit all pockets.
Accessibility & Disabled Facilities
Please see our website for more information, under Your Visit-Disabled Access
Opening Times
The Park is open all year round. Summer 10.00am – 5.30pm Winter 10.00am – dus
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