Information for Group Leaders

To request a booking please contact the centre:

Castleshaw Centre
Waterworks Road
Delph
Oldham
OL3 5LZ

Telephone: 0161 770 8595
Fax: 01457 820551
E-mail: castleshaw.centre@oldham.gov.uk

Bookings – Oldham Secondary schools

Oldham Secondary schools are able to utilise the Centre and book activities free of charge by using "credits" which are allocated each academic year. We write to schools each year to take bookings for the following academic year. To enable us to plan, it is important that residential bookings are made at this point. Bookings for activities should normally be made a term in advance, but we try to accommodate requests made at short notice where possible. Centre bookings and requests for activities are dealt with by our office administrators (Janet Lloyd / Jude Murray - job share).

Bookings – Oldham Primary schools

The booking process consists of three stages:

Approximately 12 months in advance schools are notified of the number of days they have been allocated. Allocations are for a standard non-residential environmental education day for a maximum of 32 pupils. There is an additional charge for residential courses, or for outdoor and adventurous activities, which require additional staff.
Schools express preferences for dates, ranked 1 - 3, and indicate whether the bookings would be residential or non-residential.
We fit bookings together to maximise use of the Centre, negotiate with schools to attempt to resolve any clashes, and notify schools of days allocated.

Planning your Course

Courses at the Centre extend curriculum opportunities for schools and introduce opportunities for development and learning, by providing new experiences which may not otherwise be available to some young people.

These courses can either be residential, or day visits and this is normally a decision taken by the school staff. We will (within reason) design other courses to meet your requirements and the needs of your pupils but generally it is best to choose topics which make the most of the Centre environment. For example, the Centre is well positioned to provide input on Victorian history and Roman history (with a Roman fort and road nearby) but less well positioned to provide input on Egyptian or Greek history.