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Brockholes is a new kind of nature reserve, an unreserved reserve owned and managed by The Wildlife Trust for Lancashire, Manchester and North Merseyside.
There's lots to see and do at Brockholes, you can hunt out our floating Visitor Village with a restaurant, shops and Welcome Centre or explore our family-friendly hides, walking trails and play area.
At Brockholes you can explore our beautiful reserve, see the wildlife that call it ‘home’ or hunt out our Visitor Village with restaurant and shops, all of which float (yes really!) on one of our lakes.
Our floating Visitor Village features a gift shop and a restaurant providing stunning views across the lake. You can also discover our interactive Welcome Centre and learn all about the wildlife that you could see on-site. Be sure to call in to pick up a welcome leaflet that will help you plan your day. You can view the reserve map in our Welcome Leaflet here to help you plan your first visit.
2013/14 Opening Times:
4th November 2013 to 31 March 2014 10am-4pm
1st April 2014 to 31st October 2014 10am-5pm
Closed Christmas Eve and Christmas Day only
Car Park Charges
We don't charge for entry and any profits made here go back into looking after the reserve. So every time you pay for parking, treat yourself in the shop or enjoy some lunch, you are helping look after the reserve and the wildlife that visits us!
Sorry no dogs allowed!
There is a good reason! Dogs can disturb wildlife, especially nesting birds. If your dog was to get too close to a nesting bird it would cause the mother to leave the nest. So to avoid any accidents we ask that you don’t bring your dog. (Assistance dogs are welcome.)
Explore the reserve
Brockholes is one of the best sites in the UK for many species of bird and has one of the largest strips of ancient woodland in the county. You can take a stroll by the River Ribble, explore our woods or enjoy the lakes on site, which have all been specially designed to attract all kinds of wildlife for you to see!
Walks around Brockholes
What can I see at Brockholes?
Read about the happy habitats we've been working hard to create at Brockholes.
Watch out!
The Visitor Village floats on water and there are lots of areas of open water on the reserve. Take care in these areas and keep an eye on any children with you. The following activities are not allowed on the reserve:
Barbecues and fires
Fishing
Swimming
Please do not feed the birds
Big gulls know it’s much easier to find food when we leave it lying around rather than finding their own lunch. Here at Brockholes we have lots of species breeding with us, little ringed and ringed plover, lapwing, oystercatcher and redshank. Unfortunately the big gulls will eat the chicks of these special birds so if we feed the gulls and encourage them to stay there is a big chance that they will eat our important chicks, so please do not feed the birds and take your leftover picnic away with you.
www.brockholes.org/our-journey
The Lancashire Wildlife Trust has been working on developing Brockholes for nearly 20 years, here is an overview of our journey.
1992 Lancashire Wildlife Trust first contests the quarrying of Brockholes.
27 November 2006 The Lancashire Wildlife Trust has four weeks to raise £50,000 to buy the Brockholes site, near Preston, and protect it from development. Brockholes sits next to J31 of the M6 and is the size of 120 football pitches.
15 January 2007 The Lancashire Wildlife Trust makes the biggest land purchase in its history - thanks to donations from Wildlife Trust members, and an investment of £800,000 from the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA) under the Newlands scheme. The project to buy and develop Brockholes is also supported by The Tubney Charitable Trust.
3 May 2007 Ian Selby is appointed as Brockholes project manager. Ian has 20 years' experience of managing the North West's canal network for British Waterways, followed by environmental regeneration work. Sophie Leadsom, Brockholes' new reserve manager, has worked in conservation for 14 years.
July 2007 The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) announced the launch of a new open competition to design new visitor facilities.
5 October 2007 The Lancashire Wildlife Trust announced the shortlist for the new multi-million pound visitor centre. 61 architects from all over Europe submitted designs. The five were Adam Khan Architects, Arca, Architecture 2B, AY Architects, McDowell + Benedetti.
25 February 2008 The Lancashire Wildlife Trust (LWT) and partners announce the winner of its competition to design a visitor facility. Adam Khan Architects was selected for its inspirational design concept: "A Floating World". Designed as a cluster of buildings constructed largely of wood and other sustainable materials, it resembles an ancient marshland village.
April 2008 The Lancashire Wildlife Trust announced the completion of its first phase of preparatory work, including the restoration of the wetlands, creation of ponds, seeding of meadows, planting new hedgerows and trees, making access paths and building proper bird watching hides.
March 2009 The Lancashire Wildlife Trust secured £8million of funding from the North West Regional Development Agency (NWDA). The investment was made under ‘Newlands’, a NWDA and Forestry Commission programme that is regenerating brownfield land across the Northwest into economically viable community woodland.
Summer 2009 Volunteers gave us 134 hours of their time to help propagate our own reed seedlings on-site. We ended up with 20,000 new redd seedlings ready to plant out around our new visitor centre, creating two hecatres of brand new reedbed.
August 2009 The Lancashire Wildlife Trust were granted detailed planning permission for the site.
December 2009 Contractors first day of work as they begin to construct the iconic floating visitors centre. Press conference being held with a ‘cutting of the first sod’
November 2010 A herd of longhorn cattle move into Brockholes to graze the reserve.
December 2010 BBC Countryfile fronted by Julia Bradbury visit Brockholes to film a feature that airs in January 2011.
March 2011 Brockholes makes history as the Visitor Village is floated for the first time.
Easter Sunday 2011 Brockholes opens its doors to the public for the first time!
www.brockholes.org/happy-habitats-brockholes
Happy habitats at Brockholes
The Lancashire Wildlife Trust are using their expertise to create habitats that will encourage lots of different species to visit the site, read more about the work we are doing on the reserve...
Number 1 Pit
Uniform and steep, the edges around the original gravel pit used to look very different. The island looked different too – an egg-shaped piece of land sticking out of the water by three metres. These land profiles weren’t great for the bird species and aquatic invertebrates we wanted to attract. So, with bulldozer and digger we pushed earth into the lake to create shallow, underwater ledges and peninsulas where birds can roost and feed, safe from predators. Diving ducks, such as Great Crested Grebe, now hunt for fish in the deep water.
Nook Pool
The edge of this pool has been planted with reed to create places for small fish and aquatic invertebrates like dragonfly larvae to hide and grow, away from predator fish. The shelter provided by the vegetation provides an ideal hunting ground for lots of species of dragonfly including the impressive Brown Hawker and Emperor Dragonfly.
Meadow Lake
This shallow lake is great for bird watching: when the water level is down, wading birds feed on small invertebrates in the exposed mud. This lake has some of the richest water plant life in and around it, including White Water Lily and Cuckooflower. The reed fringes are becoming well established and hold some of the largest populations of birds on site. The islands provide safe roosting and breeding areas, we keep the vegetation short so the birds can watch out for predators.
Boilton Marsh
This area is part of our newly created wet grassland habitat. We remodelled 17,000 cubic metres of quarry spoil to create 10 hectares of wet grassland with nearly 2km of channels and five pools. This is the ideal habitat for breeding wading birds such as Lapwing, Redshank and Snipe. We now graze traditional breeds of cattle and sheep that thrive on the coarse grasses and rushes and provide the low grassland sward that encourages wading birds to nest.
The channels and pools are kept topped up by using a high-level reservoir, filled from Number One Pit by way of a solar pump.
Woodland
Brockholes is fringed by the ancient woodland of Boilton, Red Scar and Tunbrook Woods. Woodland has grown here for thousands of years and developed a very rich variety of wildlife. Looking after our trees and paths will help the woodland to thrive and enable you to see the wildlife safely.
Reedbeds
Reedbeds are home to Sedge Warblers, Reed Warblers, Reed Buntings and Water Rail. We protect the new reed from grazing birds like Coot, Mute Swan and Canada Goose, by erecting chicken wire fences and baling string barriers. It will take several years before our lak fringes start to look like reedbeds. You might notice that the Visitor Village has been nestled in reedbed. This helps it to blend into the reserve and allows you to hear the song and chatter of the birds that nest there.
www.brockholes.org/brockholes-partners-and-funders
Brockholes partners and funders
For the past ten years, The Wildlife Trust for Lancashire, Manchester and North Merseyside have been working to secure this site of national environmental importance, and restore habitats to their full potential.
The £8.6 million of regeneration funding was provided for the Brockholes Wetland and Woodland Reserve project has been granted under 'Newlands' - a £59 million, Northwest Regional Development Agency and Forestry Commission programme to transform brownfield land into durable community woodland, which act as catalysts for economic, social and environmental gain.
The Lancashire Environmental Fund awarded £446,000 for the development of the education facilities, hides and infrastructure on the site. Tubney Charitable Trust granted £350,000 for Biodiversity and Natural England DEFRA's Aggregates Levy Sustainability Fund awarded circa. £300,000. The Environment Agency granted £50,000 for the continued development of Brockholes.
The support of these funders helped make Brockholes a reality, as did the amazing support from our public appeal, which raised an amazing £63,000 - the most successful public appeal the Lancashire Wildlife Trust has ever run!
Volunteering at Brockholes
Around 200 volunteers have now been recruited, inducted and trained to begin volunteering at Brockholes, so we offer an enormous thank you to all who are helping it make such a big impact on our visitors... Volunteers truly are the face of Brockholes.
There are currently some exciting opportunities to be had volunteering here at Brockholes. Please have a look below at roles (you can click on the titles to download a full role description) which might suit you and click here to register, mentioning Brockholes and the role on the form.
Seasonal Activities Volunteer
Our seasonal activities program is the ideal opportunity for young people aged 16-23 to get involved here at Brockholes.
Running throughout all school holiday periods, you are expected to volunteer for 7 hours per week (normally one full day).
The Seasonal Activities Volunteer role is ideal for friendly, outgoing people who want to utilise their creative skills and help visitors – in particular children – enjoy the reserve. You will work alongside other volunteers to plan and deliver a variety of activities including pond dipping, guided walks, bird watching. The role will also include assisting with larger events such as our Extreme Adventure Weekend and Craft Fayres. Support will be given to you by the Events & Communications Manager.
This placement is perfect for those undertaking various award schemes, such as the Duke of Edinburgh award, as over the course of the summer you have the opportunity to gain upto 50 volunteering hours.
For full details on the role and what it entails, click here.
Seasonal Retail & Visitor Services
Our seasonal activities program is the ideal opportunity for young people aged 16-23 to get involved here at Brockholes.
As a volunteer for Retail & Visitor Services you will provide a warm welcome for visitors, helping to ensure that their Brockholes experience is a positive one. You will help visitors by providing them with information about products on sale in our gift stores and help them plan their visit by telling them about the various events and activities we have on offer.
The role suits a friendly, outgoing person who has an interest in wildlife and conservation.
Running throughout the school holiday periods, you are expected to volunteer for 7 hours per week (normally one full day).
This placement is perfect for those undertaking various award schemes, such as the Duke of Edinburgh award, as over the course of the summer you have the opportunity to gain upto 50 volunteering hours.
Each volunteer will be required to undergo a minimum of 1 and a half days training before they start. If you’d like to find out more or ask questions about any of these roles do not hesitate to get in touch with Catherine Haddon, Volunteering Support Officer on 01772 324 129 or email volunteer@lancswt.org.uk
Awards
Brockholes has scooped many high profile awards since opening in April 2011:
2013 Lancashire Tourism Award for Best Conference/Meeting venue
VisitEngland's Visitor Attraction Quality Assurance Scheme (VAQAS) 'Excellent'
Green Tourism Gold Award
Customer at the Heart Award
Lancashire and Blackpool Tourism Awards 'Marketing Campaign of the Year'
National Wood Award
BREEAM ‘Outstanding’ for the interim design stage
Chartered Institute of Building Services – Building of the Year 2011
Civic Trust Award
Civic Trust Special Award for Sustainability
Highly Commended in portfolio of Newlands sites in Landscape Awards
CIWEM Living Wetlands award
Greenbuilds award
Green Apple Awards for the Visitor Centre
Sustainable Project of the year – 2012 Building Awards
RICS North West – Overall award
RICS North West – Tourism and Leisure
RICS NW – Design & Innovation
RIBA North West Building of the Year
RIBA North West Sustainability Award
RIBA Award for top 50 new buildings in the UK
Brockholes is an award winning-venue, which floats on one of our lakes - the only one of its kind in the UK.
Combine this unique design with access straight off the M6, a beautiful nature reserve, ample parking and on site catering, and you have found yourself the perfect venue for your next event. View our Conference Brochure here.
We think Brockholes is the natural place to do business, our dedicated centre can cater for 50 to 130 delegates.
We have a choice of two conference rooms and a reception/break-out area.
www.brockholes.org/conference-packages
At Brockholes we want you to be in control of your event as much as possible. This is why we have created these basic packages, enabling you to tweak each element to build an individual event.
Alternatively, we can cater to your specific requests if you require half day, early morning or evening hire.
Here is an overview of our conference packages, please contact us for a quote.
Our Conference brochure can be viewed in digi-book format here.
Day Delegate Package
Private room hire from 9am - 5pm
Tea and coffee served on arrival with bacon rolls
Mineral water for each guest
Tea and coffee served mid-morning
Buffet lunch served with tea, coffee and fresh fruit platter
Tea, coffee and biscuits served mid-afternoon
Use of a flip chart, screen and projector
Recycled pen and notepad for each delegate
Dedicated co-ordinator to assist you throughout the planning to delivery of your meeting
24 Hour Delegate Package
All of the above plus;
Three course dinner
Full breakfast
Accommodation in a standard bedroom at our recommended accommodation supplier
Accommodation
Preferential rates are available on request from a local hotel when booking through the Brockholes Sales Team.
We can tailor our packages to suit your needs. Make the UK's first floating venue your next choice
Please contact us for more information or to arrange a meeting or showround with our Conference Sales Co-ordinator
Call us on 01772 872005 or enter your details below and we will contact you to discuss your requirements.
www.brockholes.org/sponsorship-opportunities
Sponsorship Opportunities
Brockholes is an award winning nature reserve owned and manages by the Lancashire Wildlife Trust, which was opened in 2011. The 250 acre reserve is already attracting record numbers of breeding birds and around 170,000 visitors each year. Brockholes runs a wide range of events throughout the year and has a particularly strong offer for families. Events include wild families, school holiday clubs, school and community group visits, self led trails and larger festivals during the summer holidays.
The key marketing campaigns run targeting families include Christmas, Summer and Easter. Each campaign targets a series of family focused publications across the North West, with a monthly average reach online of over 40,000 people through the website and social media. Advertising and direct marketing campaigns have an average reach of 70% of the total North West population.
Sponsorship and Partnership Opportunities
Summer at Brockholes sees a host of family events each year, from school holiday clubs to open air theatre, guided walks to family fun. Over the Summer period, Brockholes expects to welcome over 60,000 visitors. The marketing campaign is multi channel and will reach a wide audience of families across the North West. Brockholes has also been featured in the National Press for some of the unique events run. We have some new opportunities for sponsorship and partnership, which will allow your business to raise brand awareness and fulfill part of your Corporate Social Responsibility by supporting Brockholes and The Lancashire Wildlife Trust.
Summer at Brockholes Headline Sponsorship £4500
Expose your brand to thousands of families across the North West.
- Logo on all Summer promotional material
- Inclusion in all four of the Summer e-news and Lancashire Wildlife Trust e-news
- Sponsor Feature on Brockholes.org
- On site promotion
- Promotion through social media channels
- Inclusion in all PR activity
- Temporary use of Brockholes logo on promotional material directly related to the partnership
Wild Families Sponsorship £4000 per year
Our Wild Families events are always fully booked. With themes ranging from scarecrow hunts to nature detectives, each event provides quality family time for family members of all ages. Events are run throughout school holidays.
-Logo on marketing materials for Wild Families
-Inclusion in PR for trail launch
-Inclusion in social media activity
-Inclusion in Brockholes e-news
Seasonal Trail Sponsorship £500 per trail
Each visitor to Brockholes can collect their free seasonal trail on arrival. The trail helps visitors to explore the reserve, learn more about what to see and how the reserve changes with the season and challenges them to spot things.
-Logo on sponsorship trail
-Inclusion in PR for trail launch
-Inclusion in social media activity around the trail
Half term at Brockholes £1500
-Logo on all marketing materials
-Inclusion in launch PR
-Social media promotion
Annual Headline Sponsorship £10,000
- Logo inclusion on all Promotional Material
- Dedicated web page on Brockholes.org
- On site promotion
- Dedicated stand area on key event days
- Promotion through Brockholes and LWT e-news, member magazine
- Promotion through social media channels
- Inclusion in all PR activity
-Discounted delegate rate on our conference facilities
Children's Corner £500
Would you like to help brighten up the children's corner in our restuarant for our younger visitors?
-Inclusion in PR activity
-Recognition in the children's area
-Inclusion in activity to our database promoting the new area
To talk to us more about sponsorship opportunities, contact Ruth Gaskell rgaskell@lancswt.org.uk or call 01772 324129.
www.brockholes.org/commercial-opportunities
Commercial Opportunities
Make Brockholes your business
Businesses are being offered an opportunity to become partners in a North West tourism and wildlife success story.
Brockholes nature reserve is entering the second phase of development which will provide commercial opportunities for other businesses and boost local employment.
The Lancashire Wildlife Trust attraction attracted 185,000 people to its nature reserve and the first ever floating visitor village in the UK, last year. It is looking to top that visitor figure this year.
Just off the M6 at Preston and easily accessible from anywhere in the UK, Brockholes has received more than 30 regional and national awards despite only opening in 2011. Visitors continue to pour in despite the reserve being surrounded by the attractions of Manchester, Blackpool and Liverpool.
The business has shown year-on-year growth and, as a result, is seeking commercial partners for the next phase of development.
Anne Selby, Chief Executive of the Wildlife Trust said “Brockholes has performed incredibly well despite being launched in a recession. We have steered the business through the stormy weather and achieved fantastic results.
“We are now looking to move into the next phase of development. As a conservation charity, we want to ensure our focus remains on the nature conservation of the reserve, whilst ensuring the commercial income supports this work. We are looking for expressions of interest at this stage and asking businesses to be creative with their proposals.”
The Visitor Village has a restaurant, shops, conference centre, welcome centre and education centre. Major companies have made use of the conference centre including RBS and Aldi. The surrounding nature reserve is continuing to grow, with an increasing population of resident creatures and rare visitors like red kite, bittern and otter.
Anne continued: “Brockholes received funding for the initial start up and development phases but it was always designed to be a self-sustaining model. By making the most of the commercial opportunities and keeping these balanced carefully with the needs of nature, we believe we can continue to success of Brockholes into the future and achieve even more fantastic results for wildlife, our wide range of visitors and the tourism economy”.
Opportunities include retail, water sports (non-motorised), indoor play provision, events partners and mobile food concessions. However, the Trust is open to hear if any investors would wish to develop sympathetic commercial facilities on the site.
An opportunity information pack is available by request from:
Karen Williams Karen.Williams@brockholes.org
Expressions of interest should initially be made to
Lindsey Poole, Commercial Development Manager lpoole@lancswt.org.uk
Group Visits
Whether it’s a full day out or just a quick stop off on the way to your destination, Brockholes is the ideal place for groups to visit.
There's so much for all ages to see and learn about at Brockholes. Everyone from toddlers to seniors will find something to fascinate them, whether through our exciting range of organised events, or by just wandering around the site.
We are passionately committed to lifelong learning for all – our belief is that everyone should leave knowing something they didn't when they arrived! The Lancashire Wildlife Trust has over a decade of experience in delivering environmental education, so you can relax, enjoy the surroundings and be sure to come away both enchanted and enlightened...
We have several options for various groups, each with a variety of benefits. For more information click on the relevant link below…
Coach Groups
School Groups
Community Groups
To enquire about group visits please call 01772 872000 or email info@brockholes.org. Or leave your details on the form below and a member of our team will get back to you as soon as possible.
Coach Groups
Situated next to Junction 31 on the M6, we are the ideal stop for coach trips, whether it is for a short stop, as a green motorway services, or as part of a full day visit.
Free entry for coaches and convenient coach drop-off point
We have a variety of walking trails for your group to explore, ranging from half an hour to 2 hours in length.
We have our floating visitor village that features a stunning waterside restaurant, 2 unique gift shops and a welcome centre with exhibits, which are ideal should your guests decide for something less active (or if the weather lets you down)!
All our buildings are fully accessible, while the vast majority of our paths are well surfaced, level and suitable for wheelchairs.
We now have a more convenient drop-off point exclusively for coaches and in addition have a number of benefits for coach groups:
• Free entry to the reserve and visitor centre
• Free coach parking
• Refreshment voucher for the coach driver
• Free familiarisation visit for group organisers
• Free meet and greet at the coach (on request)
• Free Brockholes welcome leaflet and trail guide
• Free events and activities throughout the year (visit our events calendar for details)
• Free play area
• Pre-booked guided tours (available at an extra charge)
• Adapted toilets available at the visitor centre
Please note that there is a 4 metre high bridge on the entrance to Brockholes. We also advise all coaches to let us know of their visit in advance by calling us on 01772 872000.
For any further information please just call 01772 872000, email info@brockholes.org
School Groups
Our 250 acre nature reserve and Visitor Village is a great place for school groups to visit. Children can learn about the geological history and how the quarrying has shaped the land today. And because we are a new nature reserve, you can watch it grow! It is also home to the UK's first floating Visitor Village.
Most importantly of all, the children will be able to see that Brockholes is home to a host of wildlife, with many different species of bird popping by throughout the year, along with brown hare, dragonfly and deer to name a few!
Facilities
Your school will have use of the education centre on our floating visitor village and you will have at least one Education Officer dedicated to your group throughout the day.
Plus... NEW FOR 2014!
Next year your school will be able to get even closer to nature at Brockholes by booking an education session in our new purpose-built bird hide classroom, right on the edge of the lake!
The hide will overlook No 1 Pit Lake which is home to many different species of birds and you'll also be able to look across to the new sand martin wall, which will provide valuable breeding habitat when they arrive in spring.
Why not your details below if you'd like us to keep to informed of these exciting new developments!
Programmes
We offer a wide range of programmes including:
Big Adventure in a Miniature World
Life Cycles
Migration and Hibernation
Environmental Art
Geography and Geology
Forest School
You can read more about the education programmes available at Brockholes here.
Education Team
Our Education Team are based at Brockholes and have a huge amount of experience in inspiring young people about the natural world. They are a lively bunch and pride themselves on creating an exciting and memorable experience for your school. You can read about how great our team is here: Meet the Education Team.
Outreach
Can't get to us? Then we can come to you! Our outreach education programme is very popular and offers a wide range of programmes for those who are unable to reach Brockholes.You can view our Outreach Programmes here.
For any information just call us on 01772 872000 for more information, email eduadmin@lancswt.org.uk
Community Groups
Brockholes is a great place to bring your community group, whether it's the Scouts, Guides, Cubs, Brownies or Beavers or a rambling or photography group, there is something for everyone!
As well as exploring our stunning nature reserve you can enjoy an activity such as a guided walk, a mini-beast hunt or an environmental art session.
You can visit Brockholes during the day or we have special community group evenings when the reserve is open beyond our usual opening hours. Group activities usually take place between 5.30pm and 7.30pm.
Forest Schools
Forest Schools is a unique outdoor learning experience that improves children's self-esteem, confidence and abilities.
Brockholes provides an inspirational setting for Forest Schools sessions and training, and is conveniently located just off junction 31 of the M6 at Preston.
Our Forest School sessions are designed and delivered by our experienced and fully qualified Education Team including our Level 3 Trained Forest Schools Practioner.
Our next Forest Schools adult training session will be running in October. To find out more about Forest School sessions at Brockholes please call 01772 872017 or email kphillips@lancswt.org.uk
Shop til you flock
Why not drop into our two on-site shops, The Nest and Village Store, which are packed with all sorts of goodies. We've a variety of products from local beverages and food, to cards and books and crafts and jewellery. They are the perfect place to pick up a unique gift... and there's plenty of treats for the little ones too!
The Nest
The Nest is home to an inspiring collection of gifts, jewellery, books, toys, arts & crafts. Discover what's inside The Nest here.
The Village Store
The Village Store stocks a wide range of products, from locally sourced food and drink treats to bird food, garden accessories and wildlife books. Come and look inside here.
Membership of the Wildlife Trust
Brockholes is a Lancashire Wildlife Trust Nature Reserve. You can become a member today or talk to our friendly staff members and volunteers on your next visit to Brockholes. Gift membership is available in The Nest or you can buy it online here.
Our restaurant is the perfect place to stop and watch the world go by with panoramic views of our lake. Scrumptious homemade dishes and a taste bud tingling selection of Lancashire's finest local produce are all here to tempt you, along with fair trade tea and coffee.
Our restaurant is open from 10am to 5pm.
www.brockholes.org/very-special-occasions
Brockholes is a fantastic place for your very special occasions.
Our floating venue is one of the newest and most unique in Lancashire and promises you and your guests an unforgetable event whatever the occasion.
We have a dedicated function centre that can accomodate weddings, christenings and all sort of functions.
The clean, contemporary finish of our venue means that you have the perfect opportunity to put your own stamp on your event, with a flexible range of catering available from our on-site restaurant.
We have a dedicated Conference and Events Co-ordinator that will be available to help you plan your special occasion.
Very Special Weddings
We had our first wedding celebration September 2011 and since then it's been all go with Wedding Fayres and lots more bookings for this year and next. Find out more about weddings at Brockholes here.
Very Special Christenings
Brockholes is a real family friendly venue for a Christening celebration that you will remember for years to come. Find out more here.
For general enquiries about holding a function at Brockholes please call 01772 872005 or email philip.dunn@brockholes.org.
I managed to catch the last hour of light today at Kynance cove. It really is a spectacular location, and all the better in a bit of sunshine! I feel so lucky to live and work in this magical part of Cornwall. It was blowing a gale and pretty cold, but a very welcome change from rain.
Managed to get this one this morning while riding across the Powhite bridge at 60mph, you know you want to Do eeeet
I managed to get right under this cobweb and get mostly blue sky refracted in the water droplets hanging from it. The bits of orange are leaves in fall colors with the odd branch thrown in for texture.
Managed a shot if our moon tonight, taken with an iPhone through a very big telescope. Thanks to Dave of York astronomical society for his help.
every time i look at this image i am blown away knowing that it was taken on an iPhone,
Managed to snap a quick shot of a friendly Blue Jay in the fall colours at Lambton Woods. The light was challenging given the time of day, but well worth it!
October 24, 2014
"Nature never deceives us; it is we who deceive ourselves." - Jean-Jacques Rousseau
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A pretty long day; but I managed to get a lot of things done so that's pretty fantastic. Less to do over the next two days before returning to the office.
Today started off with breakfast with my parents, then operation table swap occurred (my parents bought new furniture, Nard and I each profited from their purchase, he now has a new dining room table at his place and I've a new one at my place). Afterwards, I decided to take advantage of the gorgeous weather and cleaned my car inside and out, and by the then Nard was returning from work so off for dinner we went. Once he went home for the evening, I decided, well I'm a roll and decided to clean the house.
Now the only chore I've left for the weekend is laundry, which shouldn't take too long once I get going on that.
Not a bad Friday, if you ask me.
Hope everyone has had a good day.
Click "L" for a larger view.
Managed to catch this neat angle of the light hitting Bentonville before some security guards came and asked us to not hang around the parking garage for too long. They were nice fellas, but it's kind of annoying that they felt the need to tell me not to hang around a public parking garage for more than a few minutes.
Also, it definitely seemed to put them in a better mood when they saw I was just using an old and tiny point and shoot camera 😂. I can only imagine that if I'd have had my D780 or F5 out, they may have been less friendly.
📷 PowerShot S50
Managed to get over to the Lakes on Boxing day for a walk. The light was wonderful especially earlier in the day. This is looking South on the way up Higg Rigg (Naddle Fell).
Managed to get a couple of shots of Hummingbird Hawk moth in my garden this morning. Just as exotic looking as the tropical butterflies @ Blenheim.
The blue flowers that it likes very much are my shrubby hardy plumbago (Ceratostigma wilmottianum)
I managed to visit Holywell Bay twice on successive nights, and how different they were. While the Sunday night was full of colour Saturday ended in a dreary whitewash.
Trying to get a nice clean composition I decided to get a reflection of the island, but I had to get the camera virtually in the sand to get low enough, queue wet and soggy hand but at least the camera stayed dry!
I managed to capture a brief display of aurora whilst visiting the Lake District. The naked eye visible glow only lasted a few minutes, so I was glad I was looking the right way at the time. The aurora occurred at around 9pm on Wednesday March 19th. I was there to photograph deep space using a new astrograph.
A video featuring this adventure and others will be available on my YouTube channel here www.youtube.com/@starman1969
I managed to catch this one coming around the bend just before the loop at Eureka. This is not an angle I have tried before, but I think it turned out quite nicely. The evening sun looks very good on the front of the loco, and on the wagons behind it.
Managed to capture both male and female Sparrowhawks at Millers wood today, really pleased it was me photographing them for a change.
you can read more on my Website/Blog at: www.johnstantonphotography.co.uk/sparrowhawk-on-patrol/
Managing to time its arrival with a blue hole the size of a Knats cock 60021 passes Irchester with 6E38 13:54 Colnbrook - Lindsey. 22-06-2015.
Managed to get the SpaceX cargo mission CRS-22 orbital insertion on camera last Thursday but it required some processing on ground to make the colours come out. Orbital insertion is when the spacecraft enters orbital flight (which is a ballistic freefall around Earth), after the end of the propulsive phase (which is when the rocket was pushing you). After that critical point, there are manoeuvres to catch up with the International Space Station, raise the chasing spacecraft’s orbit to the same altitude as us (or almost), and finally manoeuvre around the Station until docking. See: spaceflight is simple after all – if it wasn’t I couldn't do it 😉.
J’ai réussi à photographier l’injection en orbite du cargo SpaceX jeudi dernier. Il a fallu un peu de temps pour traiter la photo afin de faire ressortir les couleurs (ce sont des collègues qui s’en occupent, comme pour les timelapses 😉). L’injection orbitale, c’est la phase après le décollage lorsqu’un vaisseau entre en vol orbital (qui est une chute libre balistique autour de la Terre), une fois la phase propulsive (= quand la fusée lance le vaisseau) finie. Après cette étape critique, le cargo qui doit rattraper l’ISS effectue plusieurs manœuvres, notamment pour atteindre la même altitude et enfin se positionner correctement en vue de l’amarrage. Vous voyez, les vols spatiaux c’est assez simple après tout - si ce n'était pas le cas, je ne pourrais pas le faire 😃
Credits: ESA/NASA–T. Pesquet/A. Conigli
sx22 insertion iss065e086257_1
I managed to latch on to a loaded pellet train this morning and catch him in a few spots. The middle shot is here at Burnett, with the tunnel motor leading a GE and another EMD. It was a cool morning and just enough humidity to let the pellets give off a little steam.
Brockholes is a new kind of nature reserve, an unreserved reserve owned and managed by The Wildlife Trust for Lancashire, Manchester and North Merseyside.
There's lots to see and do at Brockholes, you can hunt out our floating Visitor Village with a restaurant, shops and Welcome Centre or explore our family-friendly hides, walking trails and play area.
At Brockholes you can explore our beautiful reserve, see the wildlife that call it ‘home’ or hunt out our Visitor Village with restaurant and shops, all of which float (yes really!) on one of our lakes.
Our floating Visitor Village features a gift shop and a restaurant providing stunning views across the lake. You can also discover our interactive Welcome Centre and learn all about the wildlife that you could see on-site. Be sure to call in to pick up a welcome leaflet that will help you plan your day. You can view the reserve map in our Welcome Leaflet here to help you plan your first visit.
2013/14 Opening Times:
4th November 2013 to 31 March 2014 10am-4pm
1st April 2014 to 31st October 2014 10am-5pm
Closed Christmas Eve and Christmas Day only
Car Park Charges
We don't charge for entry and any profits made here go back into looking after the reserve. So every time you pay for parking, treat yourself in the shop or enjoy some lunch, you are helping look after the reserve and the wildlife that visits us!
Sorry no dogs allowed!
There is a good reason! Dogs can disturb wildlife, especially nesting birds. If your dog was to get too close to a nesting bird it would cause the mother to leave the nest. So to avoid any accidents we ask that you don’t bring your dog. (Assistance dogs are welcome.)
Explore the reserve
Brockholes is one of the best sites in the UK for many species of bird and has one of the largest strips of ancient woodland in the county. You can take a stroll by the River Ribble, explore our woods or enjoy the lakes on site, which have all been specially designed to attract all kinds of wildlife for you to see!
Walks around Brockholes
What can I see at Brockholes?
Read about the happy habitats we've been working hard to create at Brockholes.
Watch out!
The Visitor Village floats on water and there are lots of areas of open water on the reserve. Take care in these areas and keep an eye on any children with you. The following activities are not allowed on the reserve:
Barbecues and fires
Fishing
Swimming
Please do not feed the birds
Big gulls know it’s much easier to find food when we leave it lying around rather than finding their own lunch. Here at Brockholes we have lots of species breeding with us, little ringed and ringed plover, lapwing, oystercatcher and redshank. Unfortunately the big gulls will eat the chicks of these special birds so if we feed the gulls and encourage them to stay there is a big chance that they will eat our important chicks, so please do not feed the birds and take your leftover picnic away with you.
www.brockholes.org/our-journey
The Lancashire Wildlife Trust has been working on developing Brockholes for nearly 20 years, here is an overview of our journey.
1992 Lancashire Wildlife Trust first contests the quarrying of Brockholes.
27 November 2006 The Lancashire Wildlife Trust has four weeks to raise £50,000 to buy the Brockholes site, near Preston, and protect it from development. Brockholes sits next to J31 of the M6 and is the size of 120 football pitches.
15 January 2007 The Lancashire Wildlife Trust makes the biggest land purchase in its history - thanks to donations from Wildlife Trust members, and an investment of £800,000 from the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA) under the Newlands scheme. The project to buy and develop Brockholes is also supported by The Tubney Charitable Trust.
3 May 2007 Ian Selby is appointed as Brockholes project manager. Ian has 20 years' experience of managing the North West's canal network for British Waterways, followed by environmental regeneration work. Sophie Leadsom, Brockholes' new reserve manager, has worked in conservation for 14 years.
July 2007 The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) announced the launch of a new open competition to design new visitor facilities.
5 October 2007 The Lancashire Wildlife Trust announced the shortlist for the new multi-million pound visitor centre. 61 architects from all over Europe submitted designs. The five were Adam Khan Architects, Arca, Architecture 2B, AY Architects, McDowell + Benedetti.
25 February 2008 The Lancashire Wildlife Trust (LWT) and partners announce the winner of its competition to design a visitor facility. Adam Khan Architects was selected for its inspirational design concept: "A Floating World". Designed as a cluster of buildings constructed largely of wood and other sustainable materials, it resembles an ancient marshland village.
April 2008 The Lancashire Wildlife Trust announced the completion of its first phase of preparatory work, including the restoration of the wetlands, creation of ponds, seeding of meadows, planting new hedgerows and trees, making access paths and building proper bird watching hides.
March 2009 The Lancashire Wildlife Trust secured £8million of funding from the North West Regional Development Agency (NWDA). The investment was made under ‘Newlands’, a NWDA and Forestry Commission programme that is regenerating brownfield land across the Northwest into economically viable community woodland.
Summer 2009 Volunteers gave us 134 hours of their time to help propagate our own reed seedlings on-site. We ended up with 20,000 new redd seedlings ready to plant out around our new visitor centre, creating two hecatres of brand new reedbed.
August 2009 The Lancashire Wildlife Trust were granted detailed planning permission for the site.
December 2009 Contractors first day of work as they begin to construct the iconic floating visitors centre. Press conference being held with a ‘cutting of the first sod’
November 2010 A herd of longhorn cattle move into Brockholes to graze the reserve.
December 2010 BBC Countryfile fronted by Julia Bradbury visit Brockholes to film a feature that airs in January 2011.
March 2011 Brockholes makes history as the Visitor Village is floated for the first time.
Easter Sunday 2011 Brockholes opens its doors to the public for the first time!
www.brockholes.org/happy-habitats-brockholes
Happy habitats at Brockholes
The Lancashire Wildlife Trust are using their expertise to create habitats that will encourage lots of different species to visit the site, read more about the work we are doing on the reserve...
Number 1 Pit
Uniform and steep, the edges around the original gravel pit used to look very different. The island looked different too – an egg-shaped piece of land sticking out of the water by three metres. These land profiles weren’t great for the bird species and aquatic invertebrates we wanted to attract. So, with bulldozer and digger we pushed earth into the lake to create shallow, underwater ledges and peninsulas where birds can roost and feed, safe from predators. Diving ducks, such as Great Crested Grebe, now hunt for fish in the deep water.
Nook Pool
The edge of this pool has been planted with reed to create places for small fish and aquatic invertebrates like dragonfly larvae to hide and grow, away from predator fish. The shelter provided by the vegetation provides an ideal hunting ground for lots of species of dragonfly including the impressive Brown Hawker and Emperor Dragonfly.
Meadow Lake
This shallow lake is great for bird watching: when the water level is down, wading birds feed on small invertebrates in the exposed mud. This lake has some of the richest water plant life in and around it, including White Water Lily and Cuckooflower. The reed fringes are becoming well established and hold some of the largest populations of birds on site. The islands provide safe roosting and breeding areas, we keep the vegetation short so the birds can watch out for predators.
Boilton Marsh
This area is part of our newly created wet grassland habitat. We remodelled 17,000 cubic metres of quarry spoil to create 10 hectares of wet grassland with nearly 2km of channels and five pools. This is the ideal habitat for breeding wading birds such as Lapwing, Redshank and Snipe. We now graze traditional breeds of cattle and sheep that thrive on the coarse grasses and rushes and provide the low grassland sward that encourages wading birds to nest.
The channels and pools are kept topped up by using a high-level reservoir, filled from Number One Pit by way of a solar pump.
Woodland
Brockholes is fringed by the ancient woodland of Boilton, Red Scar and Tunbrook Woods. Woodland has grown here for thousands of years and developed a very rich variety of wildlife. Looking after our trees and paths will help the woodland to thrive and enable you to see the wildlife safely.
Reedbeds
Reedbeds are home to Sedge Warblers, Reed Warblers, Reed Buntings and Water Rail. We protect the new reed from grazing birds like Coot, Mute Swan and Canada Goose, by erecting chicken wire fences and baling string barriers. It will take several years before our lak fringes start to look like reedbeds. You might notice that the Visitor Village has been nestled in reedbed. This helps it to blend into the reserve and allows you to hear the song and chatter of the birds that nest there.
www.brockholes.org/brockholes-partners-and-funders
Brockholes partners and funders
For the past ten years, The Wildlife Trust for Lancashire, Manchester and North Merseyside have been working to secure this site of national environmental importance, and restore habitats to their full potential.
The £8.6 million of regeneration funding was provided for the Brockholes Wetland and Woodland Reserve project has been granted under 'Newlands' - a £59 million, Northwest Regional Development Agency and Forestry Commission programme to transform brownfield land into durable community woodland, which act as catalysts for economic, social and environmental gain.
The Lancashire Environmental Fund awarded £446,000 for the development of the education facilities, hides and infrastructure on the site. Tubney Charitable Trust granted £350,000 for Biodiversity and Natural England DEFRA's Aggregates Levy Sustainability Fund awarded circa. £300,000. The Environment Agency granted £50,000 for the continued development of Brockholes.
The support of these funders helped make Brockholes a reality, as did the amazing support from our public appeal, which raised an amazing £63,000 - the most successful public appeal the Lancashire Wildlife Trust has ever run!
Volunteering at Brockholes
Around 200 volunteers have now been recruited, inducted and trained to begin volunteering at Brockholes, so we offer an enormous thank you to all who are helping it make such a big impact on our visitors... Volunteers truly are the face of Brockholes.
There are currently some exciting opportunities to be had volunteering here at Brockholes. Please have a look below at roles (you can click on the titles to download a full role description) which might suit you and click here to register, mentioning Brockholes and the role on the form.
Seasonal Activities Volunteer
Our seasonal activities program is the ideal opportunity for young people aged 16-23 to get involved here at Brockholes.
Running throughout all school holiday periods, you are expected to volunteer for 7 hours per week (normally one full day).
The Seasonal Activities Volunteer role is ideal for friendly, outgoing people who want to utilise their creative skills and help visitors – in particular children – enjoy the reserve. You will work alongside other volunteers to plan and deliver a variety of activities including pond dipping, guided walks, bird watching. The role will also include assisting with larger events such as our Extreme Adventure Weekend and Craft Fayres. Support will be given to you by the Events & Communications Manager.
This placement is perfect for those undertaking various award schemes, such as the Duke of Edinburgh award, as over the course of the summer you have the opportunity to gain upto 50 volunteering hours.
For full details on the role and what it entails, click here.
Seasonal Retail & Visitor Services
Our seasonal activities program is the ideal opportunity for young people aged 16-23 to get involved here at Brockholes.
As a volunteer for Retail & Visitor Services you will provide a warm welcome for visitors, helping to ensure that their Brockholes experience is a positive one. You will help visitors by providing them with information about products on sale in our gift stores and help them plan their visit by telling them about the various events and activities we have on offer.
The role suits a friendly, outgoing person who has an interest in wildlife and conservation.
Running throughout the school holiday periods, you are expected to volunteer for 7 hours per week (normally one full day).
This placement is perfect for those undertaking various award schemes, such as the Duke of Edinburgh award, as over the course of the summer you have the opportunity to gain upto 50 volunteering hours.
Each volunteer will be required to undergo a minimum of 1 and a half days training before they start. If you’d like to find out more or ask questions about any of these roles do not hesitate to get in touch with Catherine Haddon, Volunteering Support Officer on 01772 324 129 or email volunteer@lancswt.org.uk
Awards
Brockholes has scooped many high profile awards since opening in April 2011:
2013 Lancashire Tourism Award for Best Conference/Meeting venue
VisitEngland's Visitor Attraction Quality Assurance Scheme (VAQAS) 'Excellent'
Green Tourism Gold Award
Customer at the Heart Award
Lancashire and Blackpool Tourism Awards 'Marketing Campaign of the Year'
National Wood Award
BREEAM ‘Outstanding’ for the interim design stage
Chartered Institute of Building Services – Building of the Year 2011
Civic Trust Award
Civic Trust Special Award for Sustainability
Highly Commended in portfolio of Newlands sites in Landscape Awards
CIWEM Living Wetlands award
Greenbuilds award
Green Apple Awards for the Visitor Centre
Sustainable Project of the year – 2012 Building Awards
RICS North West – Overall award
RICS North West – Tourism and Leisure
RICS NW – Design & Innovation
RIBA North West Building of the Year
RIBA North West Sustainability Award
RIBA Award for top 50 new buildings in the UK
Brockholes is an award winning-venue, which floats on one of our lakes - the only one of its kind in the UK.
Combine this unique design with access straight off the M6, a beautiful nature reserve, ample parking and on site catering, and you have found yourself the perfect venue for your next event. View our Conference Brochure here.
We think Brockholes is the natural place to do business, our dedicated centre can cater for 50 to 130 delegates.
We have a choice of two conference rooms and a reception/break-out area.
www.brockholes.org/conference-packages
At Brockholes we want you to be in control of your event as much as possible. This is why we have created these basic packages, enabling you to tweak each element to build an individual event.
Alternatively, we can cater to your specific requests if you require half day, early morning or evening hire.
Here is an overview of our conference packages, please contact us for a quote.
Our Conference brochure can be viewed in digi-book format here.
Day Delegate Package
Private room hire from 9am - 5pm
Tea and coffee served on arrival with bacon rolls
Mineral water for each guest
Tea and coffee served mid-morning
Buffet lunch served with tea, coffee and fresh fruit platter
Tea, coffee and biscuits served mid-afternoon
Use of a flip chart, screen and projector
Recycled pen and notepad for each delegate
Dedicated co-ordinator to assist you throughout the planning to delivery of your meeting
24 Hour Delegate Package
All of the above plus;
Three course dinner
Full breakfast
Accommodation in a standard bedroom at our recommended accommodation supplier
Accommodation
Preferential rates are available on request from a local hotel when booking through the Brockholes Sales Team.
We can tailor our packages to suit your needs. Make the UK's first floating venue your next choice
Please contact us for more information or to arrange a meeting or showround with our Conference Sales Co-ordinator
Call us on 01772 872005 or enter your details below and we will contact you to discuss your requirements.
www.brockholes.org/sponsorship-opportunities
Sponsorship Opportunities
Brockholes is an award winning nature reserve owned and manages by the Lancashire Wildlife Trust, which was opened in 2011. The 250 acre reserve is already attracting record numbers of breeding birds and around 170,000 visitors each year. Brockholes runs a wide range of events throughout the year and has a particularly strong offer for families. Events include wild families, school holiday clubs, school and community group visits, self led trails and larger festivals during the summer holidays.
The key marketing campaigns run targeting families include Christmas, Summer and Easter. Each campaign targets a series of family focused publications across the North West, with a monthly average reach online of over 40,000 people through the website and social media. Advertising and direct marketing campaigns have an average reach of 70% of the total North West population.
Sponsorship and Partnership Opportunities
Summer at Brockholes sees a host of family events each year, from school holiday clubs to open air theatre, guided walks to family fun. Over the Summer period, Brockholes expects to welcome over 60,000 visitors. The marketing campaign is multi channel and will reach a wide audience of families across the North West. Brockholes has also been featured in the National Press for some of the unique events run. We have some new opportunities for sponsorship and partnership, which will allow your business to raise brand awareness and fulfill part of your Corporate Social Responsibility by supporting Brockholes and The Lancashire Wildlife Trust.
Summer at Brockholes Headline Sponsorship £4500
Expose your brand to thousands of families across the North West.
- Logo on all Summer promotional material
- Inclusion in all four of the Summer e-news and Lancashire Wildlife Trust e-news
- Sponsor Feature on Brockholes.org
- On site promotion
- Promotion through social media channels
- Inclusion in all PR activity
- Temporary use of Brockholes logo on promotional material directly related to the partnership
Wild Families Sponsorship £4000 per year
Our Wild Families events are always fully booked. With themes ranging from scarecrow hunts to nature detectives, each event provides quality family time for family members of all ages. Events are run throughout school holidays.
-Logo on marketing materials for Wild Families
-Inclusion in PR for trail launch
-Inclusion in social media activity
-Inclusion in Brockholes e-news
Seasonal Trail Sponsorship £500 per trail
Each visitor to Brockholes can collect their free seasonal trail on arrival. The trail helps visitors to explore the reserve, learn more about what to see and how the reserve changes with the season and challenges them to spot things.
-Logo on sponsorship trail
-Inclusion in PR for trail launch
-Inclusion in social media activity around the trail
Half term at Brockholes £1500
-Logo on all marketing materials
-Inclusion in launch PR
-Social media promotion
Annual Headline Sponsorship £10,000
- Logo inclusion on all Promotional Material
- Dedicated web page on Brockholes.org
- On site promotion
- Dedicated stand area on key event days
- Promotion through Brockholes and LWT e-news, member magazine
- Promotion through social media channels
- Inclusion in all PR activity
-Discounted delegate rate on our conference facilities
Children's Corner £500
Would you like to help brighten up the children's corner in our restuarant for our younger visitors?
-Inclusion in PR activity
-Recognition in the children's area
-Inclusion in activity to our database promoting the new area
To talk to us more about sponsorship opportunities, contact Ruth Gaskell rgaskell@lancswt.org.uk or call 01772 324129.
www.brockholes.org/commercial-opportunities
Commercial Opportunities
Make Brockholes your business
Businesses are being offered an opportunity to become partners in a North West tourism and wildlife success story.
Brockholes nature reserve is entering the second phase of development which will provide commercial opportunities for other businesses and boost local employment.
The Lancashire Wildlife Trust attraction attracted 185,000 people to its nature reserve and the first ever floating visitor village in the UK, last year. It is looking to top that visitor figure this year.
Just off the M6 at Preston and easily accessible from anywhere in the UK, Brockholes has received more than 30 regional and national awards despite only opening in 2011. Visitors continue to pour in despite the reserve being surrounded by the attractions of Manchester, Blackpool and Liverpool.
The business has shown year-on-year growth and, as a result, is seeking commercial partners for the next phase of development.
Anne Selby, Chief Executive of the Wildlife Trust said “Brockholes has performed incredibly well despite being launched in a recession. We have steered the business through the stormy weather and achieved fantastic results.
“We are now looking to move into the next phase of development. As a conservation charity, we want to ensure our focus remains on the nature conservation of the reserve, whilst ensuring the commercial income supports this work. We are looking for expressions of interest at this stage and asking businesses to be creative with their proposals.”
The Visitor Village has a restaurant, shops, conference centre, welcome centre and education centre. Major companies have made use of the conference centre including RBS and Aldi. The surrounding nature reserve is continuing to grow, with an increasing population of resident creatures and rare visitors like red kite, bittern and otter.
Anne continued: “Brockholes received funding for the initial start up and development phases but it was always designed to be a self-sustaining model. By making the most of the commercial opportunities and keeping these balanced carefully with the needs of nature, we believe we can continue to success of Brockholes into the future and achieve even more fantastic results for wildlife, our wide range of visitors and the tourism economy”.
Opportunities include retail, water sports (non-motorised), indoor play provision, events partners and mobile food concessions. However, the Trust is open to hear if any investors would wish to develop sympathetic commercial facilities on the site.
An opportunity information pack is available by request from:
Karen Williams Karen.Williams@brockholes.org
Expressions of interest should initially be made to
Lindsey Poole, Commercial Development Manager lpoole@lancswt.org.uk
Group Visits
Whether it’s a full day out or just a quick stop off on the way to your destination, Brockholes is the ideal place for groups to visit.
There's so much for all ages to see and learn about at Brockholes. Everyone from toddlers to seniors will find something to fascinate them, whether through our exciting range of organised events, or by just wandering around the site.
We are passionately committed to lifelong learning for all – our belief is that everyone should leave knowing something they didn't when they arrived! The Lancashire Wildlife Trust has over a decade of experience in delivering environmental education, so you can relax, enjoy the surroundings and be sure to come away both enchanted and enlightened...
We have several options for various groups, each with a variety of benefits. For more information click on the relevant link below…
Coach Groups
School Groups
Community Groups
To enquire about group visits please call 01772 872000 or email info@brockholes.org. Or leave your details on the form below and a member of our team will get back to you as soon as possible.
Coach Groups
Situated next to Junction 31 on the M6, we are the ideal stop for coach trips, whether it is for a short stop, as a green motorway services, or as part of a full day visit.
Free entry for coaches and convenient coach drop-off point
We have a variety of walking trails for your group to explore, ranging from half an hour to 2 hours in length.
We have our floating visitor village that features a stunning waterside restaurant, 2 unique gift shops and a welcome centre with exhibits, which are ideal should your guests decide for something less active (or if the weather lets you down)!
All our buildings are fully accessible, while the vast majority of our paths are well surfaced, level and suitable for wheelchairs.
We now have a more convenient drop-off point exclusively for coaches and in addition have a number of benefits for coach groups:
• Free entry to the reserve and visitor centre
• Free coach parking
• Refreshment voucher for the coach driver
• Free familiarisation visit for group organisers
• Free meet and greet at the coach (on request)
• Free Brockholes welcome leaflet and trail guide
• Free events and activities throughout the year (visit our events calendar for details)
• Free play area
• Pre-booked guided tours (available at an extra charge)
• Adapted toilets available at the visitor centre
Please note that there is a 4 metre high bridge on the entrance to Brockholes. We also advise all coaches to let us know of their visit in advance by calling us on 01772 872000.
For any further information please just call 01772 872000, email info@brockholes.org
School Groups
Our 250 acre nature reserve and Visitor Village is a great place for school groups to visit. Children can learn about the geological history and how the quarrying has shaped the land today. And because we are a new nature reserve, you can watch it grow! It is also home to the UK's first floating Visitor Village.
Most importantly of all, the children will be able to see that Brockholes is home to a host of wildlife, with many different species of bird popping by throughout the year, along with brown hare, dragonfly and deer to name a few!
Facilities
Your school will have use of the education centre on our floating visitor village and you will have at least one Education Officer dedicated to your group throughout the day.
Plus... NEW FOR 2014!
Next year your school will be able to get even closer to nature at Brockholes by booking an education session in our new purpose-built bird hide classroom, right on the edge of the lake!
The hide will overlook No 1 Pit Lake which is home to many different species of birds and you'll also be able to look across to the new sand martin wall, which will provide valuable breeding habitat when they arrive in spring.
Why not your details below if you'd like us to keep to informed of these exciting new developments!
Programmes
We offer a wide range of programmes including:
Big Adventure in a Miniature World
Life Cycles
Migration and Hibernation
Environmental Art
Geography and Geology
Forest School
You can read more about the education programmes available at Brockholes here.
Education Team
Our Education Team are based at Brockholes and have a huge amount of experience in inspiring young people about the natural world. They are a lively bunch and pride themselves on creating an exciting and memorable experience for your school. You can read about how great our team is here: Meet the Education Team.
Outreach
Can't get to us? Then we can come to you! Our outreach education programme is very popular and offers a wide range of programmes for those who are unable to reach Brockholes.You can view our Outreach Programmes here.
For any information just call us on 01772 872000 for more information, email eduadmin@lancswt.org.uk
Community Groups
Brockholes is a great place to bring your community group, whether it's the Scouts, Guides, Cubs, Brownies or Beavers or a rambling or photography group, there is something for everyone!
As well as exploring our stunning nature reserve you can enjoy an activity such as a guided walk, a mini-beast hunt or an environmental art session.
You can visit Brockholes during the day or we have special community group evenings when the reserve is open beyond our usual opening hours. Group activities usually take place between 5.30pm and 7.30pm.
Forest Schools
Forest Schools is a unique outdoor learning experience that improves children's self-esteem, confidence and abilities.
Brockholes provides an inspirational setting for Forest Schools sessions and training, and is conveniently located just off junction 31 of the M6 at Preston.
Our Forest School sessions are designed and delivered by our experienced and fully qualified Education Team including our Level 3 Trained Forest Schools Practioner.
Our next Forest Schools adult training session will be running in October. To find out more about Forest School sessions at Brockholes please call 01772 872017 or email kphillips@lancswt.org.uk
Shop til you flock
Why not drop into our two on-site shops, The Nest and Village Store, which are packed with all sorts of goodies. We've a variety of products from local beverages and food, to cards and books and crafts and jewellery. They are the perfect place to pick up a unique gift... and there's plenty of treats for the little ones too!
The Nest
The Nest is home to an inspiring collection of gifts, jewellery, books, toys, arts & crafts. Discover what's inside The Nest here.
The Village Store
The Village Store stocks a wide range of products, from locally sourced food and drink treats to bird food, garden accessories and wildlife books. Come and look inside here.
Membership of the Wildlife Trust
Brockholes is a Lancashire Wildlife Trust Nature Reserve. You can become a member today or talk to our friendly staff members and volunteers on your next visit to Brockholes. Gift membership is available in The Nest or you can buy it online here.
Our restaurant is the perfect place to stop and watch the world go by with panoramic views of our lake. Scrumptious homemade dishes and a taste bud tingling selection of Lancashire's finest local produce are all here to tempt you, along with fair trade tea and coffee.
Our restaurant is open from 10am to 5pm.
www.brockholes.org/very-special-occasions
Brockholes is a fantastic place for your very special occasions.
Our floating venue is one of the newest and most unique in Lancashire and promises you and your guests an unforgetable event whatever the occasion.
We have a dedicated function centre that can accomodate weddings, christenings and all sort of functions.
The clean, contemporary finish of our venue means that you have the perfect opportunity to put your own stamp on your event, with a flexible range of catering available from our on-site restaurant.
We have a dedicated Conference and Events Co-ordinator that will be available to help you plan your special occasion.
Very Special Weddings
We had our first wedding celebration September 2011 and since then it's been all go with Wedding Fayres and lots more bookings for this year and next. Find out more about weddings at Brockholes here.
Very Special Christenings
Brockholes is a real family friendly venue for a Christening celebration that you will remember for years to come. Find out more here.
For general enquiries about holding a function at Brockholes please call 01772 872005 or email philip.dunn@brockholes.org.
I managed to get my butt out of bed early this morning. I was hoping for a few shots of the male Ruby-throated Hummingbird (Archilochus colubris), but no luck. It showed up just as soon as I packed everything up and had the camera in an unusable position (of course). That got me to set up again and sit back down.
Still no luck, but I think I could hear it snickering in the bushes.
© Steve Byland 2015 all rights reserved
Unauthorized use or reproduction for any reason is prohibited. Please do not link to or blog this without contacting me first.
And oh dear, what a sunburst! At first the sunrise looked promising but at sunrise time the clouds were covering the horizon so the light was quite dim. But suddenly, for like 10 minutes the sun managed to peek through the clouds and cover the whole wintry scenery in perfect golden light. That was a great sunrise, could not have been any better!
Somehowe waiting in -15°C for about an hour was quite ok, but honestly I was wearing all layers of clothes I had available. How do people in the Arctic survive?
To be prepared I mounted my Filters (in this case reverse GND) on all lenses before leafing so I only hat to mount the lenses to my Body - a task that can be accomplished even with thick gloves.
Technichal: Nikon D800, AF-S 20/1.8 (great combo), HiTech reverse ND Grad 0.6, Tripod, Gloves.
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If you are interested in a digital copy or a print of this photograph (or other photographs), please drop me an Email: derliebewolf@web.de
Wenn jemand Interesse an einem digitalen Abzug oder einem Ausdruck von diesem Foto (auch von anderen Fotos von mir) hat, schreibt mir einfach eine Email an derliebewolf@web.de
Mischief Managed welcomes you to the 2023 Wizarding Faire!
To celebrate everything magical, designers from all across the grid come together for a whole two weeks from July 29th to August 12th bringing you the finest wizarding wares and fabulous special items that envelope you into our world. Hosted on the Mischief Managed sim, a delightful Harry Potter Roleplay bringing the magic of Wizardry to SL’s lands.
And it is OPEN!
Come and explore our world as we once again open our doors for this years Wizarding Faire as we guide you through an enriching experience and offer a fun event to tickle your witchery.
Bring on the magic!
Don't just explore the amazing event but also head to our Landing Zone and explore all our magical worlds by following the Marauder's Footsteps through to Platform 9 & 3/4 where the Hogwarts Express will take you wherever you want to go!
Social Media Sponsors :
Wizarding Faire awaits you!
What's a Hogwarts/Mischief managed Christmas mean to me?
Home.
Peace.
What better way to spend the holidays than to stay at the castle and enjoy the quiet atmosphere and the beautiful castle grounds, blanketed in snow, moon peeking through the clouds up in the sky?
Managed to get my other half down to Cornwall for a few days, staying in Talland Bay. Unusually for me taking photo's wasn't really important, I just enjoyed some nice walks and paddles. Didn't venture very far, just Polperro and Looe along the coastal path.
I managed one shot without anyone else in it of the 261's time in Glencoe today. I enjoy seeing steam locomotives, but honestly chasing excursions is not my favorite part of the hobby. Still, moments like this make it worthwhile. It doesn't take much imagination to suddenly think you're trackside for the arrival of the Olympian Hiawatha circa 1950. It's then you realize that you're not just looking at a train, you're watching a steam powered time machine.
Managed to get an hour or two at lunchtime on Friday to go out and do a little photography in the snow. This is possibly my first suspension bridge photo in the snow :-)
This is the hilltop locally called The Larach, traversed by a single track road going from Loch Eck to Ardentinny on Loch Long. It is reputed to be haunted by the ghost of Baron Macinturner, who was murdered in 1685 on his way from his mansion to the nearby Whistlefield Inn. His memorial cairn can still be found at the top of the hill.
I finally managed to grab a half decent phone shot of an experimental electric-drive battery powered bus that is rarely seen on public roads.
RX15HSU is a 'Bristol Superlight' built by the Frazer-Nash Research company based in Farnborough, Hants. The bus was first registered on 28/08/2015 and I've been after a shot of it ever since!
Their concept bus is kitted out to B27D layout and weighs just 3.5 tonnes, its revenue weight listed as 4840kg. It carries a 1.0L engine which is used to recharge the lithium batteries and as such the bus is marketed as ultra low emission / zero emission capable.
I grabbed a shot of it when it was out on a demonstration run on 22/09/2016. And no, it was nowhere near Waterloo!
A collection of cracking photos of this bus in St.Moritz is here: www.fotoswiss.com/-/galleries/reports-reportagen/ebus-by-...
A 6-minute video of the bus in St.Moritz is here: www.enjoystmoritz.ch/index.php/2016/03/23/frazer-nash-bri...
Managed to sweet talk my girl Anna into doing a wintery dace session in our town's park. Props to her for enduring the cold. All natural light.
The great cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo), known as the great black cormorant across the Northern Hemisphere, the black cormorant in Australia, the large cormorant in India and the black shag further south in New Zealand, is a widespread member of the cormorant family of seabirds.
The great cormorant is a large black bird, but there is a wide variation in size in the species wide range. Weight is reported to vary from 1.5 kg (3.3 lb)[6] to 5.3 kg (12 lb). Males are typically larger and heavier than females, with the nominate race (P. c. carbo) averaging about 10% larger in linear measurements than the smallest race in Europe (P. c. sinensis). The lightest average weights cited are in Germany (P. c. sinensis), where 36 males averaged 2.28 kg (5.0 lb) and 17 females averaged 1.94 kg (4.3 lb). The highest come from Prince Edward Island in Canada (P. c. carbo), where 11 males averaged 3.68 kg (8.1 lb) and 11 females averaged 2.94 kg (6.5 lb). Length can vary from 70 to 102 cm (28 to 40 in) and wingspan from 121 to 160 cm (48 to 63 in). They are tied as the second largest extant species of cormorant after the flightless cormorant, with the Japanese cormorant averaging at a similar size. In bulk if not in linear dimensions, the Blue-eyed shag species complex of the Southern Oceans are scarcely smaller at average. It has a longish tail and yellow throat-patch. Adults have white patches on the thighs and on the throat in the breeding season. In European waters it can be distinguished from the common shag by its larger size, heavier build, thicker bill, lack of a crest and plumage without any green tinge. In eastern North America, it is similarly larger and bulkier than double-crested cormorant, and the latter species has more yellow on the throat and bill and lack the white thigh patches frequently seen on great cormorants. Great cormorants are mostly silent, but they make various guttural noises at their breeding colonies.
Albino in Lake Kerkini, Greece
Variations
A very rare variation of the great cormorant is caused by albinism. The Phalacrocorax carbo albino suffers from loss of eyesight and/or hearing, thus it rarely manages to survive in the wild.
For more information, please visit en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_cormorant
Brockholes is a new kind of nature reserve, an unreserved reserve owned and managed by The Wildlife Trust for Lancashire, Manchester and North Merseyside.
There's lots to see and do at Brockholes, you can hunt out our floating Visitor Village with a restaurant, shops and Welcome Centre or explore our family-friendly hides, walking trails and play area.
At Brockholes you can explore our beautiful reserve, see the wildlife that call it ‘home’ or hunt out our Visitor Village with restaurant and shops, all of which float (yes really!) on one of our lakes.
Our floating Visitor Village features a gift shop and a restaurant providing stunning views across the lake. You can also discover our interactive Welcome Centre and learn all about the wildlife that you could see on-site. Be sure to call in to pick up a welcome leaflet that will help you plan your day. You can view the reserve map in our Welcome Leaflet here to help you plan your first visit.
2013/14 Opening Times:
4th November 2013 to 31 March 2014 10am-4pm
1st April 2014 to 31st October 2014 10am-5pm
Closed Christmas Eve and Christmas Day only
Car Park Charges
We don't charge for entry and any profits made here go back into looking after the reserve. So every time you pay for parking, treat yourself in the shop or enjoy some lunch, you are helping look after the reserve and the wildlife that visits us!
Sorry no dogs allowed!
There is a good reason! Dogs can disturb wildlife, especially nesting birds. If your dog was to get too close to a nesting bird it would cause the mother to leave the nest. So to avoid any accidents we ask that you don’t bring your dog. (Assistance dogs are welcome.)
Explore the reserve
Brockholes is one of the best sites in the UK for many species of bird and has one of the largest strips of ancient woodland in the county. You can take a stroll by the River Ribble, explore our woods or enjoy the lakes on site, which have all been specially designed to attract all kinds of wildlife for you to see!
Walks around Brockholes
What can I see at Brockholes?
Read about the happy habitats we've been working hard to create at Brockholes.
Watch out!
The Visitor Village floats on water and there are lots of areas of open water on the reserve. Take care in these areas and keep an eye on any children with you. The following activities are not allowed on the reserve:
Barbecues and fires
Fishing
Swimming
Please do not feed the birds
Big gulls know it’s much easier to find food when we leave it lying around rather than finding their own lunch. Here at Brockholes we have lots of species breeding with us, little ringed and ringed plover, lapwing, oystercatcher and redshank. Unfortunately the big gulls will eat the chicks of these special birds so if we feed the gulls and encourage them to stay there is a big chance that they will eat our important chicks, so please do not feed the birds and take your leftover picnic away with you.
www.brockholes.org/our-journey
The Lancashire Wildlife Trust has been working on developing Brockholes for nearly 20 years, here is an overview of our journey.
1992 Lancashire Wildlife Trust first contests the quarrying of Brockholes.
27 November 2006 The Lancashire Wildlife Trust has four weeks to raise £50,000 to buy the Brockholes site, near Preston, and protect it from development. Brockholes sits next to J31 of the M6 and is the size of 120 football pitches.
15 January 2007 The Lancashire Wildlife Trust makes the biggest land purchase in its history - thanks to donations from Wildlife Trust members, and an investment of £800,000 from the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA) under the Newlands scheme. The project to buy and develop Brockholes is also supported by The Tubney Charitable Trust.
3 May 2007 Ian Selby is appointed as Brockholes project manager. Ian has 20 years' experience of managing the North West's canal network for British Waterways, followed by environmental regeneration work. Sophie Leadsom, Brockholes' new reserve manager, has worked in conservation for 14 years.
July 2007 The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) announced the launch of a new open competition to design new visitor facilities.
5 October 2007 The Lancashire Wildlife Trust announced the shortlist for the new multi-million pound visitor centre. 61 architects from all over Europe submitted designs. The five were Adam Khan Architects, Arca, Architecture 2B, AY Architects, McDowell + Benedetti.
25 February 2008 The Lancashire Wildlife Trust (LWT) and partners announce the winner of its competition to design a visitor facility. Adam Khan Architects was selected for its inspirational design concept: "A Floating World". Designed as a cluster of buildings constructed largely of wood and other sustainable materials, it resembles an ancient marshland village.
April 2008 The Lancashire Wildlife Trust announced the completion of its first phase of preparatory work, including the restoration of the wetlands, creation of ponds, seeding of meadows, planting new hedgerows and trees, making access paths and building proper bird watching hides.
March 2009 The Lancashire Wildlife Trust secured £8million of funding from the North West Regional Development Agency (NWDA). The investment was made under ‘Newlands’, a NWDA and Forestry Commission programme that is regenerating brownfield land across the Northwest into economically viable community woodland.
Summer 2009 Volunteers gave us 134 hours of their time to help propagate our own reed seedlings on-site. We ended up with 20,000 new redd seedlings ready to plant out around our new visitor centre, creating two hecatres of brand new reedbed.
August 2009 The Lancashire Wildlife Trust were granted detailed planning permission for the site.
December 2009 Contractors first day of work as they begin to construct the iconic floating visitors centre. Press conference being held with a ‘cutting of the first sod’
November 2010 A herd of longhorn cattle move into Brockholes to graze the reserve.
December 2010 BBC Countryfile fronted by Julia Bradbury visit Brockholes to film a feature that airs in January 2011.
March 2011 Brockholes makes history as the Visitor Village is floated for the first time.
Easter Sunday 2011 Brockholes opens its doors to the public for the first time!
www.brockholes.org/happy-habitats-brockholes
Happy habitats at Brockholes
The Lancashire Wildlife Trust are using their expertise to create habitats that will encourage lots of different species to visit the site, read more about the work we are doing on the reserve...
Number 1 Pit
Uniform and steep, the edges around the original gravel pit used to look very different. The island looked different too – an egg-shaped piece of land sticking out of the water by three metres. These land profiles weren’t great for the bird species and aquatic invertebrates we wanted to attract. So, with bulldozer and digger we pushed earth into the lake to create shallow, underwater ledges and peninsulas where birds can roost and feed, safe from predators. Diving ducks, such as Great Crested Grebe, now hunt for fish in the deep water.
Nook Pool
The edge of this pool has been planted with reed to create places for small fish and aquatic invertebrates like dragonfly larvae to hide and grow, away from predator fish. The shelter provided by the vegetation provides an ideal hunting ground for lots of species of dragonfly including the impressive Brown Hawker and Emperor Dragonfly.
Meadow Lake
This shallow lake is great for bird watching: when the water level is down, wading birds feed on small invertebrates in the exposed mud. This lake has some of the richest water plant life in and around it, including White Water Lily and Cuckooflower. The reed fringes are becoming well established and hold some of the largest populations of birds on site. The islands provide safe roosting and breeding areas, we keep the vegetation short so the birds can watch out for predators.
Boilton Marsh
This area is part of our newly created wet grassland habitat. We remodelled 17,000 cubic metres of quarry spoil to create 10 hectares of wet grassland with nearly 2km of channels and five pools. This is the ideal habitat for breeding wading birds such as Lapwing, Redshank and Snipe. We now graze traditional breeds of cattle and sheep that thrive on the coarse grasses and rushes and provide the low grassland sward that encourages wading birds to nest.
The channels and pools are kept topped up by using a high-level reservoir, filled from Number One Pit by way of a solar pump.
Woodland
Brockholes is fringed by the ancient woodland of Boilton, Red Scar and Tunbrook Woods. Woodland has grown here for thousands of years and developed a very rich variety of wildlife. Looking after our trees and paths will help the woodland to thrive and enable you to see the wildlife safely.
Reedbeds
Reedbeds are home to Sedge Warblers, Reed Warblers, Reed Buntings and Water Rail. We protect the new reed from grazing birds like Coot, Mute Swan and Canada Goose, by erecting chicken wire fences and baling string barriers. It will take several years before our lak fringes start to look like reedbeds. You might notice that the Visitor Village has been nestled in reedbed. This helps it to blend into the reserve and allows you to hear the song and chatter of the birds that nest there.
www.brockholes.org/brockholes-partners-and-funders
Brockholes partners and funders
For the past ten years, The Wildlife Trust for Lancashire, Manchester and North Merseyside have been working to secure this site of national environmental importance, and restore habitats to their full potential.
The £8.6 million of regeneration funding was provided for the Brockholes Wetland and Woodland Reserve project has been granted under 'Newlands' - a £59 million, Northwest Regional Development Agency and Forestry Commission programme to transform brownfield land into durable community woodland, which act as catalysts for economic, social and environmental gain.
The Lancashire Environmental Fund awarded £446,000 for the development of the education facilities, hides and infrastructure on the site. Tubney Charitable Trust granted £350,000 for Biodiversity and Natural England DEFRA's Aggregates Levy Sustainability Fund awarded circa. £300,000. The Environment Agency granted £50,000 for the continued development of Brockholes.
The support of these funders helped make Brockholes a reality, as did the amazing support from our public appeal, which raised an amazing £63,000 - the most successful public appeal the Lancashire Wildlife Trust has ever run!
Volunteering at Brockholes
Around 200 volunteers have now been recruited, inducted and trained to begin volunteering at Brockholes, so we offer an enormous thank you to all who are helping it make such a big impact on our visitors... Volunteers truly are the face of Brockholes.
There are currently some exciting opportunities to be had volunteering here at Brockholes. Please have a look below at roles (you can click on the titles to download a full role description) which might suit you and click here to register, mentioning Brockholes and the role on the form.
Seasonal Activities Volunteer
Our seasonal activities program is the ideal opportunity for young people aged 16-23 to get involved here at Brockholes.
Running throughout all school holiday periods, you are expected to volunteer for 7 hours per week (normally one full day).
The Seasonal Activities Volunteer role is ideal for friendly, outgoing people who want to utilise their creative skills and help visitors – in particular children – enjoy the reserve. You will work alongside other volunteers to plan and deliver a variety of activities including pond dipping, guided walks, bird watching. The role will also include assisting with larger events such as our Extreme Adventure Weekend and Craft Fayres. Support will be given to you by the Events & Communications Manager.
This placement is perfect for those undertaking various award schemes, such as the Duke of Edinburgh award, as over the course of the summer you have the opportunity to gain upto 50 volunteering hours.
For full details on the role and what it entails, click here.
Seasonal Retail & Visitor Services
Our seasonal activities program is the ideal opportunity for young people aged 16-23 to get involved here at Brockholes.
As a volunteer for Retail & Visitor Services you will provide a warm welcome for visitors, helping to ensure that their Brockholes experience is a positive one. You will help visitors by providing them with information about products on sale in our gift stores and help them plan their visit by telling them about the various events and activities we have on offer.
The role suits a friendly, outgoing person who has an interest in wildlife and conservation.
Running throughout the school holiday periods, you are expected to volunteer for 7 hours per week (normally one full day).
This placement is perfect for those undertaking various award schemes, such as the Duke of Edinburgh award, as over the course of the summer you have the opportunity to gain upto 50 volunteering hours.
Each volunteer will be required to undergo a minimum of 1 and a half days training before they start. If you’d like to find out more or ask questions about any of these roles do not hesitate to get in touch with Catherine Haddon, Volunteering Support Officer on 01772 324 129 or email volunteer@lancswt.org.uk
Awards
Brockholes has scooped many high profile awards since opening in April 2011:
2013 Lancashire Tourism Award for Best Conference/Meeting venue
VisitEngland's Visitor Attraction Quality Assurance Scheme (VAQAS) 'Excellent'
Green Tourism Gold Award
Customer at the Heart Award
Lancashire and Blackpool Tourism Awards 'Marketing Campaign of the Year'
National Wood Award
BREEAM ‘Outstanding’ for the interim design stage
Chartered Institute of Building Services – Building of the Year 2011
Civic Trust Award
Civic Trust Special Award for Sustainability
Highly Commended in portfolio of Newlands sites in Landscape Awards
CIWEM Living Wetlands award
Greenbuilds award
Green Apple Awards for the Visitor Centre
Sustainable Project of the year – 2012 Building Awards
RICS North West – Overall award
RICS North West – Tourism and Leisure
RICS NW – Design & Innovation
RIBA North West Building of the Year
RIBA North West Sustainability Award
RIBA Award for top 50 new buildings in the UK
Brockholes is an award winning-venue, which floats on one of our lakes - the only one of its kind in the UK.
Combine this unique design with access straight off the M6, a beautiful nature reserve, ample parking and on site catering, and you have found yourself the perfect venue for your next event. View our Conference Brochure here.
We think Brockholes is the natural place to do business, our dedicated centre can cater for 50 to 130 delegates.
We have a choice of two conference rooms and a reception/break-out area.
www.brockholes.org/conference-packages
At Brockholes we want you to be in control of your event as much as possible. This is why we have created these basic packages, enabling you to tweak each element to build an individual event.
Alternatively, we can cater to your specific requests if you require half day, early morning or evening hire.
Here is an overview of our conference packages, please contact us for a quote.
Our Conference brochure can be viewed in digi-book format here.
Day Delegate Package
Private room hire from 9am - 5pm
Tea and coffee served on arrival with bacon rolls
Mineral water for each guest
Tea and coffee served mid-morning
Buffet lunch served with tea, coffee and fresh fruit platter
Tea, coffee and biscuits served mid-afternoon
Use of a flip chart, screen and projector
Recycled pen and notepad for each delegate
Dedicated co-ordinator to assist you throughout the planning to delivery of your meeting
24 Hour Delegate Package
All of the above plus;
Three course dinner
Full breakfast
Accommodation in a standard bedroom at our recommended accommodation supplier
Accommodation
Preferential rates are available on request from a local hotel when booking through the Brockholes Sales Team.
We can tailor our packages to suit your needs. Make the UK's first floating venue your next choice
Please contact us for more information or to arrange a meeting or showround with our Conference Sales Co-ordinator
Call us on 01772 872005 or enter your details below and we will contact you to discuss your requirements.
www.brockholes.org/sponsorship-opportunities
Sponsorship Opportunities
Brockholes is an award winning nature reserve owned and manages by the Lancashire Wildlife Trust, which was opened in 2011. The 250 acre reserve is already attracting record numbers of breeding birds and around 170,000 visitors each year. Brockholes runs a wide range of events throughout the year and has a particularly strong offer for families. Events include wild families, school holiday clubs, school and community group visits, self led trails and larger festivals during the summer holidays.
The key marketing campaigns run targeting families include Christmas, Summer and Easter. Each campaign targets a series of family focused publications across the North West, with a monthly average reach online of over 40,000 people through the website and social media. Advertising and direct marketing campaigns have an average reach of 70% of the total North West population.
Sponsorship and Partnership Opportunities
Summer at Brockholes sees a host of family events each year, from school holiday clubs to open air theatre, guided walks to family fun. Over the Summer period, Brockholes expects to welcome over 60,000 visitors. The marketing campaign is multi channel and will reach a wide audience of families across the North West. Brockholes has also been featured in the National Press for some of the unique events run. We have some new opportunities for sponsorship and partnership, which will allow your business to raise brand awareness and fulfill part of your Corporate Social Responsibility by supporting Brockholes and The Lancashire Wildlife Trust.
Summer at Brockholes Headline Sponsorship £4500
Expose your brand to thousands of families across the North West.
- Logo on all Summer promotional material
- Inclusion in all four of the Summer e-news and Lancashire Wildlife Trust e-news
- Sponsor Feature on Brockholes.org
- On site promotion
- Promotion through social media channels
- Inclusion in all PR activity
- Temporary use of Brockholes logo on promotional material directly related to the partnership
Wild Families Sponsorship £4000 per year
Our Wild Families events are always fully booked. With themes ranging from scarecrow hunts to nature detectives, each event provides quality family time for family members of all ages. Events are run throughout school holidays.
-Logo on marketing materials for Wild Families
-Inclusion in PR for trail launch
-Inclusion in social media activity
-Inclusion in Brockholes e-news
Seasonal Trail Sponsorship £500 per trail
Each visitor to Brockholes can collect their free seasonal trail on arrival. The trail helps visitors to explore the reserve, learn more about what to see and how the reserve changes with the season and challenges them to spot things.
-Logo on sponsorship trail
-Inclusion in PR for trail launch
-Inclusion in social media activity around the trail
Half term at Brockholes £1500
-Logo on all marketing materials
-Inclusion in launch PR
-Social media promotion
Annual Headline Sponsorship £10,000
- Logo inclusion on all Promotional Material
- Dedicated web page on Brockholes.org
- On site promotion
- Dedicated stand area on key event days
- Promotion through Brockholes and LWT e-news, member magazine
- Promotion through social media channels
- Inclusion in all PR activity
-Discounted delegate rate on our conference facilities
Children's Corner £500
Would you like to help brighten up the children's corner in our restuarant for our younger visitors?
-Inclusion in PR activity
-Recognition in the children's area
-Inclusion in activity to our database promoting the new area
To talk to us more about sponsorship opportunities, contact Ruth Gaskell rgaskell@lancswt.org.uk or call 01772 324129.
www.brockholes.org/commercial-opportunities
Commercial Opportunities
Make Brockholes your business
Businesses are being offered an opportunity to become partners in a North West tourism and wildlife success story.
Brockholes nature reserve is entering the second phase of development which will provide commercial opportunities for other businesses and boost local employment.
The Lancashire Wildlife Trust attraction attracted 185,000 people to its nature reserve and the first ever floating visitor village in the UK, last year. It is looking to top that visitor figure this year.
Just off the M6 at Preston and easily accessible from anywhere in the UK, Brockholes has received more than 30 regional and national awards despite only opening in 2011. Visitors continue to pour in despite the reserve being surrounded by the attractions of Manchester, Blackpool and Liverpool.
The business has shown year-on-year growth and, as a result, is seeking commercial partners for the next phase of development.
Anne Selby, Chief Executive of the Wildlife Trust said “Brockholes has performed incredibly well despite being launched in a recession. We have steered the business through the stormy weather and achieved fantastic results.
“We are now looking to move into the next phase of development. As a conservation charity, we want to ensure our focus remains on the nature conservation of the reserve, whilst ensuring the commercial income supports this work. We are looking for expressions of interest at this stage and asking businesses to be creative with their proposals.”
The Visitor Village has a restaurant, shops, conference centre, welcome centre and education centre. Major companies have made use of the conference centre including RBS and Aldi. The surrounding nature reserve is continuing to grow, with an increasing population of resident creatures and rare visitors like red kite, bittern and otter.
Anne continued: “Brockholes received funding for the initial start up and development phases but it was always designed to be a self-sustaining model. By making the most of the commercial opportunities and keeping these balanced carefully with the needs of nature, we believe we can continue to success of Brockholes into the future and achieve even more fantastic results for wildlife, our wide range of visitors and the tourism economy”.
Opportunities include retail, water sports (non-motorised), indoor play provision, events partners and mobile food concessions. However, the Trust is open to hear if any investors would wish to develop sympathetic commercial facilities on the site.
An opportunity information pack is available by request from:
Karen Williams Karen.Williams@brockholes.org
Expressions of interest should initially be made to
Lindsey Poole, Commercial Development Manager lpoole@lancswt.org.uk
Group Visits
Whether it’s a full day out or just a quick stop off on the way to your destination, Brockholes is the ideal place for groups to visit.
There's so much for all ages to see and learn about at Brockholes. Everyone from toddlers to seniors will find something to fascinate them, whether through our exciting range of organised events, or by just wandering around the site.
We are passionately committed to lifelong learning for all – our belief is that everyone should leave knowing something they didn't when they arrived! The Lancashire Wildlife Trust has over a decade of experience in delivering environmental education, so you can relax, enjoy the surroundings and be sure to come away both enchanted and enlightened...
We have several options for various groups, each with a variety of benefits. For more information click on the relevant link below…
Coach Groups
School Groups
Community Groups
To enquire about group visits please call 01772 872000 or email info@brockholes.org. Or leave your details on the form below and a member of our team will get back to you as soon as possible.
Coach Groups
Situated next to Junction 31 on the M6, we are the ideal stop for coach trips, whether it is for a short stop, as a green motorway services, or as part of a full day visit.
Free entry for coaches and convenient coach drop-off point
We have a variety of walking trails for your group to explore, ranging from half an hour to 2 hours in length.
We have our floating visitor village that features a stunning waterside restaurant, 2 unique gift shops and a welcome centre with exhibits, which are ideal should your guests decide for something less active (or if the weather lets you down)!
All our buildings are fully accessible, while the vast majority of our paths are well surfaced, level and suitable for wheelchairs.
We now have a more convenient drop-off point exclusively for coaches and in addition have a number of benefits for coach groups:
• Free entry to the reserve and visitor centre
• Free coach parking
• Refreshment voucher for the coach driver
• Free familiarisation visit for group organisers
• Free meet and greet at the coach (on request)
• Free Brockholes welcome leaflet and trail guide
• Free events and activities throughout the year (visit our events calendar for details)
• Free play area
• Pre-booked guided tours (available at an extra charge)
• Adapted toilets available at the visitor centre
Please note that there is a 4 metre high bridge on the entrance to Brockholes. We also advise all coaches to let us know of their visit in advance by calling us on 01772 872000.
For any further information please just call 01772 872000, email info@brockholes.org
School Groups
Our 250 acre nature reserve and Visitor Village is a great place for school groups to visit. Children can learn about the geological history and how the quarrying has shaped the land today. And because we are a new nature reserve, you can watch it grow! It is also home to the UK's first floating Visitor Village.
Most importantly of all, the children will be able to see that Brockholes is home to a host of wildlife, with many different species of bird popping by throughout the year, along with brown hare, dragonfly and deer to name a few!
Facilities
Your school will have use of the education centre on our floating visitor village and you will have at least one Education Officer dedicated to your group throughout the day.
Plus... NEW FOR 2014!
Next year your school will be able to get even closer to nature at Brockholes by booking an education session in our new purpose-built bird hide classroom, right on the edge of the lake!
The hide will overlook No 1 Pit Lake which is home to many different species of birds and you'll also be able to look across to the new sand martin wall, which will provide valuable breeding habitat when they arrive in spring.
Why not your details below if you'd like us to keep to informed of these exciting new developments!
Programmes
We offer a wide range of programmes including:
Big Adventure in a Miniature World
Life Cycles
Migration and Hibernation
Environmental Art
Geography and Geology
Forest School
You can read more about the education programmes available at Brockholes here.
Education Team
Our Education Team are based at Brockholes and have a huge amount of experience in inspiring young people about the natural world. They are a lively bunch and pride themselves on creating an exciting and memorable experience for your school. You can read about how great our team is here: Meet the Education Team.
Outreach
Can't get to us? Then we can come to you! Our outreach education programme is very popular and offers a wide range of programmes for those who are unable to reach Brockholes.You can view our Outreach Programmes here.
For any information just call us on 01772 872000 for more information, email eduadmin@lancswt.org.uk
Community Groups
Brockholes is a great place to bring your community group, whether it's the Scouts, Guides, Cubs, Brownies or Beavers or a rambling or photography group, there is something for everyone!
As well as exploring our stunning nature reserve you can enjoy an activity such as a guided walk, a mini-beast hunt or an environmental art session.
You can visit Brockholes during the day or we have special community group evenings when the reserve is open beyond our usual opening hours. Group activities usually take place between 5.30pm and 7.30pm.
Forest Schools
Forest Schools is a unique outdoor learning experience that improves children's self-esteem, confidence and abilities.
Brockholes provides an inspirational setting for Forest Schools sessions and training, and is conveniently located just off junction 31 of the M6 at Preston.
Our Forest School sessions are designed and delivered by our experienced and fully qualified Education Team including our Level 3 Trained Forest Schools Practioner.
Our next Forest Schools adult training session will be running in October. To find out more about Forest School sessions at Brockholes please call 01772 872017 or email kphillips@lancswt.org.uk
Shop til you flock
Why not drop into our two on-site shops, The Nest and Village Store, which are packed with all sorts of goodies. We've a variety of products from local beverages and food, to cards and books and crafts and jewellery. They are the perfect place to pick up a unique gift... and there's plenty of treats for the little ones too!
The Nest
The Nest is home to an inspiring collection of gifts, jewellery, books, toys, arts & crafts. Discover what's inside The Nest here.
The Village Store
The Village Store stocks a wide range of products, from locally sourced food and drink treats to bird food, garden accessories and wildlife books. Come and look inside here.
Membership of the Wildlife Trust
Brockholes is a Lancashire Wildlife Trust Nature Reserve. You can become a member today or talk to our friendly staff members and volunteers on your next visit to Brockholes. Gift membership is available in The Nest or you can buy it online here.
Our restaurant is the perfect place to stop and watch the world go by with panoramic views of our lake. Scrumptious homemade dishes and a taste bud tingling selection of Lancashire's finest local produce are all here to tempt you, along with fair trade tea and coffee.
Our restaurant is open from 10am to 5pm.
www.brockholes.org/very-special-occasions
Brockholes is a fantastic place for your very special occasions.
Our floating venue is one of the newest and most unique in Lancashire and promises you and your guests an unforgetable event whatever the occasion.
We have a dedicated function centre that can accomodate weddings, christenings and all sort of functions.
The clean, contemporary finish of our venue means that you have the perfect opportunity to put your own stamp on your event, with a flexible range of catering available from our on-site restaurant.
We have a dedicated Conference and Events Co-ordinator that will be available to help you plan your special occasion.
Very Special Weddings
We had our first wedding celebration September 2011 and since then it's been all go with Wedding Fayres and lots more bookings for this year and next. Find out more about weddings at Brockholes here.
Very Special Christenings
Brockholes is a real family friendly venue for a Christening celebration that you will remember for years to come. Find out more here.
For general enquiries about holding a function at Brockholes please call 01772 872005 or email philip.dunn@brockholes.org.
Managed a "hobble" in the park this morning with the aid of painkillers and a walking stick!!!!! What a sight but never mind I did it and it was lovely if a little cold and foggy.
I have managed to get a decent photographic session, at last... I went back to my favorite location, the meanders of the river Adda, yet a bit downstream the magical spot you have come to know (if you don't, you might have a look at my Silent banks album). A new location, under many respects, although the water of the river I was capturing were the same, only a few minutes down the endless stream of time. I aimed to capture the multifaceted beauty of the new, blossoming leaves. And a fresh sunrise, of course. It was a strange morning, full of surprises. The feast of colours occurred almost an hour before the official time for sunrise; I assume that it was due to the clouds being at a very high altitude. Luckily I was ready on that surprise time, albeit still walking towards the chattering banks of the river. Then, after a brief, glorious explosion of rosy and purple, the mood of the day progressed rather linearly towards a quiet morning bathed in a soft, veiled light that, combined with the mists from the river, lent the place a somehow ethereal mood.
The colourful moment was starting to fade, but the deep peace of the place was intact, only punctuated by birds calls. As I was walking along the track the curtain opened up, and a wide view was revealed to me. I did my best to capture the beauty of the place and the fleeting, unique mood of the moment, careful not to neglect that red arrow painted on the trunk. What is the meaning of such a moment? What is its value? We could speak volumes about this, but you would say me good bye if I did... so let me say that one of the things that make such a gift worth is that I can share it with other people. So here we are, this photo and its author behind the scenes, gifting you with this gift I received on a random early morning. Have a good weekend, my friends!
Explored on 2024/05/11 nr. 32.
I have obtained this picture by blending an exposure bracketing [-2.0/-1.0/0/+1.0/+2.0 EV] by luminosity masks in the Gimp (EXIF data, as usual, refer to the "normal exposure" shot).
As usual, I gave the finishing touches with Nik Color Efex Pro 4 and played a bit with dodging and burning.
Raw files processed with Darktable.
Kinda ran out of full groups I could do, so I've resorted to random groups of random minifigs. So in this one we have:
Wolverine - Came across this combo while doing another thing, it's actually why I decided to start doing this kinda fig barf.
Hera Syndulla - I've had this one knocking about for a while, just never got to rendering it.
Rick Grimes - Again, had him around for a while, but I managed to get him in his iconic pose for this pic.
Suicide Squad Harley Quinn - Not much to say about her, just a combo of Harley Quinn parts.
The 11th Doctor (Time of the Doctor) - Though this one has been done in a set, I thought I'd take a whirl at a more accurate version.
Green Lantern (Abin Sur) - Mecabricks finally got around to adding more of the DC CMF pieces, this one works quite well for Abin Sur. I imagine this look is from when he was in his prime.
And that's the lot. As always, please lemme know what you think and if it's worth me doing anymore in the future :D
Managed to get about 6 shots of this in 5 minutes due to it's trundling speed and a few spots close together. 2009 and 2054 lead loaded coal 46 to Railton, seen here on the Fingal Line 16km from the junction at Conara Jn.
2024-05-01 Tasrail 2009-2054 West of Conara 16km 46