Peterlee and Horden - Down Your Way

A group of National Citizen Scheme participants from East Durham College, who had undertaking a sponsored walk and a bag pack at Iceland, Peterlee, purchased food and toys and donated £98.79 to Stray Aid, which very much appreciates the support.

Struggling to get to work for your first week or an interview? East Durham Trust may be able to help. It can provide either a bus pass or a volunteer driver. For more information, contact Helen on 0191 5693511 or [email protected]

Castle Eden Dene Wednesday Working Group of the year had two teams working in early January. Members replaced and repaired the gate by the roundabout coming out of the Easy Access path and cleared the steps down to the Garden of Eden Bridge of soil, ivy and weeds. Without their valuable volunteer work the Dene would not be such a nice and accessible place.

Horden Centennial Centre is collecting food items to support East Durham Trust’s FEED project. Donations of tinned, jars and dried foods with long use by dates will help families in crisis with food parcels in times of need. FEED relies on donations from the local community to continue supporting local people in crisis. Items can be left in the basket located in the foyer, if you are not a regular centre user but would like to drop off items, it is open every Tuesday from 7pm to 9pm.

Durham Heritage Coast organised a great morning at Castle Eden Dene National Nature Reserve exploring the coastal dene with Steve from Natural England and the fantastic Friday Feeling gang from Valley Road Community Primary School. Lots of muddy wellies and tired children at the end of the walk.

Revision can often mean hours spent with your head buried in books, but not for Year 11s from The Academy at Shotton Hall who were lucky enough to experience some revision with a difference at Robin Hood’s Bay. After a walk on the beach, they completed three short essays with immediate feedback from their teachers. They then took part in a pub style quiz in the hostel. Students took part in three carousel activities looking at the main texts for their English literature exam: Jekyll and Hyde, Macbeth and An Inspector Calls.

Her Royal Highness the Princess Royal opened East Durham College’s redeveloped Houghall Campus, Durham, during a visit in January. The college recently underwent an £12.75million redevelopment as part of its plans to fully modernise the entire site, which originally opened in 1938. After a short presentation when Her Royal Highness met the college’s leadership team and governors, she then undertook a tour of the college, to see the new facilities and learn how the college is training its students in a range of land-based disciplines. She heard from students and staff about their equine studies, agriculture and small animal care and management courses, and learnt about how the new facilities have revolutionised their learning environments. The tour route took in: the equine centre, with its new 28-stable block and 40m x 40m indoor arena; the new agriculture centre with its cattle and pig units; and the new small animal care centre, the dog grooming studio and small mammals workshop ending at the refurbished main front building. A commemorative plaque was unveiled in the reception area and she was joined by invited guests, staff and students from all areas of the College.