Thank you for your interest in School Visits and Activity Days at Bolton Castle.
The following information is designed to help you plan a successful visit, however if you have any more specific questions please don’t hesitate to contact us before completing the enclosed booking form.
School Visits
Background History
Bolton Castle is a spectacular medieval fortress situated in the heart of Wensleydale, with stunning views over the Yorkshire Dales National Park. Completed by Sir Richard Le Scrope, in 1399, its scars bear testament to more than 600 years of fascinating history making it an ideal venue for educational school visits covering topics from Medieval life to the English Civil War. The Castle is extremely well preserved with approximately one third of the rooms still intact and the rest of the Castle fully accessible giving great insight into its turbulent past. The authentic and atmospheric room displays show Castle life as it would have been in for the different members of the Castle community from the archers, cooks and monks to Mary, Queen of Scots and Lord and Lady Scrope.
School Activity Days
We are now offering an exciting range of opportunities for schools and other groups of young people to visit Bolton Castle and learn more about what castle life was really like, the fascinating historical events that took place here and how much things have changed.
Most of the day is spent with ‘hands on’ history, the children dressed in period costume having a go at activities as diverse as dancing, archery, spear drill and pomander making. A full day can run from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Different options for school visits include Full Activity Days, themed guided tours, teacher led activities, and self-guided tours with activity sheets available for different topics and themes. Topics available include ‘Medieval life’, ‘Castle defences’, ‘Castle life’, ‘The Tudors’, ‘ The Stuarts’, ‘Mary, Queen of Scots’, ‘Rich and Poor’, ‘The Wars of the Roses’, and the ‘Civil War’ but we can adapt to your individual theme or topic on request.
Included in all school visits during our open season (usually February – October) is the chance for students to watch the incredible falconry displays, enjoy the archery demonstration, visit the Wild Boar and Wensleydale sheep and see the bees in their hives (seasonal).
We are now also able to offer a new range of musical workshops with the fabulous Trouvere Minstrels. Trouvere are specialists in live historical presentation and present a fantastic range of historical workshops combining music, dance, role play and lots of fun!
We will do everything we can to ensure all guided tours and activities give your class the best possible learning experience to by adapting our tours and activities to address the learning outcomes of your specific topic/theme, the age and ability of the group and any additional support needs you make us aware of.
Please contact Dave Manning at dave@timetalks.org.uk or 07951956553 for more information.