From Market Drayton to the Lake District: School's outdoor centre now safer than ever
Do you remember the Birks? Did you visit during your time at school? The Grove School in Market Drayton is unique in having its own outdoor centre, located in the stunning Duddon Valley in Cumbria.
Students started using the centre in the late 1960s and since then, many thousands of students have stayed there. It became the Grove’s own in 1985 when PTA at the school bought the building from the Forestry Commission. Hours of dedication by volunteers and over £300k of fundraising has seen the centre develop leaps and bounds since.
Birks committee chairmen Chris Ingham and Jordan Machin were proud to represent the Friends of Grove School owned field centre this week at Muller, where they received two defibrillators for the property.
The Birks, a field centre in the Duddon Valley, owned by Friends of Grove School since 1985, is situated in a remote part of the lower Lake District and like many remote communities, their popular field centre suffers from lengthy ambulance response times. The addition of two defibrillators will make The Birks safer than ever, and this donation by Muller may be directly responsible for one day saving lives.
Available for hire for private and group bookings sleeping up to 28 people, The Birks has long had a deep connection to Market Drayton. The committee are working hard on a new classroom space, separate from the living quarters, with the aim of attracting school and community groups encouraging outdoor based learning for young people. One AED will be based in this new space and one will be situated in the main property. You can find out more about The Birks journey, and book it yourself, by visiting their website at thebirks.org.uk, or visiting them on all the usual social media platforms.
The Birks Committee would like to send their huge gratitude to Müller, Market Drayton for their support of this project. Their enthusiasm for supporting the local community over many years has been second to none and this generous donation is greatly appreciated.
