NEWS
New Showers for Gilwern
More showers have been agreed for the Sugarloaf block & building work will commence in early August and hopefully will be completed before our first residential visits in September. Each "wing" will have 2 extra showers & each wing will now have 17 beds in each supported by a minimum of 4 showers.
Newest member of the Team
Rosie May (6lbs 10oz) is our youngest member of the team. Arriving onthe 17th May to a proud David (from Gilwern Centre) and Claire. Both parents are doing well and we wish them all every happiness. Rosie has already been camping and we're sure she will be canoeing soon !
New Activity Day for Hilston Park
A new activity day developed by Hilston Park and set in the Forest of Dean involves the new sport of GEOCACHING, some very mild caving, route finding and some incredible views over the Wye valley !
All Terrain wheel chair for Gilwern
Thanks to a generous donation by Monmouthshire Building Society and Abergavenny Red Cross , Gilwern OEC has converted a regular wheel chair into a go anywhere chair, ideal for use on our wheel chair abseil ramp
Eco Centre status for Hilston Park
Gwent Outdoor Centres can now boast TWO centres with full accredtation under the Eco Centre scheme. Hilston have now gained this prestigous award following the introduction of many new "green" ideas including weighing each schools waste, sending waste to Wormtech etc etc. Well done to them !!
Monmouthshire Head Teachers Meeting
Held this year at Gilwern Centre was a resounding success with Heads already wanting to come next year. A mixture of meetings and team challenges was well attended with Chief Executive Paul Matthews, Corporate Director of Life long Learning & leisure Andy Keep, Liz Hacketpain, cabinet member for Children & young Peoples Services as well as many others enjoy the great weather & positive experience.
Newport Duke of Edinburgh Open Day
Gwent Outdoor Centres hasd a successful day with our stand at the DofE open day in Newport in april. There was lots of interest from schools & organisations and even a visit from Prince Edward !
Duffryn Comprehensive A level Orientering
Duffryn AS & A2 students spent an enjoyable week trying out Orienteering at Gilwern Centre. Following the NEW OCR syllabus 14 students followed a course of instruction in the mornings & then competitions in the afternoon in a wide range of challenging weather conditions and on a variety of courses in the local area from easy courses near Trellech to more challenging courses in the Forest of Dean. Good grades werre achieved by all and made a great alternative to the usual Rugby, Football and Hockey, especially for those students with no outstanding personal sport
White Water Safety & Rescue Course
On a cold January weekend staff from all three Gwent OECs found themselves on the banks of the River Usk on a White Water Safety & Rescue Course. Although primarily aimed at Canoeists & Kayakers the course is great for anyone leading groups on or near water eg Talybont's Waterfall Walk or Gorge Walking. The course was well recieved by all & although cold was a great refresher for some & a good introduction to white water rescues for others
Archery at Hilston Park
The new activity of Archery has been introduced by Dan and is starting to be offered to some groups. A small set of Archery equipment has been purchased introducing another new activity to the growing range of activities offered by Gwent Centres. Histon Park have also purchased some GPSs and are introducing the new sport of Geocaching - high tech orienteering - which is proving hugely popular with all age groups. Forest skills which we have been expanding over the years is now a major part of the activities offered
