CPD & Team Development for School Staff

Team Development

Team development may be the main reason for a training event, which may be held here or in your school. Team development events can include a combination of:

Icebreakers and team challenges.
– Ensure mixing of your staff team and give colleagues the opportunity to work together in a different context to usual.
Outdoor activity experiences.
– The power of outdoor learning applies to adults as well as young people!
– Give staff the opportunity to increase their own confidence and experience in outdoor activities.
Space to work together.
– With a variety of meeting spaces onsite you may choose to have some time all together as a staff or in sub-groups in a different environment to usual.
Bespoke team challenge events.
– Days can be designed to meet the outcomes identified in the planning of the day – be it communication, team building, leadership skills, problem solving skills…

If you are looking to book a team development event please get in touch to discuss the various options available.

Team development is also a theme in our other training courses – for example, via first aid training or through the OEAP Outdoor Learning Card course activities.

Adults participating in a problem solving activity (onsite ground-based) at Thornbridge Outdoors

Teachers in a den made within the school grounds on a CPD course

CPD Training opportunities

We run a range of courses which can support the development of school staff in specific areas as outlined below.

OEAP Outdoor Learning Cards

The Outdoor Learning Cards (OLC) developed by the Outdoor Education Advisors Panel (OEAP) and cover 4 main areas:

Team building
Orienteering
Bouldering
Journeying

There are 50 cards in total which come with a handbook and CD of further resources, and feedback from schools is that they are great for encouraging and improving the provision of high quality outdoor activities in schools. Amongst the resources on the CD are details of curriculum links at different key stages – of which there are lots!

In order to have a use, the cards you need to attend a training course are detailed below. Training courses can be joined by small numbers of staff from a school/organisation or we can run a course just for your staff either at Thornbridge Outdoors, your school/base, or at a venue of your choice.

Open courses:

New dates to be confirmed soon

First Aid Training for School Staff

Targeted first aid training courses for 4-36 people to meet the needs of your school. Popular courses for large groups of staff are 4 or 6 hours long and can be delivered in school, here, or at another venue of your choice.

Specific Outdoor First Aid and Paediatric First Aid courses can be arranged for groups of your staff. Regular Outdoor First Aid courses are run here, which individual staff members can sign up for.

All courses run us are approved by ITC First, an Ofqual approved training organisation, ensuring high standards. Training is led by experienced outdoor instructors, many with teaching backgrounds, and is deliberately very hands on.

Visiting Staff Induction and Training Courses

Thornbridge Outdoors believes that outdoor education meets more of its outcomes if school staff are involved in the planning and delivery of activities, something that has been supported by research in the Learning Away project.

If staff attend our Low Ropes Course or Biking Leader Induction course they can then to lead those activities whilst they are at the centre. The optional afternoon of the low ropes course focuses on other visiting staff led activities such as problem solving and orienteering. Please note that the low ropes and biking leader induction courses are not designed to assess visiting staff members’ skills and aptitude. It is the responsibility of the school / academy to ensure that appropriate insurance is in place to cover visiting staff led activities, that assigned staff are suitably experienced & skilled, and that the activities are led properly.

Visiting staff may also find the OEAP Outdoor Learning Card training useful as it includes orienteering, team building, bouldering and journeying – all activities that visiting staff can lead whilst here.

Accredited Walking and Climbing Leadership courses

Thornbridge Outdoors offers the following nationally recognised training and assessment courses:

Walking

Lowland Leader Award
– For those leading others through countryside such as that around Thornbridge Outdoors
Hill and Moorland Leader Award
– For those who lead others onto the hills and moorland, such as that of the Dark Peak District
Expedition Skills Module
– For those who train and supervise others camping, such as DofE award leaders
Mountain Leader Award
– For those who lead others in the mountains, such as Snowdonia and the Lake District

Climbing

Climbing Wall Instructor and Abseil Module
– For those taking others to indoor climbing and bouldering walls
Rock Climbing Instructor
– For those taking others bouldering and climbing on single pitch crags, such as the gritstone edges of the Peak District.