Qualified for Adventure

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The last week of the winter term is packed full of extra extreme sports qualifications for Reaseheath Adventure Students.

The diploma courses and foundation degree’s are an important part of how we help you to succeed in the adventure industry. You need extra qualifications to run climbing, kayaking and canoeing sessions professionally. Reaseheath Adventure Sports is a regional centre for running these professional courses for the British Canoe Union, Mountain Training Board and other extreme sports. In just one week a BCU level 2 course is  running, as well as a Climbing Wall Award Training, a Climbing Wall Award Assessment and Single Pitch Award Training.

In the summer term Archery Leader, Bushcraft and Outdoor First Aid courses are running alongside BCU level 1’s, Climbing Wall Awards, Single Pitch Awards and Summer Mountain Leader training and assessment.

Simon Wells, who co-ordinates all these course and delivers the Mountain Training Board and First Aid commented, “ I don’t know of any other college who runs course’s on this scale, some places promise, then struggle to deliver, we are having to put on extra courses to meet demand from our students and the public. Our students can claim up to 60% funding for these courses, so not only more types of course, more often but also at a lower price.”

“You need these extra courses to work in the adventure industry,” explained Simon. “ That’s why we run them, we train you to climb, paddle and navigate as part of your course. Then when you have the necessary experience we run the extra course.”

“I can’t tell you which other local colleges send their staff to our courses, but you would be surprised at who learns alongside our students then goes back to their own college to teach it! Some local outdoor companies are almost totally staffed by our current and former students because of the huge extra programme of professional courses we run” Simon added.

If you want a list of courses we always welcome suitably experienced members of the public, but only Reaseheath students can claim the 60% funding.

Contact Simon on 01270 613218 or email simon.wells@reaseheath.ac.uk for more information on our professional qualifications.

Climbing

Climbing

Climbing

RHES take Advantage of Animal Management Trips Week

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During Animal Management trips week some of Reaseheath Herpetological and Entomological Society (RHES) took advantage of their trip to Birmingham Nature Centre and went behind the scenes at the herpetology department.

Adam Radovanovic the Curator of Herpetology at Birmingham Nature Centre took RHES through the exhibits and then the two off show houses. Adam explained about the valuable conservation work they were doing at Birmingham for a number of reptile species including the venomous Mexican Beaded Lizards (Heloderma horridum) and Madagascan Tree Boas (Sanzinia madagascariensis.

Students from RHES had the opportunity to ask Adam about the plans for the future and for the animals that they have at the Zoo. RHES left Birmingham Nature Centre so impressed that some members even picked up work experience forms. A great experience for our students to make connections and to see the real work going on behind the scenes at our zoological collections in the UK.

For more information on the Reaseheath Herpetological and Entomological Society visit their page on our website.

Practice Search Sweep of the Peak District

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Reaseheath lecturer Matt Daily-Hunt, who is a Search Technician with Staffordshire Search and Rescue, took the Level 3 Uniformed and Public Services students on practice Search Sweep of a remote moorland area today in preparation for a much bigger rescue exercise next week.

Matt has spent several sessions briefing and training the students in Search Skills as part of the build-up to the exercise.  Mick Keeling, former Warrant Officer and Simon Wells, Mountaineering Instructor assisted.

“This is what we are about at Reaseheath, our students are getting a real preparation for working in the Public and Uniformed services. From remote moorlands to our sailing trips over Easter we offer so much more”

“Next week, the students will be  Search Control for a much bigger incident with ‘causalities’ a communication HQ and all the aspects of a big rescue.” explained Matt.

Public Services Search Sweep

Public Services Search Sweep

Public Services Search Sweep

Public Services Search Sweep

Multi-pitch climbing in the Peak District

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‘Multi-pitch’  is often viewed as one of the most technical aspects of climbing, involving complex rope work and route finding. Multi-pitch climbing routes can take all day, even several days in the Alps. So learning this skill is a real landmark for climbers. Stance management, hanging belays and just stopping the ropes getting jammed are all essential thing to master.

At Reaseheath students who have completed the other climbing courses get to train in multi-pitch climbing. Do they go to a vast Welsh crag with a two hour walk in? Or maybe the north face of Ben Nevis, which is Alpine in scale? At the very least the high mountain crags of the Lakes?

No they go to Windgather, in the Peak District!

At 9m metres high this seems an odd place to develop the skills destined for the brutal North Faces in the alps, or remote Norwegian Fjords. Chris Tym, Mountaineering instructor explains.

“We developed a training programme we call ‘Micro-Pitching ©’. The hardest part of multi-pitch climbing is sorting out the rope work and managing your belay stances, particularly when you are on a hanging belay. Students have already done an Introduction to Outdoor Climbing, or Developing Outdoor Climbing Skills courses, depending on what experience they already have. They may have even done our Mental Training for Climbers workshop. So we can focus on the core  multi-pitch skills.”

“On a small crag like Windgather we can have a number of pairs or three’s climbing, setting up stances and being easily coached by myself. We can create all the problems they might realistically meet and guide them through the solutions. They learn more than if we worked on a large multi-pitch crag, where coaching would be very difficult and most of the day taken up with long pitches of climbing. Today each climbing team has had the equivalent of huge day out, but with constant on hand help.”

climbing adventure sports

climbing adventure sports

climbing adventure sports

RHES talks a great success

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Reaseheath Herpetological and Entomological Society (RHES) gave talks about reptiles and invertebrates when our zoo opened to the public last Sunday as part of Lambing Weekend.

Student members gave the talks, aided by some of our resident animals including tailless whip scorpions, giant Asian mantis, a bull snake, a ridge tail monitor, violin mantis and a Savu Island python.

The RHES talks were full to capacity and visitors got the chance to meet some of our animals up close and learn some interested facts about them. The members talked about lifespan, natural history and behaviour and discussed the animals’ suitability as pets.

The group also carried out fundraising for the North Wales Reptile and Raptor Sanctuary, which we hope to visit in the future. The fundraising action included ‘Ozzie the owl’ visiting and greeting the public, the sale of cakes and sweets, and a raffle.

RHES is a student run society which meets up once a week and undertakes a range of activities to support learning about reptiles, amphibians and invertebrates. Keep an eye out for their events while the zoo is open this summer.

Follow the Reaseheath Herpetological and Entomological Society (RHES) on Facebook to keep up to date with what they’ve been up to.