Local schools enjoyed a day out at three of Wrexham’s most popular attractions recently as part of a new school visits partnership pilot project.
Pupils from Victoria Community Primary School, St Mary’s Catholic Primary School and Alexandra Community Primary School visited Tŷ Pawb, Xplore Science Discovery Centre and Wrexham Museum earlier this month for a bumper day which included tours and workshops.
Immersive experiences in safe environments
Prior to COVID, the three venues had already started to work collaboratively on a joint project with the aim of highlighting and promoting skills based learning experiences available locally. This resulted in the creation of an introductory pilot for joint schools visits.
The aim of the visits was to give schools the opportunity to take part in an immersive experience at each venue, with the opportunity to use their imagination, explore, be curious, and problem solve in safe environments.
The visit to Tŷ Pawb included a tour of the new exhibition, Misshapes: The Making of Tatty Devine, a colourful and playful celebration of one of Britain’s most iconic design teams. Pupils were then invited to come up with their own designs in a workshop inspired by the exhibition.
The learners time at Xplore! was spent being wowed by some science demonstrations and then getting an opportunity to explore the science exhibits in the exhibition space. The pupils were given the chance to think about some of the jobs that the exhibits linked with.
Meanwhile, at Wrexham Museum pupils were given a talk about what a museum does, followed by a tour of the galleries which included a short handling session with a couple of objects. After that they were free to explore the galleries for themselves before returning to Courtroom 2 to produce a caption for an object of their choice from the displays.
A welcome return for school visits
Cllr Hugh Jones, Wrexham Council’s Lead Member for Communities, Partnerships, Public Protection and Community Safety, said: “Wrexham town centre offers local schools a myriad of learning opportunities right on their doorstep, with access to the arts, heritage, culture, science and technology.
“It’s very encouraging to see school visits finally returning and I’m delighted to see three of our most popular attractions working together to provide such a rich day of learning and activities. I hope this will open the door for more collaborative projects in future.”
Claire Evans, Senior Education Officer at Xplore! said: “Several staff commented how pleasant it was to have young people in the centre investigating the exhibits during the week again following almost 18 months of reduced opening, closures and difficulties.
“It was a great opportunity for three of Wrexham’s attractions to work together to deliver a unique and engaging day. Following the work of Tŷ Pawb and Xplore! To bring Darganfod//Discover Science Festival to Wrexham earlier this summer it’s fantastic to see the relationship continue to be developed with the additional collaboration with Wrexham Museum.“
