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A wilder February half-term at Kent Wildlife Trust

Helena Dolby for Sheffield & Rotherham Wildlife Trust

Despite the cold and mud, there’s still plenty to do out in nature this February half-term. After all, there’s no such thing as bad weather – only the wrong clothes! So, get your cosiest coats and wellies on and join us for some of our half-term family events and activities.

Events at our reserves

Robin and blue tit on bird feeder

Robin and blue tit © Nicholas Watts

Family Workshop: Make a Bird Feeder 

If you’d like to attract more birds to your garden and know you’re helping these lovely creatures during the cold months, join the Education Team to create your own bird feeder. You can take home your creation for your garden or balcony! 

 

Family Fun at Tyland Barn 

Join us at Tyland Barn to try some bird watching and learn about how to help birds through the winter. You’ll also make a bird feeder and have the chance to warm up around the campfire with hot chocolate and toasted marshmallows. 

 

Family Workshop: Garden Wildlife 

  • When: In Romney Marsh on Thu, 15 Feb 2024, 11:00 - 13:00 & Sat, 17 Feb 2024, 11:00 - 13:00. In Sevenoaks on Tue, 13 Feb 2024, 11:00 - 13:00 
  • Where: Romney Marsh Visitor Centre, Sevenoaks Wildlife Reserve and Jeffery Harrison Visitor Centre 
  • Price: £8 for the first child, £5 for each additional child 
  • Link: Romney Marsh Family Workshop, Sevenoaks Family Workshop 

This is the perfect workshop if you and your family would like to know more about the wildlife that visits gardens. There’ll be fun games involved, plus bird feeder and footprint tunnel workshops. The Visitor Centre will be open for hot drinks and snacks each day! 

 

Heart Trails at Sevenoaks & Romney Marsh 

To take part in this fun clue-finding activity, just come by either the Sevenoaks or Romney Marsh Visitor Centre during opening hours. Solve the puzzles around the reserves to win a prize – and then why not reward yourself with a nice hot drink in one of our cafes? 

Things to do on our reserves

Cromers Wood Welcome

If you can’t make our events or just want to pack in as much nature as possible, there’s plenty to do at our reserves this half-term. 

Take a look at our nature reserves map to see what’s near you, or, if you’re looking specifically for a reserve with facilities, here are our locations with visitor centres: 

  • Tyland barn Nature Park & Gardens 

  • Sevenoaks Wildlife Reserve and Jeffery Harrison Visitor Centre 

  • Romney Marsh Visitor Centre and Nature Reserve   

We’ve explored these in a bit more depth for you below! 

 

Tyland Barn Nature Park & Gardens 

Tyland Barn is Kent Wildlife Trust’s glorious headquarters! The nature park is a haven for wildlife, with woodland, meadows, and a large pond. There are also wheelchair and buggy-accessible paths across the site. 

The facilities here include bird hides, toilets with baby changing facilities, disabled parking, accessible trails, wifi, picnic area, and a cafe. 

The Pond Cafe here is absolutely top tier, even if we do say so ourselves – and it’s open Monday to Saturday from 9am-4pm! Why not treat yourself to a scrumptious breakfast or cake and tea while the kids play? 

 

Sevenoaks Wildlife Reserve and Jeffery Harrison Visitor Centre 

The Visitor Centre at Sevenoaks is open every day through half-term from 11am-3pm and is well worth a visit if you fancy a cuppa and a dose of the outdoors. It’s got an indoor seating area and cafe serving hot and cold drinks and snacks, so you can have a bite to eat after exploring this exciting reserve.  

There’s also a shop area selling local produce, organic bird feed, accessories, and birding equipment – which you’re able to give a try! 

Next to the centre, there is a fully accessible bird hide that looks over the West Lake and most of the site’s trails are accessible, too. 

 

Romney Marsh Visitor Centre and Nature Reserve 

Our Romney Marsh Nature Reserve makes for a great day out, with fantastic displays showing the region’s natural history and 11 hectares to explore, including the fascinating dune grassland. Disabled access is available throughout 90% of the site and there is a choice of clearly signposted nature trails. 

The Visitor Centre itself is an award-winning eco-friendly building, and the proud holder of a Gold Award in Green Tourism Business Scheme. 

You can get light refreshments in the cafe, and you’ll find a gift shop with local crafts, cards, and wildlife information, too. 

 

Cromers Wood Story Trail 

Cromer's Wood Story Trail logo

While there’s no Visitor Centre at Comers Wood, there’s a really fun story trail through this ancient woodland that’s great to explore with kids. 

We’ve used the local features and wildlife as inspiration to bring to life 6 stories from the point of view of Cromers Wood’s inhabitants. From The Sacred Monument of Nom to the Will You Marry Me Tree, each self-guided trail is as endearing and exciting as the last – and they’re designed to be self-guided, so all you need to do is follow the main trail loop and scan the QR codes on the wooden posts around the site. 

Have a great half-term!

We hope you have a great family break! If you’re looking for more to do indoors, don’t forget to check out our Education Resources, including colouring sheets, wordsearches, and more. We also recently put together some fun, mindful activities for Children’s Mental Health Week. 

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