Pendarren House Outdoor Education Centre

Introduction to Pendarren

Pendarren House Outdoor Education Centre in South Wales is ideally situated for its purpose. The house stands on the southern slopes of the Black Mountains overlooking the Grwyne Fawr valley within the Brecon Beacons National Park. The park covers an area of 520 square miles and includes the Black Mountains and the Brecon Beacons.

It offers opportunities for a wide range of adventurous outdoor activities such as:

  • caving
  • rock climbing
  • hill walking
  • campcraft
  • canoeing
  • kayaking
  • high ropes course
  • team building activities
  • bushcraft
  • and pony trekking.

The contrasting landscapes that surround Pendarren also mean that it is perfect for a very wide range of academic courses. The rural, industrial and mountainous environments in particular provide ideal venues for courses in biology, geography, science, history, art and many other subjects.

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The main house

Pendarren House

Pendarren House, with its large garden and outbuildings was built in 1876 of dressed local stone.

In 1972 it was purchased by Haringey Council and adapted for its present use. The house still retains its original character and provides excellent accommodation with comfortable dormitories and spacious rooms for work and relaxation. The dormitories on the first floor can accommodate up to 40 persons, including single and twin rooms for visiting staff.

One member of the Pendarren tutorial staff will be on duty in the evenings and overnight to help with any problems which may arise, either in the main house or the Greig annexe.

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Greig annexe

The Greig annexe can take up to 24 persons, including two single rooms for visiting staff. The annexe contains its own toilets, showers, recreation room and common room. Groups who use this accommodation will have their own classroom and share the dining room and drying room in the main house. The annexe is an integral part of Pendarren as far as programming, staffing and transport are concerned, The daily routine is similar to that of the main house with the emphasis on shared experience and consideration for others.

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Countryside study centre

This is a well-equipped classroom block separate to the main building, which is used for briefings and for evening follow up work. It contains a fully equipped laboratory as well as a small library of geography, history, science and art books.

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Swimming pool

There is a small, enclosed swimming pool at Pendarren, which is used for recreation during the summer and early autumn. It is also available as a canoe training pool throughout the year.

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Climbing tower

The Climbing Tower is 12 metres high with vertical routes, slabs and a corner climb. It also has a top platform, accessed by an internal staircase, to enable abseiling. In addition there is an all-ability area with low angle climbing and wheelchair abseiling.

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The Firs

The Firs

The Firs is a large bungalow which has been converted for use as self-catering accommodation for groups of up to 16 people. It stands in the grounds of Pendarren House in a delightful location overlooking the Grwyne Valley below the Black Mountains in the Brecon Beacons National Park. It is suitable for education or family groups, gatherings of friends or colleagues, or any time when a small group would like to get together for a relaxing or an active break. The Firs is DDA compliant and is used by schools requiring such accommodation. The Firs is also used as extra accommodation that allows us to take groups of up to 80 persons.

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Camp site

The camp site area with adjacent toilet and shower facilities is available for groups who require alternative accommodation. The use of the campsite is restricted to supervised groups who are undertaking expeditions and as such is ideal for those who are participating in the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Scheme. Please contact us well in advance to reserve the campsite.

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Ropes course

This stands 12 metres high and provides stimulating activities for groups or individuals. It enables groups of young people or adults to develop interpersonal skills through sharing challenges such as the Jacobs Ladder or All Aboard. The leap of faith and balance beam are adventures for individuals with support from their peers. Also included is a dramatic 100 metre long zip wire starting 15 metres above the ground. As well as being tremendous fun the ropes course is a focus for planned activities providing personal development training for children and adults. It has been designed to enable the level of difficulty and challenge to be finely tuned to the needs of each group.

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Activities

The centre has been designed by Haringey Council to provide residential outdoor education courses (usually 5 days). These courses cater for secondary schools, primary schools, youth and adult groups. Adventure courses for secondary pupils could involve a range of activities such as climbing, caving, canoeing, kayaking, mountain walking, high ropes and orienteering.

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Further information

For more information, newsletters, price lists and forms can be downloaded from the Pendarren website (external link). You can also contact us on:

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Page last updated:

December 8, 2020