Just wanted to say I thoroughly enjoyed the Babbacombe and Oddicombe geological walk yesterday evening. I learnt a lot, as we all did, from your hands on approach, and will look at my surroundings differently from now on as a result.
I feel there is a real need for geological enlightenment in the bay; we have a duty and an honour to really ensure the locals understand the concept and its implications as we move into a sustainable future.
Liza, Geowalk attendee
We are delighted to be associate partners of the English Riviera UNESCO Global Geopark, and we are committed to supporting the UNESCO designation by offering educational walks, talks and workshops for schools and the general public. Torbay is a fantastic scientific resource with some incredible geology and we are proud to be able to offer educational services to support the Geopark.
Geowalks
From March to October, we run a monthly programme of guided geowalks visiting key geological sites across Torbay. We visit key geological sites and explain the we see in front of us. No geological knowledge is assumed on any of our walks and they are suitable for beginners who just want to know more about the rocks that make up Torbay and the geology that underpins the UNESCO Geopark status.
Our programme visits a number of sites around Torbay, from Babbacombe, Hopes Nose and Meadfoot Beach to Shoalstone Beach and Berry Head (and most places in between!) The walks have been very popular and show the level of interest in the geology of the ERGG. For a full programme, please see our Events page or contact us for more information. We also offer a personal guiding service if you would like something more bespoke or for your own group.
Geology Short Courses
Complementing our geowalks programme is our winter geology course. We run a short course of geology workshops through the winter months. We explore geological concepts on a different theme each month – Rocks, Time, Life and Structures – linking back to the geology of the Geopark at the end of each week. The course is aimed at beginners so don’t worry if you don’t know the first thing about geology! The workshops will be run in a fun, informal and hands-on way, and to allow high-quality learning and resources, numbers on this course will be strictly limited to a maximum of ten attendees.
Field Trips and School Visits
In 2024 we received funding from Torbay’s Local Heritage Grant Scheme to put together ‘The Bedrock Project’, an educational resource for Torbay schools to learn more about geology and the Geopark. Although the funding has now ended, we are still offering the sessions to schools and have some geology resources available to hire. For more information, please see the dedicated page about the Bedrock Project.
We are also able to run bespoke field trips to locations around Torbay and beyond, investigating the local rocks. For more details pleas get in touch and we will put something together that fits your needs.
