Calderdale College and Cromwell Bottom partner to support wildlife conservation
As part of their coursework, our Level 3 Creative Media students have partnered up with local Calderdale wildlife hub, Cromwell Bottom Wildlife Group, to create an interactive activity book for young children visiting Cromwell Bottom Nature Reserve. All public donations generated from the booklet have contributed to supporting efforts in preserving the stunning scenery and surroundings at the wildlife reserve.
Calderdale College’s Art, Design and Media course and Cromwell Bottom Wildlife Group have a long-standing partnership, together aiding wildlife conservation in Calderdale. 10 students took part in the recent project as part of their coursework where they produced graphics and illustrations like crosswords, word searches, colouring in sheets and puzzles for children visiting the nature reserve aged between three and 12. The Creative Media students used Adobe Photoshop and InDesign, taking inspiration from the diverse wildlife that call the sanctuary home.
Situated in the Calder Valley between Brighouse and Elland, Cromwell Bottom Nature Reserve is one of the most important wildlife sites in Calderdale, with its lush green landscape made up of woodlands, wetlands and grasslands – it has a rich eco-system that many insects, birds and mammals have made their natural habitat since 2000.
Simon Day, Chair of Cromwell Bottom Wildlife Group, said: “The sales students at Calderdale College have generated by creating the activity booklet has massively benefitted us as a wildlife group, as we rely on donations to keep us going. It is also important for us to help successive years of students to achieve their Level 3 Creative Media BTEC qualification and to build our relationship with the College further.”
Calderdale College’s Art, Design and Media department is committed to expanding course offerings to meet the needs for the professional and personal development of creative students, working closely with community heritage and wildlife groups like Cromwell Bottom to support the growth of local businesses and charities in the area.
Nicole Clee, a Creative Media student that worked in partnership with Cromwell Bottom at Calderdale College, said: “I’ve enjoyed the entire project with Cromwell Bottom Wildlife Group. This was my first live project working with a client. A highlight was creating the activity puzzles because I was able to learn how to understand different target audiences as I was producing material for various age groups.”
“After my course at Calderdale College, I want to stay in the creative arts sector as the variety of skills taught on my Level 3 Creative Media course like art, photography and games design are preparing me for life after college and my career ambitions.”
Student, Owen Sayers also benefitted from the project: “Working on this partnership with Cromwell Bottom Wildlife Group had a lot of value as I was able to work directly with a client and gain experience working with lots of different people at different stages of the project. Using Scratch to make some digital games has given me the opportunity to learn about coding, which I am looking to explore further outside my studies.”
To find out more about creative courses in Art, Design and Media at Calderdale College, please visit here, or if you’re a local business wanting to partner with our students for project delivery, work placements or other, please click here.
