Learning
At Land of Iron we offer a range of hands-on workshops to supplement learning with an experience you can’t get in a classroom. Actively engaging you in local heritage we deliver a memorable visit that uses creative and innovative museum educational practices.
Acknowledging the ironstone mining heritage of Skinningrove - and with a focus on East Cleveland, the Tees Valley, and North Yorkshire - our educational offerings complement the curriculum. With workshops and a selection of loans boxes suitable for Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 and based around History, Art and STEM subjects, we defy expectations of traditional museum learning offers. To book please email [email protected] with the subject heading “Learning Enquiry”.
For further information on tailoring workshops for Key Sage 3, Key Stage 4 and Key Stage 5, as well as outreach sessions to schools, please enquire with the Learning Manager.
Workshops run for between 60-90 minutes and are delivered by our enthusiastic and experienced staff so sessions meet the requirements of pupils and prioritise the needs of those individuals who need a little extra help with learning.
Half day visits are centred towards one hour and a half workshop. Our full-day plans are timed to work between 10.00am to 14.00pm with the morning session running for an hour and a half, a break for lunch, and the afternoon session running for an hour and a half, departing between 14.00pm to 14.30pm.
We can be flexible with the timings of workshops, conditional of pupils’ educational needs. Half days are centred towards one hour and a half workshop.
We offer a range of outreach sessions that can take place in the comfort of your classroom.
For more information please email [email protected] with the head "Outreach Enquiry".
Handling objects are a wonderful way for students to learn about history as primary sources encourage them to use and develop enquiry based and critical thinking skills. Through tactile learning, history becomes meaningful, relevant and memorable.
Land of Iron has Loans Boxes to hire out for use in schools at the cost of £30 for a fortnight. Both featuring a selection of museum artefacts and a series of activities, bring heritage into your class room through tactile learning where history becomes meaningful, relevant and memorable.
Our Prehistory Loans Box Contains:
19 Artefacts and Replica Handling Objects
Factsheets for an introduction to Prehistory
Activity Sheets for Teaching Staff
Our Rocks and Fossils Loans Box Contains:
Fossils and rocks
Fact Sheets about the objects
Activity Sheets for Teaching Staff
To book a Loans Box please email [email protected] with the subject heading “Loans Box - Enquiry”. Prior to booking, ensure you have adequate insurance to cover replacement and damage of objects.
The Loan Box must be collected and returned to Land of Iron. It is the responsibility of the school to arrange a convenient time to collect and return the Loan Box with the Learning Manager. There is a charge of £30 per day for late returns.
All of our home education sessions are advertised through our social media pages and on our events page.
At Land of Iron, we understand that one of the greatest barriers to using a museum alongside your teaching is understanding what they have on offer to schools.
To coincide with the start of the new school year, in October we are offering a hands on CPD event for teachers. Prioritising localising the curriculum, come down to see how to best use the museum in your teaching, experience what our practical workshops have to offer, and meet our knowledgeable Learning Team.
FAQs
Land of Iron is in Skinningrove in the North East of England. We are 15 miles (24km) south of Middlesbrough and 15 miles north of Whitby.
To book email [email protected] with the subject heading “Learning Enquiry”
Please state the number of pupils you intend to bring, if there is any additional learning needs or requirements, and the workshops you would like to participate in. Upon initial correspondence with the Learning Manager, you shall then be emailed a booking form to complete and an information pack to read through. You will then be send an invoice to pay before your visit. Your booking will only be confirmed after the museum receives payment for your visit.
The Learning Manager will also send you over the relevant Risk Assesment(s) in preparation of your visit.
We only accept groups from 9.45am to 14.30pm. Working within the time scales that you provide us with on your booking form, we encourage groups to arrive at 9.40am for a 10.00am start. This provides us with time to discuss Health and Safety procedures, and store away belongings.
For visits to the museum we charge £4 per child per workshop session. You must pay for the number of students you intend to bring. We will not refund any absent pupils
For outreach in schools, there is a flat rate of £85 for school within a 10-mile radius of the museum. Any greater distance (up to 40 miles) is £100 to cover the cost of museum staff travel. To enquire about an outreach session please email [email protected] with the subject heading: Outreach Enquiry
Please enquire with the Learning Manager and state how many children you intend to bring, if there is any additional learning needs or requirements, and what workshop(s) you would like to undertake. We will likely require you to divide your class into groups for most activities. Note: for the Ironstone Mining Experience children rotate around three activities with no more than 12 persons (including guide) in the mine tunnel at any time as we operate as an Active Mine.
We shall try our best to accommodate large groups but please be aware this might call for you undertaking two workshops over the course of a day. If in a larger group during the summer months, we may ask you to take part in a workshop off site.
We have disabled parking spaces to the rear of the museum and level access to the museum entrance from here. Most wheelchairs can move throughout the museum freely. We have a lift going to all floors within the museum.
We do not charge for accompanying adults. While our activities are led by Museum staff or volunteers, we require at least one supervising adult from your organisation to be present with children at all times.
Our team members are not part of your supervising ratios. Any additional assistance such as 1:1 for SEN pupils does not constitute as supervision in your staff ratios. We suggest you refer to your local authority guidelines when considering the number of supervisory adults necessary. We note the NSPCC recommends the following adult-to-child ratios as the minimum numbers to help keep children safe:
0 - 2 years - one adult to three children
2 - 3 years - one adult to four children
4 - 8 years - one adult to six children
9 - 12 years - one adult to eight children
13 - 18 years - one adult to ten children
These are ratios we recommend for school visits and whilst the last set of minimum guidelines from the Government (1998) were lower (e.g. 1 adult for every 10-15 pupils in school Years 4 to 6). The activities undertaken and environments we work in require a higher ratio.
We strongly suggest that in addition to supervisory adults, you have one additional adult who could deal with unforeseen circumstances e.g. illness, fear of the dark, unplanned toilet break. Museum staff cannot be responsible for supervising individuals or groups of children.
Space is made in the education suite to enjoy food. Groups must bring pack lunches as there are no facilities to buy lunches within the museum.
Copyright © 2016-2026 Land of Iron and © 2016-2026 Land of Iron.
Cleveland Ironstone Mining Museum
Address: Cleveland Ironstone Mining Museum, Mill Lane, Deepdale, Skinningrove, Saltburn-By-The-Sea, Cleveland, TS13 4AP
Charity No. 1080246. Company No. 3837401
Registered in England and Wales
VAT no: 407767082
