Rivers4Life
Our exciting new education project funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund
Inspiring Communities
Using money raised by National Lottery players, The National Lottery Heritage Fund supports projects that connect people and communities with the UK's heritage. Rivers4Life is made possible with The National Lottery Heritage Fund. Thanks to National Lottery players, we have been able to extend our education and engagement programme to connect schools and communities with rivers and wildlife through science and the arts, to inspire everyone to get involved with caring for our rivers and wildlife.
More about Rivers4Life
The National Lottery Heritage Fund is the largest funder for the UK’s heritage. Using money raised by National Lottery players we support projects that connect people and communities to heritage. Our vision is for heritage to be valued, cared for and sustained for everyone, now and in the future. From historic buildings, our industrial legacy and the natural environment, to collections, traditions, stories and more. Heritage can be anything from the past that people value and want to pass on to future generations. We believe in the power of heritage to ignite the imagination, offer joy and inspiration, and to build pride in place and connection to the past. Find out more at www.heritagefund.org.uk.
Thanks to National Lottery players the Rivers4Llife project will enable us to work with schools and communities along the Rivers Wharfe, Swale, Ure, Nidd and Ouse, and their tributaries. Through the project we will inspire children and communities about everything to do with rivers and wildlife.
This 3-year project will allow us to deliver an exciting programme combining the arts and science, to reach a wider audience. We will be working with local schools and community groups offering workshops on the theme of rivers and wildlife, to engage groups using art, soundscapes, theatre, stop-frame animation and music - alongside a programme of guided walks, and drop-in family activity sessions.
If your school or community group is in the catchments of the rivers of the Yorkshire Dales, please email education@ydrt.co.uk to enquire about Rivers4Life workshops or booking the Rivers mobile classroom to visit your school in 2025-6.
Year 1 - 2025
In Year 1 of the project.....
Year 2 - 2026
In Year 2 of the project, the Dales Countryside Museum in Hawes, Wensleydale, LINK will be hosting our Rivers4Life summer exhibition, showcasing the work of the Yorkshire Dales Rivers Trust, and the Rivers4Life workshops. The exhibition will be open to the public from Saturday 6 June to Sunday 6 September 2026.
Year 3 - 2027
In Year 3 we will be working with two local schools to install Sustainable Drainage Solution features such as rain gardens and water butts, in school grounds. If you think you might be interested in being involved with this part of the project, please get in touch:
education@ydrt.co.uk.
Rivers4Life Events
Event 1
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Photo Competition
From macro images of microscopic life to marvellous mammals, from waterfalls to water voles – we’ve launched a competition to find the best photographs of our Yorkshire Dales rivers and wildlife, to be included in our Rivers 4 Life exhibition.
Some feedback from the groups we are working with
Clifton Green Primary School, York
”The introduction was great and the children were really engaged and learned a vast amount in a short space of time. It was great how the leader had a vast amount of knowledge about wildlife and could talk about it really well to the children.”
Upper Wharfedale School, Geography Department
”Thank you for an outstanding outdoor learning experience for our students. We covered a range of topics perfect for their AQA GCSE course.”
Geography department
Kirby Hill Primary School
” We really enjoyed the river table – the children were so enthusiastic about it!”
Ms. Gardener (Y3/4 teacher)
Grewelthorpe Church of England Primary School
“The day was extremely well organised, interesting and full of engaging activities which kept the children’s attention throughout. The water table was a fantastic experience for the children to see some of the geographical processes taking place and how these processes can be altered or stopped. The activities linked well to our science and physical geography learning.”
Mr. Breckon (Y5/6 teacher)
