Geography in Manchester and the Peaks

On Monday, the Lower Sixth Geographers returned from a four-day field trip to Manchester and Edale as part of both the A Level and IB courses.

Local expert Johnathan Scholfield who has led many of our previous field visits gave the pupils a three hour guided tour. He gave the pupils a real insight to the history of the city, interspersed with humorous anecdotes and asides. Evidence of the industrial past, social change and modern regeneration were clear to see, most notably the areas of Spinningfields, St Peter’s Square and King Street. Obviously, Manchester was still feeling the effects of the attack on the Arena and all of us were moved by the flowers and balloons which formed an informal memorial in St Ann’s Square to the 22 victims.

Monday was greeted with incessant rain on our visit to Salford Quays. The stunning redevelopment of the old docks was in stark contrast to the surrounding industrial areas. The pupils were able to visit the Lowry Gallery and Media City – a stunning complex of offices and studios housing the BBC, ITV and other production companies. Our afternoon visit was to the Geography Department of Manchester University where the pupils gained an insight into studying Geography at university as well as a short tour of the laboratories in action.

Mr Keeley was more than happy on Tuesday as the group headed off to the Etihad Campus, home of Manchester City. He regaled the group with tales of cheap season tickets from his youth as we again took shelter from the wind and rain. After a walk through the interesting regeneration area of New Islington and Ancoats, the pupils split into groups to conduct fieldwork of different designated areas. The pupils presented their studies in the evening complete with amusing video highlights and interviews with locals.

Our last day was a train journey to Edale in the heart of the Peak District National Park and at last a glimpse of sunshine. Thankfully, the weather had relented enough for all the pupils to get stuck into some hydrology fieldwork for the whole day. Some were more prepared than others to enter the stream, but the results gained will be crucial for the IB assessments. It was a perfect way to round off a successful – if very damp – trip north.

Trevor Kidson (Teacher of Geography)