A HISTORIC Bewdley Cottage used for educational visits is to reopen next week.

The Frank Chapman Outdoor Education Centre, run by Sandwell Council, will hold an open day at Coopers Mill Cottage on Thursday, May 28, from 4.30pm-8pm to mark its reopening.

It was closed in 2014 by Birmingham Council after it took the decision to close all of its outdoor education centres throughout the Midlands and Wales.

But the centre will again use the cottage for day visits and walks in the woods, outdoor adventure, overnight stays and river studies after it was awarded custodianship of the facility.

It will also be available for family groups and organisations to book to provide relaxed accommodation and camping.

Frank Chapman Centre’s Head, Stu Meese said: “We are so excited to have been awarded the custodianship of the cottage from Natural England and the Worgan Trust and we are looking forward to having young people enjoy the amazing surroundings, peace and remoteness of the cottage.

The cottage stands on the site of a historic mill and tavern which was part of the local history of Dowles brook and the Wyre forest.

It is owned along with the surrounding woodland by the Worgan Trust, set up by the Cadbury family in the 1960s as a means of teaching inner city children about farming, food and the countryside.

Loyal fans of the cottage are being welcomed back such as the 1st Kidderminster Boys Brigade and Northfield Primary School who have booked their stays in the cottage as soon as they were able.

Councillor Simon Hackett, Sandwell Council’s cabinet member for children’s services said: “This is good news for the centre and especially for the many Sandwell children which visit this excellent centre in the countryside.

“We greatly value all our centres and it is important to give children as many new and different experiences and the cottage will enable the Frank Chapman staff to add to the excellent services they already provide at the site.”