CHILDREN from Bourton-on-the-Water Primary School have been the first in the county to try out the attractions at Greystones Farm, an exciting new visitor centre.

At a preview event they had the chance to test their wildlife knowledge on a digital quiz, dress up in Iron Age costumes, explore an interactive map and visit a replica Iron Age roundhouse.

Greystones in Greystones Lane, Bourton is run by Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust.

Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust has been renovating Greystones, a former derelict farm, into a centre of excellence offering education sessions, walking trails, a nature reserve, working dairy farm and a café. Greystones will be fully open to the public in summer 2018.

Thanks to a donation of £150,000 from Grundon Waste Management, a family business helping companies divert waste from landfill for recycling, the Grundon Barn at Greystones is the first attraction to be completed. Dating back 200 years, it was originally used to store harvested crops, and now features digital and traditional activities which visitors will be able to enjoy once the centre has opened.

“We are delighted to support Greystones, a remarkable project which will encourage children to discover local wildlife, history and farming,” said Norman Grundon, chairman of Grundon Waste Management at the preview event.

“Inspiring children to enjoy the excitement of the natural world is an important part of their education. Grundon supports innovative investment and it’s wonderful to see an historic barn brought back into service for future generations.”

The site where Greystones is located has seen people gathered, lived and worked there for over 6,000 years, and it is possibly one of the first places in the Cotswolds to be inhabited.

It became particularly important during the Iron Age, about 2,500 years ago, when it became a regional centre for trading and the manufacture of goods, such as metalworks.

Greystones was bought by Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust in 2001. At the time, it consisted of derelict farm buildings, farmland, meadows and rivers.

For information about GWT’s educational activities at Greystones and other locations, visit gloucestershirewildlifetrust.co.uk or call 01452 383333.