Northumbrian Castle Takes Lead on Edu-Staycation Experience Provision

 A Northumbrian castle hotel, Langley Castle, (www.langleycastle.co.uk) has set the bar for what it is calling the UK ‘edu-staycation’ -  a new 2021 UK family experience, borne out of the pandemic, which enables children to learn whilst on holiday, catching up on time lost in the classroom.

The castle, located just a few miles from Hadrian’s Wall and from medieval Hexham, is not only promising children an amazing stay within walls that have experienced 671 years of history, but also delivering holiday history, in an engrossing and fun fashion.

It has taken the lead on edu-staycation resource provision, which travel experts have predicted would be a big priority for concerned parents, by firstly creating ‘Hairy History’, its own vibrant and edgy guide.  This interprets the castle’s dramatic and turbulent past since 1350 in a humorous way, setting it wherever possible in the wider context of British history, studied at various Key Stages within the education system.

This free resource, downloadable at https://www.langleycastle.co.uk/en/history-for-kids/  is then linked to other history-focused activities, sure to deliver an important mix of family we-time and learning.

The downloadable ‘Hairy History’ book first walks families through local Roman history (the starting point for a castle whose walls were built with stones taken from Hadrian’s Wall) in a preliminary BL (Before Langley) section. 

It then homes in on parts of the castle’s history that are both incredibly dramatic and which often reference the turbulence of life on the Anglo-Scottish border in ancient times.  Langley’s history is also rich in connections to the Gunpowder Plot and Jacobite Rebellions, not to mention Henry IV, Henry VIII, the Black Death, crime and punishment and the fearsome Border Reivers.

The castle is also thought to have the best example of medieval garderobes (early toilets) to be found in Europe, this also getting suitable mention in the booklet, in a way to appeal to kids!

The  Langley Castle ‘Hairy History’ guide helps kids make sense of the buildings and land around them when they stay and brings it all to life in a cool way.  However, it is just the launchpad for the edu-staycation adventure.

Daily Battlement Tours, due to return in time for the summer holidays, if the July relaxation of social distancing regulations takes place, will be more vibrant than ever, for residents and non-residents alike (with a small charge for non-residents).

The tours interpret key features of the castle and include a video, further explaining Langley’s historical backdrop.  This is viewed in the chapel on the battlements, for which a former owner travelled to Rome, to gain the personal permission of Pope Leo XIII, the Rosary Pope.

Local tour guides, Ancient Britain, will also offer Langley Castle guests some optional tours, to fill in more knowledge gaps.  The team are true walking encyclopaedias on Roman history, but equally great at creating bespoke tours based around Iron, Stone Age and Jacobite history. They can pick guests up from the castle’s doorstep for historical tours of varying duration, packed with memorability and insight and not only take families to key historic sites but also allow children to do everything from tasting Roman-style food, to handling weaponry.

Langley Castle’s desire to help children get back into learning and catch up with their historical studies is borne from its experience of seeing young guests transfixed by what they see around them when they walk inside the castle walls.  With the backdrop of huge parental concern about many months lost in the classroom, it has seemed more important than ever to utilise this in as dynamic a way as possible.

“It is so much easier to engage children in history when they are already channelling their inner knight or princess,” says executive general manager, Margaret Livingstone-Evans.  “We felt that, if we could tap into our castle’s unique ambience, we could play our part in helping children re-engage with their history studies.  This is how our ‘Hairy History’ project was born.  

“We are not sure how many other hotels are offering guests this sort of edu-staycation experience but it would almost have been negligent not to use our amazing past as the basis of a history holiday.  If families then want to supplement our guide and our Battlements Tour with a tour booked with Ancient Britain, we are sure their kids will go home hooked on history.”

With the Scottish school holidays already running and the English school holidays just a few weeks away, Langley Castle anticipates that its new resource will prove extremely popular, whether children are actually able to visit, or just learning more via the free download.  In the meantime, it hopes it can inspire other venues to consider edu-staycation needs, which its sees prevailing right through to at least next Easter, so that British children can learn a little more, whilst technically being at their leisure.

One option for a stay at Langley Castle is to book a room within the castle itself, where there are nine bedrooms within three different classifications – Feature Rooms for ultimate luxury and Deluxe Rooms, just slightly less luxurious.  Many have four-poster beds, window seats set into the seven-feet-thick walls and stone arches, juxtaposed with highly contemporary features, with some rooms having facilities such as a spa bath, sauna or walk-in dressing room with Hollywood-style light-up mirror.

The other option is to admire the castle architecture from outside and stay in a Castle View suite, room or lodge, very close by in the grounds. These contemporary rooms enable families to have relaxed, all-mod-cons-filled accommodation and still enjoy the opportunity to explore the castle, when visiting drawing room or dining room, for refreshments, breakfast or meals.  With the Battlements Tour option too, children can still enjoy all that the castle has to offer.

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Editors notes

Langley Castle, built in 1350, is located in Langley-on-Tyne, Northumberland and is one of the few authentic, fortified medieval castles in England. It has a rich history, with strong links to Jacobite rebellions, is located just a stone's throw from the World Heritage Site of Hadrian's Wall and boasts features including battlements, seven-feet-thick walls, window seats set into the walls and the best example of medieval garderobes in Europe. It is one of the most exquisite wedding venues in the north and also offers a wide range of options when it comes to exclusive use, with the castle being available for weddings, family celebrations, Bar Mitzvahs and Bat Mitzvahs, D&D-style events and a wide variety of corporate functions.