Report to Hill End Reception to sign in and receive your welcome pack. For residential visits you will be required to complete a fire register for those staying overnight.

If you have booked a tutor-led day session, a member of staff will greet you at the entrance and there is no need to sign in separately.

From Oxford (or Eynsham & Witney to the West) it is possible to get most of the way to Hill End via bus. The stagecoach operated S1 bus runs very regularly (approximately every 15 minutes). You need to get off at “Farmoor, Oaken Holt House”. From this stop there is no footpath for the last 400m to Hill End so we do not recommend walking it. Arrangements should be made with your group organiser in advance for pick-ups from the bus stop.

No, the site is not open to the public – all visitors by appointment only.

08:00 – 16:00, Monday – Friday.

There are many picnic benches provided around the site as well as the wooden Gazebos which provide a sheltered spots for picnics, outdoor learning and storing bags and clothes.

All groups with site access have access to the wooden gazebos which can provide groups with shelter from bad weather. Please bear in mind these facilities are shared by all groups on site. We recommend you book an indoor facility if you know you will likely to need it. Children and adults should be advised to bring appropriate clothing for all weather conditions. Please check weather forecast before your arrival to ensure all members of your group are prepared.

The safeguarding of our visitors is our primary concern. Sorry, we do not allow dogs on site (except registered assistance dogs) and we have a strict no smoking / no alcohol policy, and no glassware is allowed outside of buildings.  All visitors are by appointment only and must report to reception. All additional visitors (including parents dropping off or collecting) to a group need to be met by the group leader in the outer (first) car-park.

Yes! By prior arrangement only please. We would strongly encourage a tour, especially if you are unfamiliar with the site.

It is the responsibility of all users to keep all buildings locked at all times.  The main access area is covered by CCTV  but all groups should challenge suspicious behaviour and report it to the police and then the site staff.

Yes, a number of our venues have disabled access and bathrooms. Detail are below however please contact us for the latest information.

Robinson Dorm, disabled access and toilet

Blue Dragon, disabled access and toilet

Yes, cars in the inner car park and overflow on the entrance drive. Coach turning space in the inner car park. If the coach needs to stay on-site for the day please let us know. Please be aware that at peak times parking is restricted.

Yes – in the inner car park by the entrance to the main site.

All customers will be sent an invoice, and payment by BACS is preferred. You can pay by card or cash for incidentals such as firewood.

Hill End has a strictly ‘no smoking’ policy and no smoking is permitted anywhere on the site.

We welcome campfires at Hill End as part of group activities. You will need to let us know beforehand that you plan to have one and we ask that they are restricted to specific areas with firepits on site. We have sacks of firewood for sale or you can bring your own – we ask visitors not to forage for firewood on site as it damages our woodland habitats.

Campfires self-led by groups should be fully risk assessed and the competency of staff leading it should be agreed by the management of the setting / organisers in advance. Hill End can offer advice if requested but we are not able to oversee or be responsible for your campfire unless a member of our staff is booked specifically. Groups are responsible for supplying their own kit and safety equipment for campfires. You can read our handy guidance sheet here or collect one from the office during opening hours.

Most of the Hill End site is covered by our guest wifi. Please ask at reception for details.

Hill End has in place all risk assessments for the site and activities it leads and is subject to independent Health and Safety and other inspections. In accordance with the Outdoor Education Advisers Panels’ National Guidance for Educational Visits, Hill End does not send out its risk assessments but assures users that they are in place. Please see this link for further details: https://oeapng.info/downloads/download-info/6a-faqs-asking-for-providers-risk-assessments/

We also hold the Learning Outside the Classroom Quality Badge which is a nationally recognized safety and quality assurance mark (See www.lotcqualitybadge.org.uk) as well as the Tidy Britain Group Green Flag Award for the quality of its grounds.

We are always keen to provide information and assistance to our customers for their own risk assessment needs – please do contact us, and we’d also be very happy to arrange a pre-visit.

Please call  01865 863510 or email admin@hill-end.org, the office is open 08:00 – 16:00 Monday to Friday. We look forward to hearing from you!

We have a number of different spaces:

The Barn – multipurpose space, capacity 90 seated

The Willows – capacity 20 seated.

Blue Dragon – capacity 36 seated, plus additional break-out areas

Four Winds – capacity for 35+ seated (adjoining Middle Dorm, 44 beds and 10 staff beds booked separately)

Cookhouse – capacity 35 seated. (Situated near the main field it can be booked alongside The Barn or on its own for smaller groups)

For full details and to check availability please visit: http://hill-end.org/facilities/meeting-rooms/

Please report to Hill End Reception to sign in to collect your key(s). The Hill End Office is open 08:00 – 16:00, Monday – Friday

Groups planning to arrive on a weekend or outside of office hours should arrange to collect keys prior to their visit during office hours.

• Pre-visit to the Hill End site, meeting with a Hill End representative.
• Exclusive use of building hired on your booking form
• Shared use of on-site facilities e.g. main field, woodlands, sensory garden, trails, gazebos.
• On-site support during office hours.
• Welcome briefing and handbook with relevant site specific information
• Access generally from 9:30 a.m.
• For residential trips, dorm check-in is 12pm, check-out is 10am (other buildings are booked by the day)

Please note cleaning is not included. Please leave the facilities as clean (or cleaner!) than you found them. As a charity with limited resources, our site is maintained by a small team of staff and volunteers, and we are very grateful for your support with this.

Please see our booking terms and conditions.

No, currently Hill End is self-catering only (except for specific packages). If you would like catering please ask us and we can direct you to our preferred catering suppliers.

Yes. Hill End is self-catering only. If you would like catering please ask us and we can direct you to our preferred catering suppliers.

Hill End’s alcohol policy states that it is an alcohol free site. If you intend to sell or consume alcohol you will need to apply for a Temporary Event Notice from the council, with permission of the Hill End Centre. Please see link below or ask us for further information:

Temporary Event Notices

If you are a business you will need to provide us with a copy of your Certificate of Insurance. Hill End has Third Party Hirer insurance; please ask if you wish to see a copy.

For residential visits, those organised by Oxfordshire County Council employees do not need to arrange insurance cover, as they are covered by the county council’s insurance arrangements. All other groups visiting Hill End are required to arrange their own Public Liability Insurance; we have the right to request and retain a copy of this if required.

Projector Screens are available in Blue Dragon and the Barn, although we are not currently able to supply a projector.

There is a whiteboard available in Four Winds as well as flip charts available in Blue Dragon and The Willows.

We have a number of different spaces, for full details and to check availability please visit. http://hill-end.org/facilities/accommodation/

• Camping – Field, up to 200
• High Dorm – 38 beds (split into 2 dormitories 20 & 18) 4 staff beds
• Middle Dorm – 45 beds (split in to 4 dormitories of 11,13, 11 and 10) and 9 staff beds
• North Dorm – 28 bunks (split into 5 rooms)
• Robinson – 40 beds (split into 2 dormitories 20 and 20) and 2 staff beds

When renting a dorm, each bed comes with a bottom sheet, pillow and pillow case. Guests will need to bring a sleeping bag and/or extra pillow.

With the kitchen hire we provide a basic selection large items designed for mass catering. There no crockery, cutlery, chopping boards or utensils provided.

As such you will need to bring with you all of the crockery, cooking utensils, water jugs, pots and pans which your group will require.

The exception is our smaller North Dorm, which does have a selection of crockery, cutlery and equipment – please contact us for more details.

We would strongly encourage a pre-visit to familise yourself with the facilities we have in our kitchens.

Arrangements are made for staff to assist you, details provided at check-in.

We have very limited cleaning services on-site. When a group arrives they are issued with a cleaning box and groups are expected to clean all spaces used, ready to be used by the next group.

Groups are expected to clean and disinfect all food preparation areas before and after use; sweep and mop all floors; and clean all shared spaces including toilets, showers and kitchen if applicable.

PLEASE LEAVE THE SITE CLEANER THAN YOU FOUND IT!

On arrival please check in at reception. Dormitories are available from 12noon, but we can arrange luggage storage if necessary by prior arrangement.

Groups need to be checked out of their dormitory by 10am, failure to do so may incur a charge.

Showering facilities are available in the Middle Dormitory and North Dormitory, and there are disabled showering facilities available in Robinson Dorm.

Due to fire regulations we are limited to the set number of beds in each room so configurations cannot be changed.

Beds may not be added or removed from dormitories due to fire regulations.

We accept camping bookings from schools and other organised groups (no private bookings from the public, sorry). Group leaders need to ensure they abide by our Code of Conduct and any fires or BBQs in designated areas only. We also offer a discounted rate for DofE groups, please see out our DofE pages for more information.

At least 6 metres is required between tents, and a minimum of 3 metres between any awnings, gazebos or ‘pup’ tents (children’s tents next to adults). For health and safety purposes emergency vehicles must be able to gain access to any unit on the site. See our Code of Conduct and also the annexes (which has more detail and diagrams) to help with your set-up.

We don’t allow campervans onto our camping fields but it may sometimes be possible to park in the inner car parks subject to space availability – the same spacing rules apply as above so this is very limited. Please check with us in advance!

Available daily, Monday-Friday 9:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. We can offer flexibility so please ask us for further information

All sessions Up to 35 children

All led-sessions are based outdoors. Children should wear appropriate clothing and footwear for the conditions (e.g. waterproofs and wellies / boots if wet, sunhats and suncream if hot and sunny!)

Yes – please bring your own food and drink. You’ll have somewhere to leave your picnic things and eat undercover if wet.

We don’t prescribe particular numbers or ratios, as all classes are very different and you may have additional staff responsible for children with additional needs. Your teaching staff will be responsible for the children throughout the day (the activities will be arranged and led by our tutor as appropriate). However, many schools bring 2-4 adults.

Yes – you can download our Educational Programmes curriculum links document here.

And there are so many other benefits to a visit to Hill End, such as social and life skills, confidence-building, wellbeing, enjoying and valuing the natural world. Please ask us for more information about what we can provide to meet your needs.

At peak times schools can book 2 kits per day during their visit.

All resource kits can be booked for 1 of these sessions each day:

9.30 – 12pm

12.30 – 2.30pm

The Board Games resource Box is also available to be booked for a whole evening. Evening bookings start at 4pm and must be returned before 9am the following day.

The length of the activities varies between resource boxes please see details of individual resource boxes for advice on length of activities: http://hill-end.org/facilities/resource-boxes/

All resource boxes contain activities suitable for all key stages.

Code breakers games has 2 different levels available, Butterflies Code Breakers is more suitable for key stage 1 while Willows Code Breakers is aimed at upper key stage 1 and key stage 2.

The Orienteering resource Box has courses suitable to both Key stage 1 and 2, please see the resource Box details for specific guidance on each course: http://hill-end.org/facilities/resource-boxes/ .

All other boxes are entirely suited to all key stages.

All boxes cater for a class of approximately 30 children