Adult Courses

During the week, you will enjoy five different walks across the beautiful Wiltshire countryside around Marlborough. From the chalk grassland of the highest parts of the Wiltshire Downs to the lush valley of the River Kennet and through the ancient oak forest of Savernake, the scenery is varied and stunning. Along the way, you will pass a number of ancient sites and...

Explore a new selection of gardens in the Marlborough area for ideas and inspiration. The gardens your tutor has chosen to view are all privately owned and, in most cases, you will have the opportunity to meet with the owners to discover their thoughts behind the planting and design scheme first-hand. You will discuss their choice of plants in relation to the...

You will visit five different nature reserves in Wiltshire that display the extensive range of habitats in the county. All are classified as Sites of Special Scientific Interest and some are European Special Areas of Conservation. You will learn how they are managed for both wildlife and people and see some of the special flora and fauna that live there. The Reserves...

The Wiltshire area boasts some of the finest gardens in the country. On this course, you will visit a selection of these Glorious Gardens, some open to the public, others private, but all with wonderful design and planting. On the way, you will be driven through the beautiful countryside of the Marlborough Downs, South Oxfordshire and then into the Cotswolds. From 17th...

Enjoy learning to identify the most common species of wildlife in the beautiful Wiltshire countryside. You will spend an introductory afternoon in the classroom, looking at the main groups of organisms and focussing on common animals, particularly birds. You will then spend the rest of the course mostly outdoors. One afternoon will be devoted to birds and another to trees, including the majestic...

By the 8th century, the village had become the principal settlement type in southern England. Hilltop forts, hamlets, isolated farms and Great Halls were slowly abandoned. The great Roman towns and cities struggled to reclaim their dominant position in the geography of southern England. Instead, the village, surrounded by open fields and equipped with a blacksmith, an inn, a so-called 'Big House' and...

In the largely undocumented days between the departure of the Romans and the settlement of England by Saxons, Angles and Jutes, a dyke, with its ditch facing north, was constructed across the Wiltshire Downs. Long stretches of the eastern bank of this wall, named by the Saxons 'Woden's Dyke' or 'Wansdyke' survive, running across the open expanses of the Marlborough Downs. During...

Marlborough is at the heart of the North Wessex Downs, a nationally designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and, in part, a World Heritage Site. Yet what makes the area so special? Is it the landscape or humankind's impact on it over the past 5,000 years? With talks, videos, drives and short walks, this course seeks to provide some answers while illustrating...

This course offers a variety of practical fitness classes as well as technique and training advice. It will include classes such as circuits, weights, HIIT (high intensity interval training), swimming and water based resistance, running technique and the use of gym equipment. This will be supplemented by discussions on nutrition, goal setting, sports psychology and setting an exercise programme. The course will...

Come on board and discover the beauty of the Italian language and aspects of Italy's rich culture. This course is designed for complete beginners and those with some experience of the language. Each day, you will cover a different topic with related vocabulary and simple grammatical structures. Emphasis is put on conversation in Italian and the discovery of aspects of the Italian...

At first glance, Arabic looks an impossible language to learn. The tutor and her husband, who have spent many years in Arab countries, will help you unravel the mysteries and start you off towards speaking and understanding simple conversations in Arabic. This course for beginners will be conducted orally and with transliterated texts, but will offer an option for those who wish...

Progress your reading, speaking and listening skills and improve your confidence in Italian with 'La Vita Bella', our Italian for Improvers course. You will learn how to talk about families, professions and about physical and personality descriptions. You will be taught how to converse about daily routine and weather conditions. You will also practise the past tense when talking about holidays and...