Following the success of the full Introduction to Environmental Sustainability in British Horseracing module, available to all racing professionals, a pilot session of biodiversity training has been included in the electives programme for course 377.
The students had a lesson learning about biodiversity, the issues and what we can do to help. During the remainder of the week they worked hard to make some individual bird boxes.
The students had to use their maths skills to accurately measure and draw to scale their design before using their DIY skills to make it. They then had to use their new knowledge to identify a suitable location on site to put it up – and then actually fix it in place!
This was the first session which has been included in a Foundation Course and, in future, each course will have an electives session on this. They will make a mixture of bird houses, hedgehog houses and bee and bug houses. Not only will this benefit the students and their practical skills but, over time, will also benefit the wildlife and biodiversity of the BRS site.
For those who are interested in the full module, there are a number of funded places for the 2024 sessions, kindly supported by The Racing Foundation. The next course will be held next week (23rd April) at BRS, followed by the first session at York Racecourse on 26th November. To register your interest, or book your place, please email elizabeth.sullivan@brs.org.uk. For more information, visit https://brs.org.uk/course/environmental-sustainability/