Day 1 began at 7 am, as students gathered in the Greenshaw car park, sleepy but excited. They travelled 200 miles to get to Margam Discovery Centre, in the 850-acre Margam Park in Wales. Upon arriving, students stretched their legs and visited the friendly Shetland ponies in the farmyard. They then began exploring water and carbon cycle themes for their projects.

Waking up on Day 2, students were greeted with the picturesque Welsh scenery. Students then tucked into a hearty breakfast before a morning spent in the classroom learning about the history and geography of Porthcawl. We then all set out to the Newton Burrows and Merthyr Mawr sand dunes, where students explored how to use ranging poles and clinometers to calculate the profile of sand dunes and how to use a point quadrant to calculate biodiversity. The afternoon was then spent in the town of Porthcawl where students explored how the local regeneration had impacted the area, whilst also talking to local residents about their views on the changes going on in Porthcawl.

Starting off Day 3 with a plate full of homemade pancakes and compote, students then began to finalise their fieldwork equipment lists, before being driven by Mr Barnes and Miss Frewin to their desired fieldwork locations. 

For students at the beach, this meant a combination of measurements being taken, such a beach profile gradient. For students in the town, they spend their time taking a variety of measurements such as residents' views via questionnaires, and anemometer readings to calculate if there was the presence of the venturi effect between their buildings.

Day 4 is very much used as an opportunity for students to act on any lessons they had learnt the previous day and make the necessary adaptations to their data collection methods to increase the accuracy of their data. 

Day 5, our students’ final day, started at 8.00am with a full Welsh breakfast before they set out cleaning the labs and classrooms they had been using throughout their stay. Our students then thanked the FSC staff who had hosted us for the past four days, and then all boarded our minibuses ready for the 200-mile trip back to Greenshaw.

The geography department would like to extend its thanks to all the teachers who gave up their time to ensure the success of this annual trip. We wish all Year 13 students the best with independently writing up their NEA and would like to thank them for representing both the geography department and Greenshaw High School in the most positive way by demonstrating their commitment to excellence.

Adam Barnes, Geography Teacher