North Somerset Bat Survey
Schools Outreach
Thank you to The National Heritage Lottery Fund for providing grant funding to allow this project to become a reality.
With funding from the National Heritage Lottery Fund we have conducted a county wide school outreach and education programme in the 2025/2026 season to raise awareness of the survey and educate the next generation about bat ecology and conservation. The programme is aimed at Key Stages 1–2 (ages 5–11) and provides adaptable sessions based on age group and the national curriculum.
The aims of the outreach programme are to:
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Raise awareness of UK bat species, their role in ecosystems, and conservation issues.
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Foster curiosity about local biodiversity and inspire wildlife stewardship.
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Provide interactive, curriculum-linked experiences with real-world applications
To date we have engaged with 7 schools in North Somerset and conducted 19 sessions across them, reaching 457 children aged between 5 and 11 years old.
Why is outreach important?
Outreach is a crucial component of wildlife conservation helping to share information, encourage learning and strengthen understanding. This is vital for creating support and helping to inspire others.
School outreach sessions are used to educate and discuss bat conservation and ecology topics with students. Engaging with past experiences and existing knowledge allows people to connect with the subject and form a better understanding!
Why bats?
Our sessions are focused on teaching children about bats. There are a few environmental reasons why bats are more difficult to connect with. Bats are nocturnal, and it is hard to see a bat as they only emerge very late in the day. During the winter bats are less active and start hibernation, making it harder for people to connect with or experience seeing bats in the wild.
There are many myths and stories that give bats a bad reputation. Some of these are encountered in our daily lives, such as associations with Halloween and vampires, being evil entities, drinking blood, appearing in horror movies and COVID-19. To overcome such negative press we need social change and awareness so that these species can be protected, starting with the education of children.
What do our outreach sessions cover?
Sessions are held in person at schools throughout North Somerset. Sessions are conducted by our Project Officer Dani assisted by Rachel the comms officer from the North Somerset Council.
Each session is very interactive and aim to engage students in active participatory learning including videos, games and quizzes, and cover the following:
- Introduction to UK bats via video (see resources below)
- Debunking myths quiz (e.g. bats and blindness, bloodsucking)
- Activities to aid in understanding and exercise creativity and active listening
Resources
To run a session you will need:
- School Outreach powerpoint presentation
- Guide on running on outreach session (word doc)
- Includes instructions for echolocation game (activity option)
- Having the right Bat-titude poster
- Making paper bats document (activity option)
- The confidence to give it a go!
After the session, you can use and display the accreditation banner on your website, social media and on poster boards!
The ATT file is a zip file that includes the poster, accreditation banner and the video.
Testimonials:
"Year 4 thoroughly enjoyed taking part in the North Somerset Bat Conservation workshop. The children found the session highly engaging and inspiring, sparking their curiosity and encouraging them to learn even more about woodland animals and their habitats. The workshop complemented the science curriculum brilliantly, providing meaningful real-life links to classroom learning, and was presented in a way that was accessible and enjoyable for all pupils." (Ashcombe Primary School)
Click on the links below to check out more testimonials from more schools:
Mead Vale Community Primary School
"The session was pitched perfectly for our KS1 children and was an excellent workshop during our Science Week. The children loved the echolocation game and could recall lots of facts after the session. Dani and Rachael were absolutely brilliant! They shared their knowledge about bats and how to care for them in the environment in a fun, age-appropriate and enthusiastic way. The activities were engaging and inclusive to all children. The pens and seeds were a hit with the children too! We would definitely welcome them back and absolutely recommend them." (Cheddar First School)
How can I get involved?
Previous outreach sessions have been run by members of our lab, but it is equally important for these recources to be available for schools' to use on their own as well! Above you can find links to all the resources (with guidance!) that you may need to run a bat session of your own.
If you have any questions about running an outreach session yourself, please contact us on northsomersetbats@bath.ac.uk
If you are interested in helping the bats by creating a bat box for your house, please read more here