Knowledge Centre

A Toolkit for Outdoor Learning

Connecting primary schools and golf courses, to inspire future generations

Developed by the GEO Sustainable Golf Foundation in collaboration with Wales Golf, this toolkit shows how golf courses can become valuable outdoor learning spaces for primary schools.

Wales provides an ideal starting point. Its varied landscapes, strong sense of place and community based clubs align closely with wider priorities around education, sustainability and wellbeing, while contributing to a growing international movement to position sport as a positive force for people and planet.

Rooted in the Welsh context yet designed for wider use, the toolkit combines rich local insight with approaches that can be adapted and applied internationally.

Wales Golf, the national governing body for the sport, is committed to supporting golf facilities in responsibly stewarding nature, restoring landscapes and generating social value for communities. This shared focus is opening up new and meaningful opportunities for learning beyond the classroom.

The concept of cynefin sits at the heart of the Welsh curriculum. It encourages pupils to understand the places they live in, how those places shape them, and how they, in turn, shape their environment.

Welsh golf courses provide a strong setting for this place based learning. Many golf courses are deeply rooted in community identity and landscape, reflecting local geography, ecology and culture, and offering a unique opportunity to explore heritage, nature, and wellbeing in open, inspiring surroundings.

The toolkit is designed with this flexibility in mind. Activities can be adapted or extended to match each school’s curricular priorities and progression pathways. National golf federations wishing to create supplementary curriculum notes for their own region can use this Welsh example as a model for broader adaptation. Simply get in touch to find out more.

“Golf can be a powerful force for good – for nature, climate and communities. With the right approach courses can act as outdoor classrooms, giving teachers and children access to local greenspace and important new learning opportunities.”

— GEO Foundation

Why Golf and Outdoor Education?

Golf courses are among the largest and most carefully managed green spaces in our communities, offering safe and diverse landscapes where children can learn through nature, movement and discovery. This resource explores why golf courses are uniquely placed to support outdoor education, and how sharing space for learning can deliver positive, lasting benefits for children, clubs and communities.

Explore the why

Toolkit for Golf Facilities: From Course to Classroom

This section is for greenkeepers, club managers and any other staff who want to host a primary school visit.

It offers practical guidance on how to:

Plan the visit
Choose suitable spaces and times
Contact and work with the school
Understand roles, responsibilities and safeguarding
Run a positive, relaxed visit alongside normal operations

You do not need any teaching experience. All activities are simple to set up, require minimal equipment and are fully aligned with recognised Areas of Learning and Experience. Your role is simply to host and share some knowledge about the course and its environment.

Go to golf courses guide

Toolkit for Primary Schools: From Classroom to Course

This section is for teachers, headteachers and other coordinators who want to work with a local golf course.

It provides practical guidance on how to:

Link activities clearly to key learning areas
Use the golf course as a safe, structured outdoor classroom
Support place-based learning, sustainability and wellbeing
Plan the visit with clear supervision and safeguarding
Connect the visit to wider school priorities

Activities are low cost, flexible and designed around existing learning themes, offering a high-quality outdoor learning experience without adding any extra workload.

Go to schools guide

Share your story of outdoor learning

Every golf facility holds stories that reach beyond the fairways. This space celebrates moments when courses become places of curiosity, connection and confidence, from primary school visits using this toolkit to wider outdoor learning initiatives.

Sharing your story helps highlight the care, creativity and community spirit behind your course. It can raise your profile, inspire others to open their landscapes to learning, and show the positive impact golf can have on people and places. Every experience, large or small, helps grow a movement supporting the next generation.

Submit your own stories

The STERF project turns the golf course into a classroom

Motala Golfklubb, Sweden

Nature trails used for outdoor education

Mjölby Golfklubb, Sweden

School kids study course ecology

Montrose Golf Links, Scotland

The golf course as an outdoor classroom

Viksjö Golfklubb, Sweden

First Green Initiative at CAFRE

CAFRE Greenmount Campus, Northern Ireland

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