Information for your Edendale visit
Please ensure that all staff involved in the program receive and understand this information
Bus drop off and pick up PLEASE NOTE: There is no bus parking on the Edendale site. Buses need to drop students off at the Eltham North Adventure Playground reserve (The Parade, Etham North - entrance is off Wattletree Road opposite Eltham North Primary School – A separate parking map has been sent to be passed on to bus drivers on the day. Google Maps Link
It is recommended that before your bus leaves the school, you discuss with the bus drivers that the destination is the Eltham North Adventure Playground, not Edendale Farm. There is NO bus access to Edendale via Gastons Road. If the bus does come down Gaston Road, reversing and turning around is not safe, will disrupt your students and likely delay the starting time of your excursion.
After parking at the Eltham North Adventure Playground, it’s just a short walk to Edendale across the bridge over the Diamond Creek and into the back entrance to the farm. Follow the path up and turn left at the top, heading towards the building with the large Eltham Copper Butterfly sculpture you can see ahead of you.
Accessibility
Edendale has a goal of being accessible to all.
- There are number of accessibility tools to help plan a safe, fun and meaningful trip to Edendale for your students. These tools include a Visual Story and Sensory Guide, 360 Virtual Tour and an Audio Guide. Please share these resources with any parents that may be interested in understanding the site better before the students attend.
- There are two disabled parking spaces in the main carpark within the site
- There are a number of quiet spaces around the farm if a student needs some quiet time with reduced stimulation. Please ask one of the Edendale teachers for more information on the day
- Mobility assistance equipment (e.g. crutches, wheelchair) should be brought by the student / school. While most activities will be run on reasonably flat surfaces and accessible via pathways, there are some undulating areas.
Please be weather-prepared
Most activities at Edendale are conducted on or near the property. The environment includes open paddocks, bushland and gravelled pathways. We take care to provide the best conditions for students, however we do request that your students and staff come prepared with clothing and footwear suitable to outdoor activities under varied weather conditions including:
- sturdy, closed-toe shoes
- sunscreen and hat from September-May
- waterproof jacket and warm clothing, particularly in the cooler months
- water bottle (that can be refilled at our drinking fountains on site)
First Aid
Our Education staff incorporate a snake warning in the daily introduction (except during the winter months). We do not take the students into areas with long grass, we are mostly on paved paths or well-mown enclosures (e.g. for feeding chickens).
Teachers are expected to be prepared for any medical needs of their students, staff and helpers, particularly allergies. It is the school’s responsibility to bring their own first aid kits, EpiPens etc and to administer first aid to students. While Edendale does have first aid kits (including an EpiPen) these should be viewed as a backup resources for your visit. Edendale also has a defibrillator on site. A Level 2 first aid qualified staff member is also present on the farm every day, as well as other staff who have CPR training.
As our staff do not have access to your students’ medical records, you have primary duty of care over your students while they are at Edendale.
Notifying us of any students who have severe allergies will enable our staff to help minimise the chance of exposure to known allergens.
The waste issue
As Edendale’s focus is on helping everyone learn about looking after our environment we encourage students to bring rubbish-free lunch and snacks when they visit Edendale.
We will keep students’ organic waste at Edendale and we ask that all other waste be taken away with them. There are hooks for student bags so please encourage them to bring their own bags, re-usable lunch boxes and drink bottles on the day, rather than disposable plastic bags and single-use plastic bottles.
All school bags containing food should be able to be closed tightly (e.g. zipper) so birds cannot get into lunches.
Café Eden
There is a café on site (open 10am – 2.30pm) for purchases by teachers and accompanying adults such as coffee, smoothies, milkshakes, toasties and cakes. Students should not be encouraged to use the café, and should bring their own food for recess and lunch.
Please note that the café is small and can get quite busy, plus our breaks are fairly short, so pre-ordering lunch in the recess break is often a good idea. We can give you the break times at the start of the day.
Student behaviour
You are responsible student behaviour while they are visiting the farm. Please make sure you continue to supervise students during breaks and support our educators with behavioural management during lessons. You know your students better than we do.
This is a public site with lots of other visitors, particularly families with young children. Students must stay within sight of one of the school’s supervising adults at all times, particularly during breaks.
Change of date or cancellation
Given that we are now often booked out, particularly in Terms 2 and 3, a change of date within the term will often not be possible. If you do need to cancel, please give us as much notice as possible so that our teaching staff can be notified and so that another school can be slotted in your spot if possible. There is no fee for cancelling or postponing a program.
Weather issues
If there is an extreme weather forecast on the day of your excursion (heat, rain, wind), one of our team will contact you prior to the day to discuss options. We only have 
limited indoor spaces, and endeavour to teach outdoors as much as possible. Breaks are also generally outside, unless it is raining heavily.
We have an expanse of shade sails in our main amphitheatre area that help to provide protection from the sun and rain.
There will be no charge for any excursions cancelled due to the weather. We may also sometimes have to change booked activities within a program on the day due to last minute staffing changes or weather – this very rarely occurs, however.
Payment for your program
You will be invoiced after the excursion based on the numbers of students attending on the day, but our pricing is based on a minimum number of per class/group so you may be charged a minimum price if you numbers are below this.
Further information regarding visiting Edendale can be found on our website - https://www.edendale.vic.gov.au/Visit/What-to-do/Visitor-information
We look forward to your visit. Please let us know if you need any other information