Westmorland Dales Landscape Partnership


The Westmorland Dales Landscape Partnership Scheme finished in early 2024 with projects successfully delivered by a wide range of project partners, community groups and individuals. 
Over the coming months, we’ll be updating this site to highlight what’s been achieved, so please keep checking back.

Welcome …

… to the Westmorland Dales website.

The Westmorland Dales Landscape Partnership Scheme aimed to unlock and reveal the hidden heritage of the Westmorland Dales, enabling more people to connect with, enjoy and benefit from this inspirational landscape. Specifically, its objectives were to:

  • Reveal the area’s hidden heritage.
  • Conserve what makes the area special.
  • Engage people in enjoying and benefitting from their heritage.
  • Sustain the benefits of the scheme in the long-term.

This was achieved through a programme of projects developed and delivered through the Westmorland Dales Landscape Partnership, led by Friends of the Lake District and the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority, and mainly funded through the National Lottery Heritage Fund. It ran over a five-year period from March 2019 to February 2024.

Here you can discover what makes the area so special, find out about the scheme’s projects, and view and download resources produced.

The Westmorland Dales

The Westmorland Dales is a beautiful area of Cumbria lying  north of the Howgill Fells and within the north-west corner of the Yorkshire Dales National Park. It stretches from Tebay in the south-west to Kirkby Stephen in the east and to Maulds Meaburn in the north-west. At its heart are the limestone fells above Orton and Asby, rich in natural and cultural heritage, and with magnificent views to the Pennines, the Howgills and the Lakeland fells. It drains into the Lune river catchment to the south and the Eden river catchment to the north. Relatively overlooked compared with its better-known neighbours, our projects have aimed to reveal its heritage for more to enjoy without detracting from its unique qualities. (Click on map for larger image)


Contact information

Friends of the Lake District
Murley Moss, Oxenholme Road, Kendal, Cumbria LA9 7SS
Main Telephone:  01539 720788
Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority
Yoredale, Bainbridge, Leyburn, North Yorkshire DL8 3EL
Main Telephone:  01969 652300

The Westmorland Dales Landscape Partnership Scheme, funded by Heritage Lottery, invited schools in the Westmorland region of Cumbria to join its ‘Dark Skies Winter Celebration’.

This project coincides with the Yorkshire Dales Dark Skies Festival and provided an opportunity for children to visit a planetarium. Children from Orton, Tebay, Crosby Ravensworth, Great Asby, Shap, Kirkby Stephen Primary, Brough and Kirkby Stephen Grammar School got the opportunity to learn about the night sky with the aid of specialised visual and audio equipment designed to provide an immersive 360-degree experience.

The schools also took part in a follow up art project with local artists Rob and Harriet Fraser. You can see the results of the art project in these short videos from the schools that took part; creating their own works of art telling the story of the unique landscapes of the Westmorland Dales.

We've embedded the videos on this page but if you have trouble viewing them we've also provided the link to our Vimeo video channel where the videos are hosted.


Tebay Primary School

Follow this link to view on our Vimeo video channel (external website)
https://vimeo.com/268776659


Orton C of E Primary School - Year 5 and 6 children

 

Follow this link to view on our Vimeo video channel (external website)
https://vimeo.com/268772472


Orton C of E Primary School - Year 3 and 4 children


Follow this link to view on our Vimeo video channel (external website)
https://vimeo.com/268768200


Crosby Ravensworth CE School and Asby Endowed School

 

Follow this link to view on our Vimeo video channel (external website)
https://vimeo.com/268762411