The Daws Hall Centre is an Essex County Council Outdoor Centre, situated in the Stour Valley, between Bures and Sudbury, just a few miles from Halstead and Colchester. The teaching Centre, open throughout the year to School and Youth groups, is set on a 30 acre nature reserve owned and managed by the Daws Hall Trust.

The reserve has a diverse range of habitats including woodland, wetland, ponds, wildflower meadow and an ancient river cliff from the last ice age. Facilities on site include a well-equipped classroom and we are lucky to have use of the small Bee Room situated on the Wildfowl Sanctuary which hosts an observational beehive during the summer.

Another feature, which always proves a hit with the children, is the bird nesting box with infra red video camera, situated on the wall of the Centre. For the fourth year running a family of blue tits has been raised under the watchful eyes of countless young visitors. The reserve has purpose built dipping plaforms and bridges along the brook to allow safe and easy access and a full colour intrepretative panel with a map and illustrations of the reserve.

We encourage recycling at the Centre and compost our meadow cuttings to sell as an alternative to peat-based compost. The woodland is managed using rotational coppice to produce timber for fencing and other uses. For a number of years the Centre has monitored and reduced energy and water use, and has recycled waste from school groups. In 2004 the Centre was successful in gaining Eco-Centre status.