The Pelham Centre for the Environment is located on the Essex - Hertfordshire border at the National Grid's Stocking Pelham Substation site and is surrounded by 28 acres of former farmland that has now been designated as a nature reserve. Run by Essex County Council it is focused mainly on providing environmental education for schools groups, but the Centre also runs courses for adults and groups in the local community, with regular open days throughout the year.

The Centre consists of two classrooms - The Oak Room and the Ash Room, each catering for 30 children. There is also a natural history library, an observation beehive and a video-linked bird box housing Great Tits. The Centre actively works to reduce waste, energy and water use and is accredited with the ENCAMS Eco-Centre programme.

The nature reserve itself contains a rich variety of habitats including mature woodland, a stream, ponds, a Cowslip meadow, rough grassland and an orchard. In Spring we are treated to a wonderful display of Bee and Marsh Orchids. The reserve provides an ideal setting for students to explore and investigate a variety of habitats, learn about environmental issues, and enjoy activities based around maths, literacy, geography, art and local history in the fresh air of an outdoor classroom!