Carlisle Castle School Trip

English Heritage

Carlisle Cumbria CA3 8UR

Carlisle Castle is a unique place to help you bring history to life. Discover the most beseiged castle in England and let your class explore as part of a free self-led visit, or interact with stories and artefacts as part of an immersive expert-led workshop.

A visit to Carlisle Castle offers curriculum learning across the key stages:

KS1 History: Significant historical events, people and places in the locality

KS1-3 History: Local History Study

KS2 History: The Roman withdrawal from Britain in c. AD 410 and the fall of the western Roman Empire; a study of an aspect or theme in British History that extends pupils' chronological knowledge beyond 1066

KS3 History: The development of church, state and society in Britain 1066-1509 and 1509-1745; ideas, political power, industry and empire: Britain 1745-1901

KS4 History: OCR History B: History around us

Teacher Checklist

Risk Assessments
Inspection Visits
Free Places for Teachers
Free Places for Students
Resource Packs

What activities are available during educational visits?

Book a free education visit and organise your day to suit your curriculum needs. Explore Carlisle Castle at your own pace, including the Warden's Apartments, once the bedroom of King Richard III, the Captain's Tower, one of the best preserved gatehouses in the country, and the turret in which Mary, Queen of Scots was held captive. Discover the stories of the castle’s most famous inhabitants in the exhibition, from Mary, Queen of Scots and Bonnie Prince Charlie, to notorious Border Reiver Kinmont Willie Armstrong.

Let our experts bring history to life during an award-winning, immersive Discovery Visit. For just £100 per session, students will travel back in time to become detectives and discover what life was really like for those who lived and worked here.

Download our free Teachers' Kit from the English Heritage to help you plan your visit to Carlisle Castle, including site details, historical information and activity suggestions for before, during and after your visit.

Which curriculum topics do we cater for?

English School Trip

Story writing Creative writing Persuasive writing

Carlisle Castle is fantastic inspiration for a creative writing activity back in the classroom, or, get to grips with persuasive writing techniques with the 'Kinmont Willie: A True Story?' activity in the Teacher's Kit available on the English Heritage website.

Romans School Trip

The Roman Conquest and Hadrians Wall Romanisation and ways of life The Roman Army Our Roman Legacy

Discover the Roman origins of Carlisle Castle, as a large Roman fort and town.

Medieval School Trip

Medieval Society and Feudalism Religion and Crusades Castles

Click to read full text During the medieval period, Carlisle Castle was a strategic border castle, experiencing sieges and changing ownership many times. Visit for free to learn more about how the site developed over time, and use the 'Top Things to See' list in the Teacher's Kit to help you identify the key features of the castle.

To enhance learning, book an expert-led Discovery Visit workshop. Discover what life was really like in a medieval castle, and compare the similarities and differences with our lives today, using object handling and costume to bring learning to life. Perfect for KS1-2, a workshop costs £100 per class of up to 30 children.

Tudors School Trip

Oliver Cromwell Restoration Period

Under a looming threat from Scotland, Henry VIII repaired and improved Carlisle Castle's defences, with buttresses outside the curtain wall and a half-moon battery. Explore the castle's defences from the medieval to Tudor periods in the 'Building for Strength' activity in the downloadable Teacher's Kit, available on the English Heritage website.

Human Geography School Trip

Settlement and land use

Carlisle Castle's location on the medieval border between England and Scotland was key to defending territory. Use the 'Why Build Near the Border' activity in the downloadable Teacher's Kit to learn about why this location was chosen for a medieval castle.

What size groups do we cater for?

There are generally no limits to the size of education group, provided the group meets our ratios for leaders to learners. Our Discovery Visit workshops are suitable for groups of up to 30. Please see our school visit terms and conditions on our website for further details.

On-site classroom facilities?

Many of our sites have education rooms that can be booked. Please check the relevant schools property page before making a booking.

Is there first aid on site?

Yes.

Access for visitors with disabilities

Yes – please see our website for further details.

Visitors with Special Educational Needs (SEN)

Our facilities have been designed to be as accessible as possible in order to meet the different needs of our visitors. A summary of the facilities provided can be found on our schools property pages.
If you or anyone in your group has particular access needs, please let us know at the point of booking or get in touch with our bookings team before you visit. Please note that some facilities may require booking in advance.

Who are English Heritage?

English Heritage cares for over 400 historic buildings, monuments and sites - from world-famous prehistoric sites to grand medieval castles, from Roman forts on the edges of the empire to a Cold War bunker. Through these, we bring the story of England to life for over 10 million people each year, over 300,000 of whom are education visitors.
We’re the largest heritage provider of school trips and provide a wealth of free educational resources, alongside expert-led, paid-for workshops for KS1-4. The high-quality of our education provision has been recognised most recently with a number of Sandford awards. Caring for our places and their collections, for the benefit of this and future generations is a cornerstone of everything we do.
We are a charity, no. 1140351, and a company, no. 07447221, registered in England.