Lough Allen Education Centre

Drumshanbo
Co. Leitrim

Tel: 071 9640588
Fax: 071 9641945
Email: alleninfo@eircom.net

Website: www.allen.ie

Run by a cross-border organisation, which was formed by community development agencies in Drumshanbo and Belfast, this Centre is a facility providing access to outdoor activities such as hill walking, fishing, canoeing and sailing. It offers budget accommodation to schools, community groups and individual tourists, with 42 beds in total, and some of the cheapest panoramic views of Lough Allen you will find in County Leitrim.

All activities at Lough Allen Education Centre are non-motorised, and as education is the main mission here, there is tuition in just about everything. From sailing lessons or angling tuition, to painting lessons in the naturally-lit exhibition space which overlooks the Lough, as well as guided walks and cycle rides. The recent installation of solar panels and a wood pellet boiler, provide heating and hot water for all those necessary hot showers after a day on the water.

There is a small organic garden where the Leitrim Vocational Education Committee (VEC) runs a one-year Organic Food Production course. Like its garden, this Centre grows organically, according to the demand for different activities and projects. They are open and willing to help everyone who visits the Centre learn and enjoy learning. The same goes for their eco-policy, the implementation of which is shared with all visitors, as part of their commitment to develop an interested and active community, no matter where they are from, or what their needs might be. Or as they say on their website, "We provide what you request, not what we think you ought to buy!"

Written by: Catherine Mack