At each camp the children will be divided into small groups, with a trained young leader in charge. These leaders will be with their groups nearly all the time, and will ensure the children are safe, happy, and well looked after. There will also be experienced senior staff at each camp, overseeing the arrangements and the programme of activities. One of the senior staff will look after any medical needs children may have. The Summer Camps Trust and the providers running the camps take their safeguarding duties very seriously. Children’s safety, both physical and emotional, is our top priority.

There will be a varied and exciting programme at each camp, with plenty of energetic activities interwoven with quieter, more relaxing ones. There will be all kinds of games, exploring the countryside, outdoor activities, making things, creative activities, and stories and songs round the fire at night. There will also be time to relax and get to know each other.

Children will sleep in small dormitories. Leaders will always be within earshot in case of need in the night. Bedtimes will be from 8.30 to 10 p.m. Parents may be asked to send bedlinen or sleeping bags.

Each camp will have an experienced catering team, and there will be three good meals a day with plenty of food. Parents will be asked to provide a packed lunch for the outward travel day, and the camp staff will provide one, where needed, for the return. Special diets can be managed.

Parents will be put in touch with the organisers of each camp, who will send them information (e.g. kit list, etc.), and ask for some details about their children. They will also invite parents to tell them of any specific needs children may have.

Yes, some funding is available to help children from less well-off families to take part. This will be organised through schools, so parents should ask their child’s school to contact the Trust and recommend their child for a free or reduced-price place.

If a booking is withdrawn up to ONE CALENDAR MONTH before the start of a camp, any money paid will be fully refunded apart from the £75 deposit, which will be retained to cover administrative costs. If a booking is withdrawn less than one month before the start of a camp the amount of refund is at the discretion of The Summer Camps Trust; the reason for the withdrawal will be taken into account. A withdrawal at the very last minute may involve forfeiting all the money paid.

Physical health and wellbeing > In an atmosphere away from screens and electronic gadgets, children get to spend time running about in the fresh air, playing games, discovering new outdoor activities, and generally being active. In some camps they do water sports, abseiling or orienteering, in others they follow trails through the woods, build dens and play outdoor games. Some children discover a new outdoor pursuit or sport which becomes a life-long hobby. Everyone gets to enjoy and appreciate physical activity.

THUS SUMMER CAMPS CAN HELP WITH ISSUES SUCH AS OBESITY AND STRESS. THEY DO SO BY SHOWING THAT BEING OUT OF DOORS AND ACTIVE IS FUN.

Environmental benefits > Most summer camps are in rural settings, and for some children living for a week amid green fields, trees and streams is a new and exciting experience.

SPENDING QUALITY TIME IN THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT IN THEIR FORMATIVE YEARS IS OF VALUE TO ALL CHILDREN, EVEN LIFE-CHANGING FOR SOME.

Social benefits > A summer camp has a beginning, when everyone arrives not knowing each other, and an end, when there can be tears at leaving new friends and a happy community. It is something of a “bubble” environment, shut away from the outside world and its pressures, where everyone needs to make an effort to get on with each other and to join in. With the help of the young leaders, children learn that living happily together requires give and take, and the appreciation of others and their needs. This process is made easier because participants arrive not knowing each other, so that a completely new community is created.

IT CAN BE A PARTICULARLY RICH AND VIBRANT COMMUNITY, SINCE CHILDREN ARE LIVING CLOSELY WITH OTHERS FROM DIFFERENT BACKGROUNDS AND PARTS OF THE COUNTRY WHO THEY MIGHT NEVER HAVE MET OTHERWISE. AS THE CAMP PROCEEDS THEY UNDERSTAND EVERYONE’S SHARED HUMANITY, AND LEARN TO GET ON WITH PEOPLE FROM ALL BACKGROUNDS.

Educational benefits > Though summer camps are designed to be holidays and fun (i.e. not the same as summer schools to improve your maths), they are active holidays, and participants may get to do all kinds of outdoor pursuits, make kites or puppets, sing, act, listen to stories round the fire, visit places of interest, and lots more. They have time to chat about all sorts of things and get to know their young leaders like older brothers and sisters. Everyone finds some activity where they can excel, and lots of things to arouse their interest.

SCHOOLS REGULARLY COMMENT THAT PUPILS RETURNING FROM SUMMER CAMPS ARE MORE POSITIVE, MORE ENTHUSIASTIC, AND MORE INTERESTED THAN BEFORE. SUMMER CAMPS CAN HELP SHOW OUR CHILDREN THE WORLD IS FULL OF SO MANY WONDERFUL THINGS TO DO AND TO ENJOY.

Personal benefits and wellbeing > Leaders often comment on how they see children blossom and grow as a summer camp proceeds, and as they find a community where they feel safe and valued, while at the same time being extended and challenged. An important part of the joy young people express after a week at summer camp is a real sense of achievement at having successfully related to “new” people from different backgrounds, and at having coped on their own away from their parents. Self-confidence and self-worth can be given a real boost.

A PARENT RECENTLY COMMENTED: “WE OFTEN PAY LIP-SERVICE TO HELPING OUR CHILDREN MOVE TOWARDS GREATER INDEPENDENCE, BUT WE ARE RELUCTANT TO PROVIDE OPPORTUNITIES FOR THEM TO PRACTICE IT”. A SUMMER CAMP IS AN IDEAL SOLUTION TO THIS DILEMMA.

Happiness and Enjoying Life > In today’s world children get all too few opportunities to get right away from screens, to play in green fields and just be children. Many gain enormously from having the chance to do so. Lots of children say afterwards that the summer camp was “the happiest week of my year”, or sometimes “of my life”.

HAPPINESS IS A PRECIOUS COMMODITY, PARTICULARLY FOR CHILDREN TODAY.