Interesting Summer Camps, UK

Summer Camps are becoming more popular in the UK. Parents are seeing them both as a childcare solution for part of the long summer holidays and as a great experience that their kids will remember. 

Summer Camps are great for encouraging independence and allowing children to make new friends and try our new activities or further develop existing interests. 

We've picked a few interesting UK Summer Camps to highlight in this article. 

Camp Wild at Escot in Devon is located in a gorgeous outdoor setting and children sleep in a fabulous Yurt Village. 

We have been to Escot and seen the Yurt Village and the amazing forest location and facilities. (Escot is open as an attraction, not just for Camp Wild.) One of the highlights is the forest drop slide. I have to confess that when we visted we were actually too scared to use it (that's the adults, our kids are too little)! 

The residential summer camp is for children aged 8-12. There's a sibling discount and 7 year old siblings are accepted. You can pay with childcare vouchers too. 

Dates:

Escot are running their Summer Camp from 25 July - 03 Sept 2011 and there are options to choose the number of nights for a stay. 

View details at Camp Wild. 

Camp Quest UK runs secular summer camps that combine outdoor activities with activities that encourage freethought and critical thinking. Camp Quest started in the US and has now expanded to the UK. 

Children aren't required to have any particular world view, they are encouraged to think for themselves. Atheist, Humanist, Secular and Rational parents will feel comfortable sending their children to a Camp Quest summer camp. 

In 2011 Camp Quest UK will be running three several day summer camps at different locations. Please check Camp Quest UK for full details as each camp has a different age group, duration and focus. 

2011 dates and locations: 

July 2011: Somerset

August 2011: Essex, Malvern

Camp Quest UK Video
A BBC News piece on Camp Quest

Humanism What's That?: A Book for Curious Kids

A Passion For ... runs a variety of Summer Camps including A Passion for Invention for kids who are interesting in science and design. It's a one week workshop themed around either Make it Move or Make it Fly. 

This summer camp includes lots of team work and learning to think like an invention. Great for kids with an interest in science or engineering and hand-on building. 

On the final day kids present their inventions to an audience of parents. 

Dates and Locations:

Various locations and dates around the country. Please see: A Passion for Invention 

The LEGO Mindstorms NXT 2.0 Discovery Book