Take Two - an insight into CYM's Basecamp

For a centre like ourselves it's really easy to become so focused on how we think things will work, so it's always encouraging and affirming when we hear feedback from those visiting. Lots of our time and attention is focused on the programme rather than the specific activities. We understand and know from experience that it's always the activities that draw people in initially, but it's the experience and the feelings that stick.

As a centre, we've always believed in the advantage of only welcoming one group per week, enabling us to throw our full attention on a smaller group of people, rather than intricately planning schedules on who will be using what and when. For that reason, plans change and adapt as we learn the needs of the group, making each week unique. There's been a few times where we've tried things spontaneously, which then end up becoming important parts of every programme. This is only possible with the positive relationships we have with the school staff.

Without further ado, we bring in Mr Middleton, a year 6 teacher from a school in Suffolk. We sat him down in the dining room, laser tags guns heard in the background, to interview him about his experience of Basecamp.
We've known Mr Middleton for a couple of years now, so he understands how we work and the focus we put on people, but with Basecamp being a fairly new concept, we asked him what he was expecting this time round.
"It was unknown what I was going to expect. I had liaison with Josh who is the group leader but it's been a new set up this year...I had an idea of the kind of activities there were going to be until we got here, I wasn't sure how they were all going to work."
"Have the kids enjoyed it?" asks Ben our interviewer.
"Yeah, undoubtedly the kids have enjoyed it! I've seen them bond, I've seen them grow. I've seen them experience lots of different activities that have really inspired them."
"Can you see any change in the kids from the beginning to the end?"
"Yeah... during the week there have been different values that we worked on; generosity, creativity...the children through the stories, the values started to embed in the children. They starting talking about generosity and talking about communication, working together. All those skills you could see developing through the week."

Many of you reading this who work with young people will know that sitting down for any length of time can feel like a luxury, so Mr Middleton soon left to be with his group, but we managed to grab a bit of time with Miss Lightfoot.
Ben asks again, what were you expecting?
"I was expecting a really action packed week for the kids, some sleepless nights maybe, lots of good activities and we got exactly that."
"What has been the main takeaway do you think?"
"Being out in the fresh air with the children, seeing that they have worked really well as a team, form new friendships and using the values of generosity, collaboration and creativity..."
"Have you seen any change in the children by the end of the week?"
"Most definitely, yes! They have really changed by not coping with screens, learning to spend lots of times with their friends, which they usually wouldn't, just making new friends. Being patient and kind with each other."
"What's been your favourite bit?"
"I love the facilities here. I love the Sports Hall. This place has a lot of potential."