The benefits of summer camps

By Andrew Campbell

Summer holiday camp directory 2023

The long summer break is on the horizon and holiday clubs can be an excellent way for children to make the most of this time. Here are a few great local holiday clubs for this summer.

Apollo Sports

31 July–18 August kiddiplan.com

Some of the sports that we will be doing include archery, fencing, gymnastics, football, tag rugby, hockey, basketball, arts & crafts and parachute games!

Artemis Summer Theatre Camps

24 July–25 August artemis-studios.co.uk

Fun and creative musical theatre activities with a medal at the end of each week! 9:30am–4:30pm

Jubilee Jets School Holiday Club

29 July–30 August jubileejets.co.uk

We have a huge variety of activities from baking and crafting to indoor and outdoor team games and creative play which ignites imaginations, for ages 5-11!

Kennylands Gymnastics CIC

24 July–1 September kennylandsgymnastics.co.uk

3-hour sessions or full days available for school-aged children. Enjoy the sport with our wonderful coaching team in a fantastic facility!

Life 101

27–28 July (Resilience) and

15–16 August (Confidence and Leadership) life-101.co.uk

Resilience course for ages 8-13:

Overcome life’s challenges and be your best self!

Confidence and Leadership course for ages 8-13 will help to build your child’s confidence, develop the skills they need to express themselves and to collaborate with those around them.

Master Builders Club masterbuildersclub.co.uk

LEGO® workshops at various locations around Berkshire and Oxfordshire.

Perform

Across July and August perform.org.uk/wizard

Perform are off to see the wizard this July and August, as they sing and dance their way down the yellow brick road in their Wizard of Oz holiday courses. For ages 4-10 years in Wokingham.

Reading Rep Theatre

31 July–4 August, 10am–5pm readingrep.com

This summer work with professional West End stars from the shows Motown, Newsies, Sister Act and Matilda. Then perform on Reading Rep’s main stage. For ages 9-16.

South Hill Park Summer Project

7–11 August southhillpark.org.uk/shp-events/ summer-project-23

Participants aged 6–11yrs will learn new skills, build confidence and form new friendships as they work towards staging a musical theatre showcase performance at the end of the week. Ages 6-11.

StageAbility Summer Drama Camp

7–12 August, 10am–3pm stageability.class4kids.co.uk/ camps

Come and join the fun as we rehearse a comedy musical written especially for summer camp and promising lots of laughs, great songs and loads of parts! £120 if booked before the end of June. Ages 5-12.

Steppin Out Stars of Tomorrow Summer School ‘23

31 July–4 August steppinoutstars.co.uk

‘We are all in this together!’ –based on the popular High School Musical. Full performance at the end of the week. Ages 3-17.

St. Joseph’s Holiday Club July and August sjcr.org.uk/for-our-community/ holiday-club

A range of engaging activities for all children from Pre-Reception to Year 8. Half-day sessions also available. 8am-6pm.

Ultimate Activity Camps ultimateactivity.co.uk

We deliver outstanding summer activity day camps through a fantastic range of exciting activities whether these be in the art room, the sports hall, playing fields or in the woods for 4-14-year-olds.

Summer day camps provide fun, safe and nurturing spaces for children. Not just useful childcare for working parents, there are many benefits for children too. Consider these:

Learning new skills

Summer camps offer a variety of activities that allow children to explore new interests and develop talents they didn’t know they had or take an existing talent to a new level.

Promoting physical activity

Many day camps provide a wide range of physical activities including sports, outdoor activities and games. This helps to promote a healthy lifestyle and develop a lifelong love of physical activity.

Developing independence and self-confidence

Being in a setting that isn’t home or school and where there are no parents can give children a sense of independence. They learn how to take care of themselves, make their own decisions and solve problems on their own.

Taking on new challenges and trying new things gives them confidence in their abilities.

Fostering creativity

Creative juices flow when children experience theatre arts, dance, music, writing, arts and crafts. These all help to stimulate their imagination and expressive thinking.

Leaving technology behind

As fantastic as the online world can be, it is always great to expose children to the joys of a good old-fashioned kick about and team games in the fresh air. Who knows, they may even enjoy it MORE than gazing at a screen!

Building social skills

In a whole new supervised peer group, children learn to work together, communicate effectively and develop a sense of community.

There’s much to be gained too if they are learning and playing alongside children from different backgrounds, cultures or abilities from their usual circles, as this is an opportunity to appreciate difference. Kids will also build friendships outside their established school network.

Enjoying the outdoors

Climbing trees, changing a bike wheel or building an outdoor camp can give your child a whole new set of skills while enjoying adventures they might not otherwise experience.

Nurturing leadership and teamwork

By encouraging teamwork, co-operation, empathy and selfconfidence, summer day camps will help your child develop emotional intelligence.