Horizons Summer 2023 (#102)

HORIZONS

‘FORGOTTEN MIDDLE’ YOUNG PEOPLE

How outdoor learning could inspire a generation of learners

SHOULD WE SAY ‘DISABILITY’?

Edward Kinnear argues that ‘impairment’ is more inclusive in our latest opinion piece

POLITICAL ADVENTURING

Taking outdoor learning to Westminster

RESPONDING TO RESEARCH

Outward Bound give their take on where mobile technologies fit with outdoor education

HORIZONS

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ISSUE CREDITS

DESIGN AND EDITING PROOFREADING

Catherine Dunn

PANEL

Jack Reed

Thank you to the Horizons panel for their continued support and contributions.

Geoff Cooper

Suzie Dick

Di Collins

Sam Moore

Colin Wood

Liam Scott

Jack Reed

Stuart Meese

Ian Healey Morgan Luddington

Daniel Towers

IMAGES

Images throughout this magazine have been sourced from unsplash.com and contributors unless otherwise specified. Photographers retain copyright.

INSTITUTE FOR OUTDOOR LEARNING

The Institute for Outdoor Learning (IOL) champions safe activities and effective learning in the outdoors. We are a professional membership institute working towards an application for a Royal Charter.

Learn about IOL and how to become a member: www.outdoorlearning.org

©2023 Catherine Dunn ISSN 2634-8799

EDITORIAL

Welcome to the summer 2023 issue of Horizons! After an unusually quiet spring, it feels as though there’s finally a little more birdsong and grasshopper crepitation in the air. I recently heard Sophie Pavelle talk about her debut book ‘Forget Me Not: finding the forgotten species of climate change Britain’, in which she brings to life ten lesser-spoken-about species which are already feeling the effects of the climate and ecological crisis. She too noted the absence of insects, blue tits and blackbirds in the early part of this year. And, with Europe experiencing yet more extreme weather this summer, it can be easy to get overwhelmed by the global picture of climate change. Outdoor learning has such an important part to play in combating the climate crisis, so I hope you enjoy all of the new ideas, thought-provoking opinions and exciting news in this 102nd edition of Horizons.

John Allan kicks things off with an exploration of ‘forgotten middle’ young people and how outdoor learning can provide a vital intervention in their development (p.11). Jack Reed rounds off his insightful series on technology in outdoor learning (p.16), with a response from Outward Bound (who part-funded Jack’s research) which details how they will be applying his findings in practice (p.23). We’ve got some thought-provoking opinion pieces by Christian Kitley (p.24) and Edward Kinnear (p.31), as well as an explainer on the new All Party Parliamentary Group for Outdoor Learning (p.14). Siân Brewer updates us on the success of Love Her Wild’s first ever Outdoor Academy (p.29) and Jo Barnett chats to Dr Suresh Paul for this issue’s In Profile (p.37).

I hope you enjoy this issue of Horizons and, as ever, feel free to get in touch at horizonseditor@outdoor-learning.org p

EDITOR

CATHERINE DUNN

Catherine is an award winning filmmaker and creative. Her work primarily looks at mental health, adventure and the climate crisis.

We want to hear from you! If you’re interested in contributing to Horizons or have a story you think we should be covering, then get in touch - email the editor at horizonseditor@outdoor-learning.org

CONTENTS

SCANNING THE HORIZON

Find out what’s new across the Institute for Outdoor Learning.

PAGE 4-8

SPOTLIGHT

This issue, we’re putting a spotlight on the LPIOL (Leading Practitioners of the IOL) award.

PAGE 9-10

FORGOTTEN MIDDLE YOUNG PEOPLE

John Allan explores the impact of outdoor learning on those ‘forgotten’ in education.

PAGE 11-13

LAST IN SERIES

POLITICAL ADVENTURING

Find out more about the UK All Party Parliamentary Group for Outdoor Learning.

PAGE 14-15

WHERE TO FROM HERE?

In the final part of his series, Jack Reed considers ways forward for mobile technologies in outdoor learning.

PAGE 16-18

OPINION

RESPONDING TO RESEARCH

Outward Bound offer insights into how they’re looking to apply Jack Reed’s research to their practice.

PAGE 23

OPINION

Christian Kitley asks whether figures of the past are still affecting inclusion in the outdoors.

PAGE 24-25

A LIFETIME OUTDOORS

Di Collins, Geoff Cooper and Dr Barbara Humberstone explore the life stories of older outdoor participants.

PAGE 26-28

LOVE HER WILD

Siân Brewer updates us on the success of Love Her Wild’s first Outdoor Academy.

PAGE 29-30

OPINION

Edward Kinnear argues that ‘impairment’ is a more inclusive term than ‘disability’ in the outdoors.

PAGE 31-32

LAST IN SERIES

WILDERNESS THERAPY

Jenni Myers looks to the future in the final part of her series on wilderness therapy.

PAGE 33-34

NATURE PREMIUM

Dr Sara Collins introduces the Nature Premium campaign.

PAGE 35-36

IN PROFILE

In this issue, we speak to Dr Suresh Paul about his work in the outdoors.

PAGE 37

SCANNING THE HORIZON

NEWS FROM AROUND THE INSTITUTE FOR OUTDOOR LEARNING

A word from Jo Jo Barnettt, the Institute for Outdoor Learning’s (IOL) CEO, gives her updates from around the IOL.

This summer seems to have been all about reconnecting and discovering the inspiration that comes from collaborating with others. As you may know by now, the IOL annual Conference is online this year on Saturday 14th October, and we hope you will join us in developing, sharing and envisaging standards in outdoor learning that will make a positive difference now, and in the future. We want our members to be able to join the conference wherever they are, and in a sustainable and affordable way. Check out our centre pull-out (p.19-22) for all of the details on the upcoming conference.

Mountain Festival, ‘Not a Hero’s Journey’, directed and produced by Catherine Dunn (our Horizons Editor).

The workshop list has kept growing and is full of quality, so a big thank you to our contributors. There will be the chance to attend four during the day, so please do have a good look and we hope there will be many of interest to you. The workshops will be recorded so you can catch up on those that you may have missed.

To register for the IOL 2023 conference, follow our event registration link: https://bit.ly/IOLConf2023

Whilst on the theme of sustainability, I was asked to be on a panel at the Westminster Education Forum and I had five minutes to contribute on the next steps for green and climate change education in England. What can you do that is meaningful in a few minutes? I share my presentation here in this issue of Horizons on page 6 - get in touch and let us know what you would use your five minutes to present!

Returning to reconnecting, look out for your Groups.IO invitation from Richard – this is a secure and easy way to link up with colleagues either through your geographical area or your particular area of specialism. In this issue of Horizons, we also have a ‘heads up’ for the in-person events over the autumn and spring which include conferences and professional development.

We are thrilled with our guest speakers Joe Harkness, MP Robin Millar, Manjul Prateeti and Catrin Thomas - from across the spectrum of outdoor learning and all with their perspectives on a vision for a better world. We’ll also be showing the 2022 winner of the Best Environment film category at Kendal

Remember that you can join any number of IOL groups as part of your membership. Those of you that have an interest in Field Studies, look out for new opportunities including the online seminar with Dr Rachel Manning on ‘Outdoor learning, fieldwork and wellbeing’ on 16th August. Head to the IOL website (outdoor-learning.org) to sign up!

The wonderful thing about IOL members, is you have both breadth and depth, and you are generous in your time to connect with others to improve the quality of outdoor learning. Please do give yourself time to enjoy your copy of Horizons, wherever you are p

Work at Height & Rescue for Adventure Activities

Gain awareness of safe and efficient work at height techniques in a high ropes course, adventure park or climbing wall environment.

Develop your understanding of relevant legislation for the industry, appropriate techniques for vertical and horizontal movement and rescue of a co-worker/participants.

Counts towards CPD points for AMI members.

UK Youth Fund - Adventures Away from Home (AAfH)

David Watts - Director of Outdoor Learning

| UK Youth

In February 2023, UK Youth, in partnership with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), launched a £600k fund for disadvantaged young people, offering fully funded day or residential experiences delivered across England through 45 providers.

The tight launch (mid-February) to delivery (6 March to 16 April) was in part made possible by the support of the IOL, who promoted the Fund and hosted a webinar. Cross sector support and the uniqueness of the Fund resulted in applications from delivery partners being 100% oversubscribed.

Intended outcomes:

• Young people who face inclusion barriers get access to valued outdoor learning opportunities.

• Young people will improve their skills for life and work.

• Young people will improve their mental well-being.

Designed using our holistic ‘Experience, Learn, Develop’ methodology, we acknowledged that due to the breadth of provision, individual organisations would tailor delivery to their own style.

We were able to support over 3,500 young people to engage in outdoor learning, with one-third of those who attended never having experienced outdoor learning before.

Delivering education with a green and climate change focus

Joe Barnett - CEO | Institute for Outdoor Learning

Westminster Education Forum policy conference: Next steps for green and climate change education in England. 12th July 2023.

I was invited to be on a panel at the recent Westminster Education Forum and asked to present for five minutes on delivering education with a green and climate change focus. For my five minutes, I shared a model that has endured with me throughout my career. The model was proposed by Joy Palmer and Philip Neal in 1994 when Education for Sustainability was only very young; 1994 was two years after the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro which we might now refer to as ‘COP 1’.

In 1994 I began the year as a teacher of Geography & Integrated Humanities in a Derbyshire High School with the the role of Cross-Curricular Coordinator for Environmental Education.

I finished the year as an Advisory Teacher at Hagg Farm Environmental Education Centre, operated by Nottinghamshire County Council in the Dark Peak. At that time environmental education was regarded as ‘essential’ in the National Curriculum – a view that many of us would hold true today. I regard it as our obligation to prepare the children and young people of today for a future which will be shaped by a shifting climate and environmental instability.

The Palmer and Neal model has three elements

Education about the environment: This is about developing a knowledge and understanding of the world and attitudes towards it. This may be completely theoretical and delivered in a classroom setting, online or through home study.

Education in/through the environment: This is using the environment as a resource for learning, enabling real world

Young people ‘Experience, Learn, Develop’ through what they do, what they encounter and what they discover. The AAfH outcomes demonstrated the power of outdoor learning to engage young people, supported in many cases by youth workers, delivering high quality outcomes for young people that is a valuable part of the ecosystem that equips young people to thrive.

AAfH illustrates collaboration between the youth and outdoor learning sectors and demonstrates a clear appetite for future multi-centre funded programmes. Its success exceeded expectations, therefore there is but one conclusion; young people should have more funded Adventures Away from Home as they make a real positive difference to young people.

To see the full report or get in touch, contact us at outdoorlearning@ukyouth.org

testing of knowledge and the development of skills including physical, investigative and communication.

Education for the environment: This encourages a personal response to environmental issues and the impact of our actions. This is about the development of the positive behaviours and values necessary for a sustainable and caring use of the environment.

The three elements are not isolated, but are interlinked. So, the final key step is to include actions and a response to the question ‘what can I do?’. The model concludes that by using all three elements as a planning tool, this leads to a holistic approach which engages all aspects of the learner including mind, body and spirit and prepares them for a positive adult life.

What would you share for your five minutes on outdoor learning? Get writing/drawing/visualising and send it over to horizonseditor@outdoor-learning.org

BOOK PREVIEW

Inside/Outside: A Nature Themed Resource Book For Embedding Emotional Literacy - by Joe Harkness

Inside/Outside is a unique educational resource for those working with young people of secondary school age, providing a variety of tried-and-tested indoor and outdoor lessons and activities to promote and embed emotional literacy.

The book is divided into three accessible sections: emotions and feelings; self and situation; and mental health and wellbeing. Each of these sections cover a variety of themes, from anxiety and depression, to happiness, communication and confidence.

For each theme, ‘inside’ and ‘outside’ activities are offered, with inside activities inspiring students to self-reflect and develop empathy for others, and those outside drawing heavily on nature and learning outside the classroom. The ‘outside’ activities are adaptable and have been designed to work in any available outdoor space and all activities can be used either in standalone lessons or sequentially, with introductory tasks, group activities, and circle time discussions.

With a focus on equipping students with meaningful and tangible skills to support them in the recognition, identification and expression of their emotions, Inside/Outside will be a valuable resource for teachers, youth workers, home-educators and anyone else looking to facilitate nature connection and introspection in children aged eleven to sixteen.

Inside/Outside will be published in September with Routledge. Meet Joe Harkness at the IOL Annual Conference, 14th October, where he is a guest speaker.

Keep your contacts going!

Get together in-person at IOL events in the regions, home nations and sector interest groups.

IOL will host events this autumn and into spring 2024 so members can get together in person, locally and by practice or discussion group.

These gatherings will offer opportunities to network, gain skills and get sector updates.

l IOL Bushcraft Group Conference is on 10th November in Nottinghamshire. More details and bookings soon.

l IOL Annual North West Conference will take place 26th January with details to be announced in the Autumn.

l IOL Scotland / Alba are planning a gathering of Outdoor Learning professionals, practitioners and teachers sometime in December/ January - exact date and venue will be announced soon.

l IOL Cymru / Wales Conferences. Opportunities for IOL Members to showcase to teachers what they can offer to support the Curriculum for Wales through outdoor learning.

m IOL North Wales, Possibly March 2024, at The University of Bangor

m IOL South Wales, Possibly April 2024, at The Atlantic College

l IOL Adventure for All Group Conference will take place 1st to 3rd December at Avon Tyrrell in Hampshire. Details and bookings soon.

There is more in the pipeline so keep checking the IOL Newsletters, your Groups.IO and the IOL Events webpage.

To sponsor or exhibit at any events please contact Fiona@outdoor-learning.org

See the IOL Events page for more and to book: www.outdoorlearning.org/Events/ All-Events-Courses/ Type/4

BE ADVENTURE SMART

Foreword by AdventureSmartUK Co-Project Lead, Paul Donovan

The first in this series of AdventureSmart articles provided an overview of the AdventureSmart campaign. This next article focusses on two incredibly popular adventure activities: stand up paddleboarding (SUP) and open water swimming. As members of IOL and practitioners within the outdoor and adventure activity sector, the AdventureSmart campaign needs your help to cascade this simple, clear and consistent messaging throughout your networks, to encourage more people to get outdoors and active and #BeAdventureSmart. Equally, your practitioner skills may be in other areas of the outdoors and you may be giving some thought to trying either or both of these activities for yourselves. If that is the case, then the consistent messaging found below, which has been agreed on by our 120+ partners may be helpful to you too. I hope you find the information useful and are able to share it or use it for yourselves. Read on for some top tips on staying AdventureSmart when stand up paddleboarding and open water swimming, written by IOL CEO Jo Barnett.

When the cloud parts and the sunshine brings long and warm days, we might think of cooling off in and around open water.

So just how much water does the UK have? The UK has over 11,000 miles of coastline, approximately 120,000 miles of watercourses and the 10 largest lakes in the UK cover 308 miles square with the largest by area in each Home Nation being Lough Neagh, Loch Lomond, Windermere and Llyn Tegid. We then have our reservoirs, the largest being Rutland Water, Kielder Water and Lake Vyrnwy and then there are 200 years’ worth of canals which at their peak totalled nearly 4,000 miles in length. Wherever you choose to go, firstly make sure you have permission to use it!

The last three years have been boom times for stand up paddleboarding (SUP) and the summer months are the busiest times of all. As we plan our free time, we often picture calm, sparkling water and visualise ourselves gliding along the surface either on a board or swimming in the water. It’s a wonderful feeling that comes from physical exercise combined with the exhilarating views of the British coastline, lakes and rivers. You are able to be so very close to wildlife without the noise of engines and visually disruptive equipment. Being AdventureSmart means that you can enjoy these activitiessummer or not - and keep yourself and others safe. So, here are some top tips for being AdventureSmart this summer... p

Remember to ask yourself three questions before you set off:

1. Am I confident I have the KNOWLEDGE & SKILLS for the day?

2. Do I know what the WEATHER will be like?

3. Do I have the right GEAR?

Here are some top tips to make sure you’re AdventureSmart when preparing for your SUP outing:

1. Wear a leash: Preferably a quick-release belt with a coiled leash attached to the board on flat water and a straight ankle leash in surf, buoyancy aid and a wetsuit or insulating layers covered by a windproof jacket.

2. Check the latest forecast for your day: Check the wind strength and direction again on arrival. River levels can rise and fall and at the coast, even a light offshore breeze can sweep you out to sea.

3. Know your limits: New to SUPing ? Take a lesson, be honest with yourself about you and your companions’ knowledge, fitness and ability. Only attempt going out if the conditions are within you and your group’s capabilities.

4. SUP with others: Always tell someone where you’re going and when you’ll be back.

Here are some top tips to make sure you’re AdventureSmart when heading out for an open water swim:

1. Choose your swimming spot carefully and make sure you have permission: You need to get in and out at the same point or somewhere near.

2. Respect the water: Enter slowly and allow your body to get used to the cold.

3. Clothing: Bring a hat (fluorescent green or orange are best so you can be seen by other water users), a wetsuit (to help you stay warm and be more buoyant), clear goggles (to help you see where you are going underwater) and warm clothes (for after your swim).

4. Swimming in the sea? Don’t get cut off by the tide: Check the times of high and low water before you enter the water.

And finally, whether you are on or in the water…

If you get into difficulty in the water then Float to Live until you can control your breathing - relax, tilt your head back with your ears underwater and use your hands to help you float. Always carry a charged mobile phone in a waterproof pouch and keep it easily accessible. If you need help, call 999 and ask for the Fire and Rescue Service (inland waters) or the Coastguard (sea and coastal area).

More on SUP can be found here

More on Open Water can be found here

For more information on AdventureSmartUK, get in touch with Paul Donovan (escape.routes@btopenworld.com) or Emma Edward-Jones (emma@snowdonia-active.com).

Article written by Jo Barnett and Foreword by Paul Donovan.

SPOTLIGHT

TAKE A CLOSER LOOK AT THE IOL’S LEADING PRACTITIONER AWARD

Written by Richard Retallick, IOL’s Business & Operations Manager

Are you passionate about outdoor learning? Do you have something to say about why learning outdoors is so important? Do you want to be at the forefront of developing our sector? Well, you can do all this and more by becoming a Leading Practitioner of the Institute for Outdoor Learning (LPIOL).

What is LPIOL and why is it important?

LPIOL are champions of outdoor learning. They have a breadth of experience and evidence of influencing the wider sector beyond their workplace or specialist interest area.

What can I use it for?

A really good question. And that is why the Institute for Outdoor Learning is forming the Leading Practitioners Group. A meritocracy whose entry requirement will be LPIOL. This group will be something of a ‘Sector Think Tank”; a group of experts who are there to develop ideas on aspects of outdoor learning and to make suggestions for actions. It will be the group that the sector goes to for advice and to make progress.

LPIOLs share a common vision and passion for outdoor learning and in themselves, are a source for innovative ideas and research. They are not all from one area of outdoor learning, but go across the sector - being together makes for

an exciting, influential group which in return will be a fulfilling experience for its members.

I want in! How do I become a LPIOL?

Over to Glen Probert, LPIOL holder and Lead Outdoor Education Manager for Entrust Outdoors, to give his view:

“I think the best way to understand the challenges and benefits of the LPIOL process are to look at the title – ‘Lead Practitioner.’ Who do you lead? How do you lead? Why do you lead?”

“All of these questions are in relation to the wider context of outdoor learning and how you influence it as well, rather than simply what’s in front of you in your day job.”

“LPIOL is a journey that often asks more questions than gives answers! But the journey to search for the answers is where the growth and benefits come. The hardest part is that the mentors and assessors don’t have the answers either and it is applicant led, with mentors as a supporting guide. But that’s when, as

a ‘leader’, an LPIOL should be able to demonstrate how they go about finding the answers and venture into the unknown, whilst shaping outdoor learning with their knowledge, values, experiences and connection to their peers. I found that by the end of the process, it was not an award that I simply ‘had’ but it had become a part of me – LPIOL is something that I am. And because of this, the journey continues even after the award has concluded.”

Is LPIOL for you?

A Leading Practitioner will have been involved in delivering Outdoor Learning for 10 years or more and is likely to have a senior role, for example instructor, tutor, teacher, lecturer, youth worker, trainer, facilitator, advisor, subject lead, deputy/ centre manager. It is a requirement to have completed the IOL’s Accredited Practitioner training first, as this contributes to the final competencies.

LPIOL holders can be described by the attitude and approach they take to their role in Outdoor Learning. They will be an experienced APIOL (Accredited Practitioner) holder who operates with a medium to long-term focus, anticipating and shaping the future. They need not be in a management role, but they will have a positive regional or national influence in their specific area of outdoor learning.

LPIOL benefits the individual, because the process and award:

• Recognises your skills, knowledge and experience in shaping outdoor learning.

• Demonstrates your high-level professional approach.

• Helps you reflect on your driving values, career, and future direction.

• Is flexible to fit your role in the sector – instructing, teaching, coaching, leading provision, advising or shaping practice.

Having LPIOLs in your organisations:

• Shows a commitment to national criteria in Outdoor Learning.

• Enhances and supports the career development of staff.

• Promotes the experience and expertise of the organisation.

• LPIOL holders take a strategic approach and are adept at creating new initiatives, enabling others and influencing people who may have different and complex agendas.

LPIOL Core Competencies mean that an award holder:

• Displays a personal passion and enthusiasm for outdoor learning and influences and shapes practice at a regional or national level.

• Is a champion of high standards of reflective and ethical practice and promotes responsible and sustainable use of the outdoors.

• Demonstrates an on-going commitment to and benefit from Continuing Professional Development.

• Develops their own expertise and others to deliver outdoor learning.

• Leads and innovates to extend the boundaries of outdoor learning, whilst using a range of styles and approaches to engage and involve others and facilitate impactful change.

Are you passionate about outdoor learning, but not at Leading Practitioner level yet?

Start the journey with either APIOL (Accredited Practitioner) or RPIOL (Registered Practitioner). Show the world that you are not only passionate about outdoor learning, but are capable of delivering high quality outdoor learning experiences p

For more information on LPIOL and to apply, visit outdoor-learning.org/LPIOL

Adventure Climb Rescue - a small and friendly team. Fully committed to sourcing and supplying across all major brands of adventure equipment. Exceptional customer service and international supply chain experience.

adventureclimbrescue.co.uk

Photo Courtesy of Hangloose Adventure Ltd

AUTHOR

JOHN ALLAN

John is an established academic and outdoor practitioner. He is Head of Learning and Impact at Inspiring Learning, one of the UK’s foremost providers of adventure education for young people which includes Kingswood and Skern Lodge. His research outputs have included international journal publications, book chapters, keynote addresses and online teaching and learning packages.

AUTHOR

DR EMMA WHEWELL

Emma is an experienced qualitative researcher in education and child wellbeing. She is an Associate Professor in Teaching and Learning with national and international expertise in project work. Her background is in initial teacher training, physical education, health and wellbeing, identity development and self-efficacy, digital pedagogies and supporting teacher development. She is a member of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for a Fit and Healthy Childhood, a writer for the Children’s Alliance and a member of the primary Physical Education Network group.

Background

‘Forgotten Middle’ young people attend secondary school regularly, are neither the highest nor the lowest achievers and rarely misbehave. Although possessing different needs and talents, youngsters within this middle range of learners may be at risk of becoming marginalised in school and failing to excel in their studies. To allow these individuals to express a positive voice and build the skills required to unlock their potential, the Inspiring Learning Foundation (ILF), in collaboration with Northampton University, designed, delivered and evaluated a bespoke Outdoor Adventure Education (OAE) residential programme.

To ensure clarity of purpose, the structure of the programme was informed by the findings of a systematic literature review investigating the concept and needs of ‘Forgotten Middle’ young people. These youngsters are defined as ‘average learners’ within a typical class who may not fulfil their potential due to their low self-esteem, reduced confidence, and limited social skills. Their behaviour generally reflects a ‘fixed mind set’ of achievement, where they believe their abilities cannot be changed. This belief results in these young people displaying an unclear vision of their future selves, resulting in an over reliance on the guidance of others to help them progress.

‘Forgotten Middle’ Young People through Outdoor Adventure

This article appraises the teaching and learning practices and selected outcomes of two OAE pilot residential programmes designed to address the needs of ‘Forgotten Middle’ young people. Encouragingly, initial findings suggest that this expansive, vulnerable group of youngsters responded positively to this tailored OAE programme. Although more robust investigations are required across time, these outcomes provide impetus for further research. A full version of the report is available at bit.ly/3otewoM.

Outdoor Adventure Education (OAE) Programming

There continues to be a wealth of evidence which advocates the use of OAE for the holistic development of young people (1,2). Importantly, this is not just the case for able and motivated youngsters; more disadvantaged learners also perform better in a natural environment, especially when exposed to high-quality, stimulating activities (3,4). Current residential programmes in OAE advocate the use of supported risk-taking between educator and learner and between learners to generate positive outcomes and derive deeper meanings (5,6,7). This growth-orientated approach contends that the best scenario for change in OAE is one in which participants feel safe, secure and cared about. This creates a broader frame of reference for learners that may be called upon in the future during challenging situations. Furthermore, research suggests bespoke OAE programming designed to address the specific needs of young people are more impactful than more generic approaches (8,9).

In line with this understanding, two cohorts of 15 mixed gender youngsters, aged 12 to 14, were invited to attend an OAE residential programme in the UK (Isle of Wight and Yorkshire) targeted at ‘Forgotten Young People’. To negate any degree of negative labelling, at no point during the recruitment of participants or intervention was the term ‘Forgotten Middle’ young people expressed. Rather, the opportunity for these young people to expand their horizons and build vocational and personal skill sets was continually emphasised.

‘Forgotten Middle’ Young People, Programme Aims

A review of literature of ‘Forgotten Middle’ young people was able to provide a theoretical base for planning the provision and to help teachers in their recruitment of youngsters. Although not a homogeneous group, these young people possess similar characteristics:

• Part of a middle quartile group referred to as ‘average’ achievers.

• Modest educational aspirations, indistinct self-identity.

• Low self-belief and expectations, struggle to maintain friendships.

• Over-reliance on significant others to help them achieve their goals.

• Belief that talent and skill cannot be changed by effort, therefore low motivation.

• Limited access to activities which builds their social and cultural capacity.

Teaching and learning recommended to address these issues on the programme included:

• Identifying short term achievable goals which have relevance to everyday life.

• Exposure to a wide range of social, intellectual, and moral situations.

• Avoidance of educational attainment grouping/ labelling.

• Self-directed and shared learning.

• Movement beyond a knowledge rich curriculum to one which values skills, attributes, and behaviours.

• Metacognition or big thinking exercises including selfevaluation and the effectiveness of task completion.

• Assistance to make valued judgements.

The three aims of the two pilot studies were to: deliver an OAE residential package of experiences specifically targeted at ‘Forgotten Middle’ young people aged 12-14; explore the young peoples’ perceptions of their experiences with emphasis upon their psychological and social development; and evaluate reflections of group leaders facilitating the programme.

Bespoke Residential Programme

Following institutional ethical approval, two 4-night residential programmes were conducted at Kingswood outdoor adventure camps. A progressive framework of skill acquisition, referred to as the Building Blocks to Success (Figure 1), infused outdoor activities such as bushcraft, archery and climbing with teaching and learning that was intended to raise learners’ aspirations. The young people also developed skills relevant for employment, digital literacy and green curriculums (10). To formulate this learning and provide evidence of the programmes’ impact, exercises included use of reflective diaries to set short-term goals, positive self-talk sessions, peer mentoring and positive role modelling.

Adolescence is a prime time for identity development in young people. The brain areas of youngsters associated with emotional, social and cognitive functions are particularly malleable to change, which can impact their self-concept (11). In this regard, learners were encouraged to continually selfregulate their achievement on the Building Blocks to Success framework. This enabled them to develop an understanding of their own thought processes and emotional responses in dealing with challenges and how they learned best. Selfperceived abilities are intrinsic for building positive selfidentity; representing a young person’s perception of what they can do (12).

Figure 1: Building Blocks for Success diagram and key

To promote the importance of hard work and effort in achieving successes, facilitators were trained to use and model the language of personal growth (i.e., growth mindset, positive adaptation, empathy, failing forward, grit, emotional intelligence). Achievement of learners’ building blocks were celebrated in terms of the processes experienced and strategies undertaken to meet their goals - such as positive collaborative learning - and not necessarily the outcomes.

Young People’s Perceptions

Personal testimonies from young people suggested that their initial feelings of nervousness, excitement and in one case even resentment, progressed to perceptions of personal and collective achievement. The use of reflective workbooks and group leader discussions led to reports of enhanced verbal and non-verbal communication, improvements in confident decision-making and personal ambition.

Daily reflections of the Building Blocks to Success mechanism were largely positive for structuring young people’s achievements, although the leadership block was seen as less important than others. Practical outdoor activities were able to build rapport and adaptability, especially in climbing and bushcraft activities. Young people’s responses in relation to success using the building blocks included:

Confidence

“Trusting what you know”

“When you can speak to people and join in”

“Is when you aren’t nervous”

Ambition

“Wanting something and working towards it”

“Be the best I can be”

“When you are curious about everything”

Teamwork

“I took in everybody’s ideas”

“Helps me make friendships in the real world”

“Working together to help do the work”

Within their workbooks, the youngsters were given 8 statements to rate their feelings of the programme (detailed below). Ratings ranged from 0 (not at all true) to 4 (true all the time). All 30 of the young people rated seven statements either ‘somewhat true’ or ‘true’. Upon questioning, their ratings were, on the whole, illustrative of positive shifts in their perceived capabilities. In respect to statement 2, all learners rated this ‘true all of the time’, demonstrating the ability of learners to find significant opportunities to express themselves.

1. I feel confident in what I am able to do and my choices.

2. I feel able to communicate successfully with everyone on this course.

3. I feel ambitious and as though I have goals to achieve when I leave this course.

4. I am able to work with others successfully in a team.

5. I feel good about myself and my abilities.

6. I have built skills and knowledge on this course so far.

7. I feel as though I can decide on what I want and lead others.

8. I know I can pick myself up again when something is difficult.

When asked what they had learned to prompt these ratings, the young people acknowledged that they had learnt skills (i.e., lighting a fire, cooking, and climbing) acquired knowledge (i.e., finding a voice, how to work in a group) and developed attributes (i.e., trust, resilience). Expressing their goals for the future, young people said: “Taking part in more things”, “to feel confident and use my voice”, and “to make more friends”. Realistically, they also recognised they would require help taking on leadership roles and communicating verbally and in writing.

Facilitators’ insight

All facilitators completed an online survey concerning their experiences on the programme. They described ways in which their preparatory training had supported the young peoplespecifically modelling, building relationships, adapting to their needs and listening. Comments in relation to their connection with the youngsters included: “encouraging the participants to fill in their success logs and helping them understand they’re better than they think and celebrating who they are” and “they had a really good week, had fun, made new friends, some found that they can talk in front of people better than they used to”. Facilitators also made some recommendations, commenting that while the Building Blocks to Success mechanism was useful, it was complex and not focussed on a particular conceptual theme. They also commented that alternative methods were needed to record the young people’s journeys, as written records were often difficult to implement and capture.

Conclusion

In relation to the aims of this project, these unique findings suggest disengaged youngsters known as ‘Forgotten Middle’ young people benefitted from these bespoke OAE programmes. In line with previous OAE research, data shows learners were able to build their thinking and emotional capacity, promote positive self-identities and help them to value different ways of learning. They also highlight the importance of a targeted, relevant OAE curriculum to enable young people to respond to the increasingly complex demands of today and future society. Nonetheless, caution is needed in the interpretation of these results. Although they provide insights into short-term changes to the learners’ perceived capabilities, there are limitations in terms of their generalisability across populations of similar young people and lasting impact.

To build upon the promise of these findings and respond to any short-comings, future OAE research should incorporate

methodologies which concentrate upon the needs of young people across different timeframes, transitions, experiences, cultures, stressors and contexts. This may form part of multidisciplinary approaches to build the knowledge and cultural capital young people need to succeed in life. This will invariably involve parents, schools and teachers who are best placed to understand the educational and broader needs of vulnerable groups of young people. These could include ‘Forgotten Middle’ young people or the current phenomenon of ‘Ghost Children’ – young people who are severely absent from school since lockdowns were necessitated by the pandemic. In this way, OAE can be recognised as an important and valuable intervention strategy which can help to target needs and formulate policy and evidence-based practices p

REFERENCES

1. Education Endowment Foundation (2022) Testing the impact of adventure learning (in wild settings and at school) on non-cognitive skills and attainment. https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/projects-and evaluation/projects/ adventure-learning.

2. Natural England (2016) Natural Connections Demonstration Project. 2012–2016: Final Report and Analysis of the Key Evaluation Questions (NECR215); Natural England: Sheffield, UK.

3.McMahan, E. & Estes, D. (2015) The effect of contact with natural environments on positive and negative affect: A meta-analysis. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 10 (6), pp. 507-519.

4. van den Berg, M., et al. (2015) Health benefits of green spaces in the living environment: A systematic review of epidemiological studies, Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, 14 (4), pp. 806-816.

5. Ungar, M., Dumond, C., & McDonald, W. (2005) Risk, resilience and Outdoor programmes for at-risk children, Journal of Social Work. 5 (3), pp.319-338.

6. Passarelli, A., Hall, E., & Anderson, M. (2010) A strengths-based approach to outdoor and adventure education: Possibilities for personal growth. Journal of Experiential Education, 33 (2), pp. 120-135.

7. Daniel, B., Bobliya, A.; Kalisch, K.; McAvoy, L. (2014) Autonomous Student Experiences in Outdoor and Adventure Education. J. Experiential. Education. 31, pp. 4–17.

8. Slee., V, & Allan, J.F. (2019) Purposeful Outdoor Learning Empowers Children to Deal with School Transitions. Sports, 7 (6), pp. 2-14.

9.Kendall, S., & Rodger, J. (2015) Learning Away, Paul Hamlyn Foundation. 10.Children’s Commissioner (2021) Annual Report 2020-21: https://www. childrenscommissioner.gov.uk/corporate-governance/annual-report-2021-22/

11. Allan, J.F., McKenna, J., & Hind, K. (2012) Brain Resilience: Shedding Light into the Black Box of Adventure processes. Australian Journal of Outdoor Education, 16 (1), pp. 3-14.

12. Pinto, R. (2021) Impact of problem-solving ability and self-esteem on academic achievement of secondary school students. Educational Quest. 12 (1), pp. 37-45. DOI:10.30954/2230-7311.1.2021.5.

Images in this article have been sourced by the author

UK ALL PARTY PARLIAMENTARY GROUP A CLOSER

Andy

All-Party Parliamentary Groups (APPGs) are informal cross-party groups that have no official status within Parliament. They are run by and for Members of the Commons and Lords, though many choose to involve individuals and organisations from outside Parliament in their administration and activities. This does mean membership of an APPG is volitional by the MPs – they are genuinely interested in the published purpose, and this may well be linked to the expressed interests of their constituents. The purpose of the APPG for Outdoor Learning is to: provide a platform and focus for the various representative organisations involved in the outdoor learning sector; to encourage their access to Westminster-based parliamentarians; and to enable collaboration and discussion. The Institute for Outdoor Learning (IOL) is the official Secretariat to the Group, offering support and responding to requests from the MPs.

Establishing an APPG

The development of the APPG will help raise the profile of our work in Westminster and is to be welcomed. It grew out of the need to develop support for the re-opening of outdoor education residential centres during the pandemic, supported by Robin Millar MP, the current chair. Following the Annual General Meeting on the 24th of March 2023 to restart the APPG, there have been two meetings. On the 23rd of May, the Outdoor Learning All Party Parliamentary Group held its first meeting, with a follow up meeting taking place on the 11th July. Updates are posted on the IOL news section of the website (outdoor-learning.org/news/latest-news).

2023 work to date

During the May meeting, a brief outline was given to MPs of the range of current initiatives that the Westminster government is supporting in England and the funding allocated to each of them. Alongside this, summaries of the current work being undertaken in both Scotland and Wales in support of

residential outdoor education was also outlined. Identifying ‘key and current’ outdoor learning outcomes was seen as helpful in Westminster, as well as highlighting the tradition and heritage of outdoor learning in the UK. It was suggested that some MPs are keen to undertake a number of fact-finding meetings across the UK to better understand outdoor learning, its opportunities and challenges.

To support this the APPG asked the IOL to prepare an A6 briefing card on the benefits and impact of outdoor learning to be shared with all MPs. Robin Millar asked, ‘how would an MP find out about outdoor learning in their constituency?’, so IOL has begun work on a digital map of organisational members and Leading Practitioners overlaid with MP Constituencies - a draft of which was presented at the APPG meeting on the 11th July.

The map was well received by the APPG and have requested that this is further developed and presented by the APPG to all MPs at an event in Westminster in November. The QR code (which is Chrome compatible) will go on the A6 briefing card. There is a need to ensure the map is as representative as possible, so please share with other high quality outdoor learning providers who may like to be added to the map. This is being prepared as a UK All Party Parliamentary Group digital tool open to all who wish to be included. As a sector we need a contact in every Constituency. To request to be added please email: institute@outdoor-learning.org.

How the map works

Using the QR Code, open the map. There are map legends of MP Constituencies, Providers and the Leading Practitioners. So, for example, if we close in on Robin Millar’s constituency of Aberconwy, we can see three contacts are already labelled. Clicking on any of the markers will take you to their contact details. Once the A6 card is published, the IOL will distribute to all who wish to be marked on the map, for reference and support with any interaction with the local MP. Finally, thanks and credit have to go to Dave Brooks, the IOL Membership Officer, who is the skill behind this project p

For more information on the Outdoor Learning APPG, visit parallelparliament. co.uk/appg/outdoor-learning. You’ll find lots of useful information, including current APPG officers. Let us know what you think! Email horizonseditor@outdoor-learning.org.

Robinson and Jo Barnett introduce the work and role of the UK All Party Parliamentary Group for Outdoor Learning

GROUP FOR OUTDOOR LEARNING

CLOSER LOOK

Ian Lewis, Coordinator of the Campaign for Adventure, gives the longer term view and takes a look at the ongoing political adventure for outdoor learning.

A little about APPGs

All Party Parliamentary Groups are informal cross-party associations, comprising MPs and, usually, members of the House of Lords. They provide a platform for parliamentarians to engage in discussions, exchange information and advocate for specific causes or interests. APPGs are self-organizing and operate independently of the official parliamentary structure, including government. They started unofficially around 1920 and became ‘official’ in 1944. By ‘official’ we mean they have to follow strict rules which gives them some access within Westminster, with their officers’ agreement, to meeting rooms and communication systems.

In our current era, we might refer to APPGs as ‘Pop-Ups’ since their existence depends entirely on the support of their parliamentary officers (minimum of 10 drawn from both/all main parties), although most have the support of some form of secretariat, itself often supplied by interested parties outside Westminster. Supporting the development of our new APPG for Outdoor Learning (APPG-OL) offers us all a new adventure – insofar as all learning is an adventure. This is our opportunity to develop our political skills in order to make our APPG-OL as successful as it can be. Just as there are the mountains, the oceans, forests, rivers, there are those who harness these outdoor environments for learning, who feel they could do better. How to reach those in power is the ephemeral question; in the mid-1990s it was my turn to try and find answers.

When speaking to the wider political world, ‘the outdoors’ seemed a well-kept secret. Too many organisations representing too few ideas with too few links to wider society. We were talking to ourselves about ourselves! Most sectors understand that first they come together as one, then agree the main messages, then they speak out – as one! The cries from colleagues of “that won’t ever happen…we’ve tried that before….that won’t work” chimed out loudly. But it had to be tried, albeit again. The doors to the political mountain needed to be opened wide if our adventure education sector would arrive anew.

The topic of this piece is about political adventuring, and it is about the adventure of political adventuring that we turn to now. Between 1995 and 2010, much came and went as the ‘Campaign for Adventure’ (CfA). The team was established, the collaborations developed, the messages were refined, and the political audiences identified and targeted. Through prior experience in several industries, it became obvious that any true profession has a career progression option of ‘moving into, moving through, and moving out of’ which keeps a profession informed, refreshed and progressive. Yet ‘The Outdoors’, at that time, seemed to have something of a bottleneck at a number of career levels. Progression was limited out of instructor/teacher

level, and also at management level. In writing the 1993 –NAOE publication: ‘Careers in the Outdoor Industry’, this concern was clarified, turned into a political objective and developmental funding sought from the then Department for Employment. The £120,000 found was spent developing Scottish and National Vocational Qualifications. A useful if imperfect outcome – still present in some apprenticeship and in-house training, and with a European Framework employee advantage. This was a great start into politics.

Next was to address the ‘super-safe’ culture in the USA that was being dropped on us over here with its Compensation Culture/ Litigious Society appendage.  For this a presentation was held in Westminster with great speakers; Chair of The Bar Council, Libby Purves – Broadcaster, 12 young people, Rene Carayol the CEO of Marks & Spencers. The success of this event, with 160 parliamentarians in attendance, led to the APPG on Risk in Society, which gave us two acts of parliament and much ado about healthier risk-taking in sports, schools and society generally. The acts are worth reading! Very little appears in the news these days if accidents occur where the intention is to do someone some good, even if things go wrong.

And so, political adventuring has had a goodish day. We reviewed, and we learned, and we have applied. Certainly, we did not learn enough. We can say this with certainty simply by comparing our sector with virtually any other sector. But we did learn how vital it is and how effective we can be if we collaborate, speak with one voice, are concise and clear, target our audiences well, are specific, measured and timely, use our ambassadors well, form great relationships, and a few other vital attributes which comprise great political adventures – and valuable outcomes for us all.

Of course, we are still there. And we are now ready with our very own APPG-OL p

MOBILE TECHNOLOGIES, SOCIAL MEDIA

WHERE TO FROM

AUTHOR JACK REED

Jack Reed is a PhD candidate at The University of Edinburgh. His research explores mobile technologies and social media in residential outdoor education as well as contemporary formulations of society and culture as they are developed and sustained in postdigital space.

This is the fourth and final article in this series that has presented some of my PhD data around the use and impact of mobile technologies and social media at the Outward Bound Trust. This series has covered a lot of ground and this article synthesises some of the study’s findings, as well as providing a couple of recommendations and some final thoughts on the place and use of mobile technologies and social media in practice.

Across the series, I have asked questions for the sector to consider, as well as presented data on key aspects of the study. Some of these are:

1. “Are personal biases or generational gaps shaping how technology is perceived in outdoor education practice? (1)”.

2. Data has been discussed in relation to instructors recognising young people’s mobile technologies as portable comfort zones (2).

3. Online media and gaming such as Netflix, TikTok, and Minecraft have been recognised to frame how young people interpret and interact with nature (3).

Alongside these points, a key finding from the study has centred on most instructors preferring their practice to be phone-free and that young people disconnecting from their technologies during their residential experience enhanced learning. However, through focus groups and observations with young people at Outward Bound’s Ullswater, Loch Eil, and Aberdovey centres, young people regularly shared with me how they struggled with what was often their first adolescent experience of being “phoneless”.

Interestingly, this sense of struggle came from young people not being able to speak with home. As Ellie and Blake (all participant names in this article are pseudonyms) told me during a focus group at one of the centres, “it’s just anger, I get really angry. You can get good signal, but then if you move only slightly it’ll just go off and you’ll be in the middle of a conversation” (Ellie) and “I’m pretty mad, umm, because I can’t talk to like any of my mates or any of my family” (Blake). As a researcher in this space, I frequently asked myself whether young people having their connectivity disrupted for extended periods of time was generating appropriate spaces for

AND GAMING IN OUTDOOR EDUCATION FROM HERE?

learning. Certainly, for some young people at least, not being able to speak with a parent defined their Outward Bound experience, and informed my stance that not having access to home can distract from the purposes of an outdoor education residential.

Of course, as I described in the third article in this series (3), alongside seeking connectivity with home, young people readily interpreted nature through the lens of their online environments. Particularly prominent were spaces such as Minecraft and Netflix which, across all three centres I visited, featured as a way for young people to make sense of the landscape. Such a finding encourages us to look beyond the ‘yes technology – no technology’ binary in practice and to recognise that young people arrive at a residential outdoor education centre as digitally entangled citizens; these networked environments and the ways in which they shape contemporary youth culture cannot simply be switched off.

Tensions in the data

With young people’s lack of connectivity with home generating a sense of distraction and online environments underpinning how nature was engaged with, it was intriguing to compare this data with the perceptions of instructors. The interviewed instructors often recognised young people as being addicted to their mobile technologies, represented in Helen’s interview when she told me how Outward Bound courses are “almost like a bit of rehab away from your phone” and that “I just think, it’s just a detox, get rid of it [technology]”. Alongside this, instructors regularly described young people’s parental contact during an Outward Bound programme as a “nightmare” with Lisa telling me that “probably the worst, worst [repeated] thing to come of it is that parents connect to the young person on a two-day or a five-day course”.

As I examined the data, the anger and emotion young people expressed around not being able to speak with parents generated a sense of tension in relation to the identified benefits of residential outdoor education that instructors shared with me. My PhD thesis covers this in significant depth, but in summary, one article provided foundational insight into young people’s emotive responses to experiences of connectivity disruption (4). Through recognising that mobile technologies and social media construct a sense of always-on connected availability, Taylor and Bazarova (2021) suggest that significant others (in this case young people’s parents) are always contactable and that this provides a sense of security and protection. In other words, being able to immediately contact a parent can generate a sense of wellbeing.

If we are to recognise a young person’s connection to home as an avenue that maintains wellbeing, then the tension present in the study will need to be examined further. The data I have generated is exploratory and has lifted the lid on some of the key issues encompassing mobile technologies and social media in residential outdoor education. What has struck me is that this is a complex aspect of outdoor education practice and that there is not a “one size fits all” approach that I can recommend that will provide a quick fix. That said, especially in relation to the extended time young people spent at home due to Covid-19, it is important for us to recognise that young people’s networked baselines (e.g., their entanglement with online worlds)

will likely shape how residential experiences are interpreted and navigated. Alongside this, I think it will be important for us to ask whether complete disconnection generates a learning environment for young people where they feel supported within residential experiences where they are often away from home for the first time.

A couple of recommendations for practice

I believe that my PhD raises important considerations moving forward for Outward Bound and for the residential sector more broadly. Historically, we have often sought to remove technologies from young people and have frequently recognised that the presence of screens distracts from being in the outdoors. Given the tension present between instructor perspectives and young people’s experiences, it may be necessary to incorporate continuous professional development packages for instructors which extend beyond considerations on how and/or whether to use technology in practice. It may also be that we can extend these discussions and explore the ways in which contemporary youth cultures are entangled with online environments in ways which further enhance learning development and transfer. These forms of training may enhance the impact a residential experience could have on young people as they transfer their learning back to their always-connected home environments. Of course, if aspects such as connection to nature are an important learning outcome, and therefore considered a reason to remove technology, training packages may also acknowledge that connection to home may enhance a young person’s wellbeing and sense of security whilst nature connection is developed.

As I have examined the literature in relation to young people’s access to technology and the relationships this may have with wellbeing, I was interested in an update to the United Nations convention on the rights of the child in relation to access to the digital environment (5). In one section, they recognise that “information and communications media, including digital and online content, perform an important function” for young people, and go on to state that access to information through technology is a right for a young person and “that the exercise of that right is restricted only when it is provided by law” (Para. 50). Recognising young people’s access to technology as a right that is protected by the United Nations may require greater scrutiny. In particular, practitioners and outdoor education providers may need to consider how their practices and policies around young people’s access to mobile technologies intersects with international legal precedent.

Final thoughts

My time spent at Outward Bound in 2022 was a life-shaping experience. Although I was there to generate data around mobile technologies and social media, each week reinforced the importance of these experiences for young people. Whilst my findings provide some key considerations for Outward Bound and the broader sector, I left the fieldwork component of my study sure of one thing: Residential outdoor education is transformational for young people. Across each week at the Ullswater, Loch Eil, and Aberdovey centres, I saw young people flourishing, engaging in activities that had a profound effect on their self-confidence, relationships, and connections to the natural world. My sense is that young people’s mobile technologies can enhance these factors. I also think this can be achieved whilst holding onto the historical foundations of residential outdoor education, whilst ensuring that experiences away from home remain relevant for young people whose education and future employment are becoming more-andmore digital p

For more informatin on this series or to find out more about the author’s research, visit ed.ac.uk/profile/ jack-reed-student

1. Reed, J. (2022). “Young people just want to talk about it”: Why technology in the outdoors should not be the elephant in the room. Horizons, 99, 12-14.

2. Reed, J. (2023). Outdoor instructor perceptions on mobile technologies and portable comfort zones. Horizons, 100, 15-18.

3. Reed, J. (2023). Netflix, Minecraft, and TikTok at the Outward Bound Trust: Exploring the impact of online environments on young people’s experiences of the outdoors. Horizons, 101, 16-18.

4. Taylor, S. H., & Bazarova, N. N. (2021). Always available, always attached: A relational perspective on the effects of mobile phones and social media on subjective well-being. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 26(4), 187-206.

5. United Nations. (2021). General comment No. 25 (2021) on children’s rights in relation to the digital environment. https://www.ohchr. org/en/documents/general-comments-and-recommendations/ general-comment-no-25-2021-childrens-rights-relation

SO, WHAT’S HAPPENING AT THE ONLINE CONFERENCE?

Arrival 09.00 - Film 17.00 - Close 18.00

There will be:

SPEAKERS + WORKSHOPS + UPDATES + NETWORKING + EXHIBITORS

Join us at our conference in developing, sharing and envisaging standards in Outdoor Learning that will make a positive difference now, and in the future. We are inviting you to contribute to creating our shared vision for a better outdoor learning world.

CONFERENCE THEME: ‘SHARED VISION FOR A BETTER WORLD’

We are joining in on World Standards Day with our annual conference. World Standards Day seeks to highlight how recognised and accepted standards are built on collaborative working. Joining up with World Standards Day for the IOL 2023 Conference will make the day relevant, packed full of useful content and engaging for us as a community.

Conference is sponsored by https://gopaddling.info/britishcanoeing-delivery-partner/

SPEAKERS

Sharing Our Vision for a Better WorldAn Indian Perspective.

and Penguins - Working in Antarctica

l MANJUL PRATEETI

l JOE HARKNESS Emotions-focused nature connections.

l CATRIN THOMAS Snow, Science

l ROBIN MILLAR, MP for ABERCONWY Championing Outdoor Learning in Parliament.

JUST £20 for IOL Members / £10 for Organisational members booking 2+

INTRODUCTION

The IOL has ‘Standards’ as one of its 4 key priorities, along with Community, Workforce and Voice. As the charity for professionals in Outdoor Learning, the IOL works to develop and define quality standards which includes supporting research and promoting good practice.

In 2023 the World Standards Day the emphasis is on UN 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. The IOL has sustainability as a ‘Golden Thread’ and is working to make planetary and organisational sustainability run through all we do.

Joining up with World Standards Day for the IOL Annual Conference will make the day relevant, packed full of useful content and engaging for us as a community - and in a more sustainable online way.

Using a new online fully featured platform is a significantly positive development that will also be more sustainable by reducing the carbon footprint, travel, costs and time. Online allows us to offer low-cost delegate rates and offer places to many more members and students, and enables attendance from our International Members.

Get a sneak preview of the new fully featured online conference platform here: https://bit.ly/46ZsUqR

ABOUT OUR SPEAKERS

l Manjul Prateeti - Sharing Our Vision for a Better World - An Indian Perspective.

GM Educational Delivery and Outdoor Education Professional Development at The Outdoor Education Group. Graduate of Moray House School of Education, University of Edinburgh. Adventure enthusiast and passionate outdoor learning facilitator, Manjul Prateeti has spent the last thirteen years working internationally from India to America and now Australia helping to develop and facilitate quality outdoor education programs.

l Joe Harkness - Emotions-focused Nature Connections.

Joe will talk to us about the connections within his multifaceted work in the education sector as a neurodivergent SEND teacher, as an author writing about connecting people with meaningful nature experiences and as a local naturalist. All of which weave together into the rich tapestry he will share with us.

l Catrin Thomas - Snow, Science and Penguins - Working in Antarctica.

Catrin says, “This talk will mainly focus on what I do when I venture south every season. A common question I get is ‘what do you actually do down there?’, so I shall attempt to answer this. In the main, this will provide an overview of the range of projects which is a good opportunity to show some slides to generate much envy! “

l Robin Millar, MP for Aberconwy

- Championing Outdoor Learning in Parliament.

As co-chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Outdoor Learning, Robin Millar will share how he is championing Outdoor Learning in Parliament. The role of the APPG is to provide a platform and focus for the various representative organisations involved in the Outdoor Learning sector; to encourage their access to parliamentarians; and to enable collaboration and discussion.

SESSION 1 (10.05 - 10.45)

l SUSTAINABILITY Novelty in NatureAppreciating new ways to value the natural world (Jill Dawes & Matt Healey)

l COMMUNITY Taking Adventure to the Lived Environment - Parkour and the relationship with the local environment (Charlotte Boenigk)

l VOICE Political campaigning and networking (Ian Lewis)

l THEORY Philosophy for Children (Jane Yates & Gina Parker Mullarkey)

l EDI Arthog Ambassadors - Reaching Diverse Young People in the Outdoors (Rob Wilson)

l STANDARDS Bushcraft Awards (Gary Johnston)

l STANDARDS Accreditation by the IOL for your courses (EQA) (Steve Parry)

l WORKFORCE Being AdventureSmart (Paul Donovan)

l WORKFORCE RPIOL - Becoming an awarding Centre (Steve Randles / Julian Pearce)

SESSION 2 (11.25 - 12.05)

l SUSTAINABILITY Sustainability in practiceFuture Footprints (Dan Playford and Martin Callaghan)

l COMMUNITY Update on the John Muir Award (Graham Watson)

l VOICE Achieving a One-Sector Voice at Westminster (IOL Employers Group)

l THEORY Attachment Theory (Karen Mosedale)

l EDI Equalising Adventure (Suresh Paul)

l STANDARDS The value of Outdoor Education Advisors Panel National Guidance to Outdoor Professionals (Steve Lenartowicz)

l WORKFORCE Apprenticeships that support Outdoor Learning – an overview across education, management, facilities and customer care’. (Steve Randles)

l WORKFORCE Surviving a Career in the Outdoors (Pete White, AAIAC)

SESSION 3 (14.05 - 14.45)

l SUSTAINABILITY Outdoor Wellbeing and Therapy - Competence, Sustainability and Ethics (Neal Anderson)

l COMMUNITY Youth development and outdoor learning at sea (Kirsty French)

l VOICE Nature Premium (Sara Collins)

l THEORY Bushcraft Ontology (Paul Moseley)

l EDI Equality, Diversity & Inclusion in Outdoor Learning (Global Butterflies, Sponsored by Activities Industry Mutual AIM)

l STANDARDS Encouraging active, challenging and safe expeditions for young people (Haydyn Tanner)

l WORKFORCE Modern Apprenticeships: ‘Outdoor Activity Instructor (L3) and Outdoor Learning Specialist (L5) - an overview’ (Jim Whittaker)

l WORKFORCE Adaptability in Leadership (Rich Alderton)

SESSION 4 (15.05 - 15.45)

l SUSTAINABILITY Carbon Calculators –an easy approach to measuring impact and progress (Gary Richards)

l COMMUNITY The National Outdoor Learning Award (Dr Roger Hopper)

l VOICE What is High Quality in Outdoor Learning? (Dave Harvey)

l THEORY Field Studies and Wellbeing (Rachel Manning)

l EDI Dignified Toileting (Elspeth Mason)

l STANDARDS The highs and lows of Ropes Courses (AAIAC/ Steve Woods)

l STANDARDS Adventure Travel Guide Standard (Myles Farnbank)

l WORKFORCE The role of Leading Practitioners of the IOL (LPIOL) (Dan Cook)

THERE WILL ALSO BE

l Sector and IOL Updates

l Breakout rooms and networking opportunities

l Virtual Exhibitor hall to browse and meet with representatives

l A competition running throughout the day

l Breaks for refreshments and lunch

l Conversation and reflection. Evaluation of the day in mixed small groups

l Finishing with the film ‘Not A Hero’s Journey’ which won the Best Environment category at the Kendal Film Festival in 2022

WHAT DOES IT COST?

l IOL Members £20

l IOL Organisational Members booking for 2+ £10

l Non Members of IOL £150

l Students £10

HOW DO I BOOK?

BOOK HERE

https://bit.ly/3O7CVcX

EXHIBITING + SPONSORING OPPORTUNITIES

Premier Sponsor (1 available)

Cost is £1,000. Up to 5 hosts. This will give you:

l Your logo and a mention on the Conference platform and in communications about the conference (web pages / Horizons magazine / IOL newsletters / bookings / promos etc).

l A presentation slot at the opening introduction to the conference on the day.

l Add your own Conference platform information.

l Dedicated Exhibit ‘room’ on the Conference platform.

l Option to add videos, brochures, meet and chat to delegates in real time or via messages, give a live talk during breaks, and more.

l Delegates incentivised to come and visit you.

Sponsor (1 available)

Cost is £750. Up to 3 hosts. This will give you:

l Mention and logo on the pre-event delegate communications and on the Conference web area, in Horizons magazine and IOL newsletters.

l Dedicated Exhibit ‘room’ on the Conference platform.

l Option to add videos, brochures, meet and chat to delegates in real time or via messages, give a live talk during breaks, and more.

l Delegates incentivised to come and visit you.

Exhibitor

Cost is £200. Up to 2 hosts. This will give you:

l Dedicated Exhibit ‘room’ on the Conference platform.

l Option to add videos, brochures, meet and chat to delegates in real time or via messages, give a live talk during breaks, and more.

l Delegates incentivised to come and visit you.

TO BOOK FOR EXHIBITING + SPONSORING

P lease contact fiona@outdoor-learning.org

RESPONDING TO RESEARCH

HOW OUTWARD BOUND ARE LOOKING TO APPLY RESEARCH ON MOBILE TECHNOLOGIES IN OUTDOOR EDUCATION, AS FEATURED IN JACK REED’S FOUR-PART HORIZONS SERIES

Martin Cooper, Director of Learning and Adventure for The Outward Bound Trust, looks to future relationships with technology at Outward Bound.

I’m going to level with you, I’m a self-confessed technophobe. On instinct, I often sigh at this screen-tethered reality we now find ourselves in. So, when I learned about Jack’s research, I was both grateful and intrigued…I wanted to truly understand the relationships between residential outdoor learning experiences, young people, and technology. And boy did he deliver.

So, what have we learned? Firstly, let’s address the proverbial elephant in the room – as Jack said in Horizons. The young people who visit us, whether equipped with or without a smartphone, have grown up in a world where technology is ubiquitous. WiFi or not, 5G or a flat battery, they are permanently plugged into a “networked baseline” that we cannot ignore. From an Outward Bound perspective, that presents a real challenge for our instructors, but also to educators more broadly. On the one hand, it’s our responsibility to prepare young people for a digital future. Yet on the other, we have a duty to respond to some of the more difficult elements that future presents, such as addictive behaviour, online bullying or in more extreme cases, withdrawing into a virtual existence that doesn’t relate to any form of reality.

This brings me to Jack’s second article and the wonderfully coined term ‘portable comfort zones’, AKA smartphones. These charming little devices vie for our time, attention and energy, so what should we do about them? At Outward Bound we describe comfort zones as wonderful places, but also remind participants that nothing truly grows there. What we’re really interested in is seeking out our stretch zones, as that’s where the magic happens.

Does that mean we should unplug ourselves completely from technology and leave our smartphones behind? Of course not! What we’re better off doing is treading lightly towards these challenges and being braver in the face of them. Jack’s research has unearthed a need for us to strike a balance, not prevent young people from bringing their digital realities into the wilderness, but rather guide them towards a more thoughtful and measured use of technology. After all, the real essence of Outward Bound lies not in shunning the contemporary world, but in embracing the challenges it presents and turning them into learning experiences. There’s a big wide world going on out there that’s developing faster than we can imagine, so we need to acknowledge that we can’t control everything. Young people are growing up with ‘portable comfort zones’ whether we like it or not, but we don’t have to draw a binary conclusion on whether this is good or bad for them, it’s just ‘new’. This is something that all educators need to think about and reflect on seriously.

There are also exciting benefits to these technologies. In Jack’s third article, we learned how networked baselines are also incredible sources of play and creativity for young people. Whether it’s participants digging for ‘the upside down’ or Minecraft-themed crate stacking, young people today are capable of being just as (if not more) imaginative and playful as

generations before them. All that’s changed are their cultural reference points.

If anything, this research has demonstrated to me that rather than viewing technology with suspicion, we are better off considering it as a trusty companion that we (and young people) can lean on. As Jack teased in his fourth and final article, technology can also offer exciting ways to map uncharted territories, connect with peers and parents, ease anxiety and, importantly, contribute to an increased sense of connection with nature and the outdoors.

With that in mind, I find myself at a bit of a crossroads. An intersection between outdoor residential learning experiences, young people, and our expansive world of technology and connectivity. We could bury our heads in the sand and keep doing what we’ve always done, or we could take on board what we’ve discovered and embrace it. I know which one would be easier, but let’s face it, this is Outward Bound, and we’re not exactly fans of easy around here. To me, what this all boils down to is a need to truly understand the young people that visit our centres and acknowledge the realities and lived experiences they go through each day. This means acknowledging that the journey they go through with us is interpreted not just through the physical wilderness but also through complex digital landscapes. We need to also entertain the possibility that it is the navigation of both these landscapes that moulds our young adventurers into confident, compassionate and capable adults.

Fortunately, I am pleased to say we have already begun making inroads in this area, with the rollout of training across Outward Bound to increase our understanding of young people and also upskill staff with rapport and empathy-building skills. The training has proved transformative, placing young people at the heart of our decision-making processes at all levels. To date, we’ve delivered 14 sessions and 87% of staff have received training. There’s always more to be done, but this is good progress.

If we stay down this path of insight and understanding I believe Outward Bound can continue to deliver experiences that are relevant and transformative for decades to come. This does not mean jumping on a digital bandwagon, but nor does it mean hiding away under a rock. It means truly understanding the needs and realities of young people whilst also staying true to our core belief in the power and intensity of learning through adventure.

So, here’s the thing – if Jack has taught me anything it’s that we must stay curious and practice what we preach. We are not in the business of escapism at Outward Bound, but rather facing up to our fears and exploring what we’re capable of. Thank you, Jack, for helping us pack the right tools for our next big adventure! As we take on board this knowledge, I am confident we can continue to grow and thrive in our mission to inspire young people to believe they can achieve more than they ever thought possible p

What do you think about mobile technologies in outdoor learning? Have your say on Twitter at @IOLoutdoorprofs

OPINION

Milican Dalton - An inspiration or a symbol of the diversity issues we face?

Christian Kitley is the Head of Outdoor Learning at Manor Lodge School in Hertfordshire. He has previously run a Duke of Edinburgh award centre and has been a Scout Leader for many years. In this opinion article, Christian discusses his views on how 20th century adventurers such as Milican Dalton may still impact outdoor participation today.

Considering participation in outdoor learning and adventurous activities, do we need to challenge perceptions of the outdoors as an activity space? Recent research from the Outward Bound Trust (1, 2, 3) shows that despite growing awareness of the lack of diversity in outdoor education and adventurous activities, there is still a long way to go before participation demographics achieve parity with national demographics.

I was listening to a podcast (4) recently which was discussing the life of Milican Dalton, an adventurer and activity leader who was particularly active in the Lake District in the early 20th Century. Styling himself the ‘Professor of Adventure’, he led groups of men and women from urban areas on walks and climbs, apparently paying scant regard to what we would consider as ‘safe practice’ in modern times! He had a very interesting life, initially raised in modern day Cumbria, his family moved to Essex where a young Dalton started work as an insurance clerk. Quickly Dalton realised this was not his calling in life, his habit of sleeping in a tent in his garden rather than living inside the house was probably a clear sign that he was destined for wilder places than the fringes of London! From his early thirties onwards, he spent the summer living in a cave in Borrowdale up until the age of 79 when he passed away in his Bedfordshire ‘Winter Home’, which had by that time become a tent after his wooden hut burned down.

An adventurer to the very end, Millican Dalton was many people’s idealised view of an early 20th Century outdoorsman. Tough, daring, resilient, incredibly knowledgeable of the outdoor world, he was apparently always wearing shorts and constantly sported a woodbine cigarette between his lips.

However, whilst Dalton himself is relatively unknown outside of the Lake District, in years gone by has it not always been the image of Dalton, or someone like him, that has dominated many people’s visualisation of an adventurer? The rugged appearance, the devil may care attitude, the extreme lengths he went to in order to live a life in the outdoors? Personally, I think the man did good things for our love of the outdoors, he introduced urban dwellers to the delights of the Lake District at a time when it was very much a middle-to-upper-class leisure destination. He ran climbing trips for women where they would wear trousers, at a time where this was considered most inappropriate in society. His expeditions were fairly inclusive by the standards of the day, crossing class and gender

divides to an extent. He was also a vegetarian and teetotaller which would have contrasted him from his former colleagues in London, no doubt. On the surface, it seems we have a fairly progressive outdoor adventure practitioner. However, I would argue that the image of Milican Dalton and others like him is, to some extent, what puts people off exploring the outdoors.

When talking to friends and young people not involved with outdoor education, one of the common themes that comes up is the perception that outdoor education, particularly more adventurous pursuits, is still only for the Daltons of the world. The strong, fearless experts that dominate our literature and history and not people ‘like them’. This view is certainly more common among women and people of colour, but not exclusively. Many men that I talk to don’t consider that they fit into the ‘rugged outdoors’ category and therefore don’t explore

activities and opportunities outdoors. Is the lionising of adrenaline fuelled activities and their participants actually turning newcomers off because of the perceived inaccessibility? Should we in fact, be promoting a broader range of practitioners to celebrate in the outdoor world and demonstrate the wide variety of outdoor activities available to people, not focus primarily on activities requiring certain physical attributes?

We have seen groups like Muslim Hikers and Black Girls Hike being formed over the past couple of years, especially following the national lockdowns. The countryside and outdoors is open to all; in England, the Countryside and Rights of Way Act (5) ensured that we are all invited to the party, but is everyone being asked to dance? Some of the negative comments on social media posts, most notably directed at Muslim Hikers and Black Girls Hike around group sizes and perceived lack of knowledge or equipment, show that the outdoors could still be seen as an exclusionary environment. On social media, you can often see comments criticising clothing and equipment choices of inexperienced visitors in outdoor settings, which does nothing to encourage newcomers and paints a picture of an exclusive club that doesn’t welcome those without the correct skills or equipment. We should be encouraging those new to our activities and places, sharing our experience and passing on knowledge, not mocking them for a lack of equipment or for not knowing conventions. Being made to feel welcome and wanted, that is inclusion. We all started somewhere, and some people need the occasional reminder of that!

Whilst there are a growing number of initiatives to encourage diversity in the outdoors, I believe that the perception of outdoor environments remains dominated by white males, which I believe is at least partly due to the role models and activities we choose to promote. Part of the beauty of outdoor education, for me, is the incredible diversity of activities that make up ‘outdoor learning’, from traditional crafts to the natural world and the more adventurous activities. We should celebrate this diversity and promote it widely to challenge some of the perceptions people have of ‘who does what’ in the outdoors. From my own experience, there very much remains the perception that women take on the forest school and nature-orientated roles, whereas the men lead the climbing expeditions and kayak down raging rivers. This perception is of course partly based in reality in terms of the proportion of men and women currently in these roles and therefore not hugely surprising.

What is surprising though is how little we appear to do to promote the less extreme activities and more diverse practitioners, including those at different stages of expertise, into the wider consciousness. Would we gain a huge amount of diversity within the outdoor industry if we were to promote and celebrate the idea that a lack of expertise or extreme levels of fitness is not a barrier to participation? I’m sure most of us would agree that whatever our chosen area of outdoor education, there is always more to learn and new skills to acquire. Perhaps doing more to show newcomers that our chosen field is an ever-evolving journey and that none of us are truly ‘expert’, then we might go some way to attracting more diverse participants in every sense - no one should be put off by the idea that you need to live in a cave to be considered a true outdoor adventurer! p

REFERENCES

1. outwardbound.org.uk/blog/diversity-in-the-outdoors

2. https://js.sagamorepub.com/index.php/jorel/article/view/8997

3. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s42322-022-00104-2

4. countrystride.co.uk/single-post/ countrystride-71-millican-dalton-caveman-of-borrowdale

5. Legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2000/37/contents

the joys and benefits

of lifelong engagement in the outdoors

AUTHOR DI COLLINS

Di is a coach and mentor for APIOL and LPIOL and a DofE expedition assessor. Her career has included primary school teacher, youth worker, play worker, community development worker and university lecturer. She now enjoys exploring landscapes creatively, through wandering, writing and photography.

AUTHOR

GEOFF COOPER

Geoff worked as a teacher, teacher trainer and for the Peak National Park before developing Wigan Council’s two residential centres in the Lake District. His particular interests are in the links and shared values between outdoor, environmental and global education.

AUTHOR

DR BARBARA HUMBERSTONE

Barbara is professor emerita (sociology of sport and outdoor education), Bucks New University and visiting professor at Plymouth Marjon University. She is interested in the connections between nature-based sport and Outdoor Learning in the contexts of social and environmental awareness/justice.

In Horizons 93, spring 2021 (1), we reported on the preliminary findings of a survey of 14 older outdoor participants, aged 66+, and the impact of their childhood experiences on how they developed their enthusiasm for and lifelong interests in the outdoors. Since that time our survey has been considerably extended and this has led to exploring and reporting on several themes emerging from the research. These have included how older enthusiasts continue to contribute to outdoor learning (2) are able to adapt their interests and activities to ageing and a range of health issues (3) have engaged in pathways during their life course to maintain their outdoor interests (4) and have described the significance of nature to their enjoyment of the outdoors (article in progress). This article attempts to summarise some of the main findings from these themes and their implications for outdoor practice.

Our latest survey includes the life stories of 32 older (60-84 years) outdoor enthusiasts (21 men and 11 women) with a breadth of outdoor experiences (all participant names in this article are pseudonymised). We used a variety of methods to capture people’s outdoor stories, including interviews, photo elicitation and writing. It’s important to note that within our sample there is undoubtedly a bias towards well-educated, middle-class, white adults.

Their stories raised a number of questions related to ageing and the outdoors:

1. How did these lifelong enthusiasts start their interest in the outdoors?

2. How have they maintained their interest over the years?

3. In what ways do their outdoor activities give them pleasure and enjoyment?

4. How have they adapted their activities with ageing and changes in health?

5. What have they given back to others and the outdoor environment?

The first of these questions was addressed in our earlier Horizons article. This article will consider how the personal stories reveal insights into the other four questions.

Maintaining lifelong outdoor interests

It is clear from their stories that most of our respondents have benefitted from being involved in organisations where they have gained knowledge, experience and support for their chosen outdoor activities. Joining the Guides, Scouts and other youth groups was a common feature of their outdoor life stories. A significant number mention the importance of youth hostels. For example, Sam says, “staying at youth hostels, we would meet people who were hill walking, canoeing or rock climbing. We became aware of this whole new ‘outdoor world’, of the possibilities of participating in these activities and of being immersed in these new environments”

Some respondents mentioned how their experiences at residential outdoor education centres inspired their continued interest in the outdoors. Jane did an Outward Bound course at Rhowniar and says, “I learnt so many skills which have stayed with me all my life”. This later led to her joining female expeditions to Peru and Nepal. Others joined climbing, canoeing and caving clubs. Rob joined the West Bromwich Mountaineering Club where he met a lifelong climbing partner that resulted in many climbs in the UK and the Alps. Some have maintained their interest through volunteering in Mountain Rescue teams and at outdoor centres and later working in the outdoor field. Sue and Deb became youth workers introducing young people and women’s groups to the joys of the outdoors.

These comments illustrate the importance of these organisations and structures in providing ‘stepping stones’ or ‘pathways’ into establishing a long-term commitment to the outdoors.

Pleasure and enjoyment from being in the outdoors

The respondents described a whole array of sensory and embodied experiences that affect their emotional enjoyment of being and moving in the outdoors. Some expressions of joy are immediate responses to sensory pleasure, for example through exposure to the wind, rain, sun, the waves and the dawn. Stuart says, “Endless things to see, hear and feel. Wind on my face, sun on my back”.

Many of our respondents comment on how their appreciation and connection with nature gives them enjoyment. Anne says, “It’s more about quiet enjoyment and looking at my surroundings, land and waterscapes, rocks, birds, flowers, trees, colours, clouds, weather, seasons”. Other participants expressed deeper connections, transcendental experiences akin to what Csikszentmihalyi (1975) (5) described as ‘flow’. George describes his experience of helming a small sailing boat at night across the English Channel: “I was alone at the tiller but felt connected to the boat, wind and waves. It was as if I was an integral part of a larger whole, reacting without thinking to slight changes in the air and sea, remaining perfectly in tune with nature”

Another common theme that brought satisfaction was the opportunity to escape from everyday concerns and reflect on their lives. Alex comments, “any outdoor activity is the perfect antidote to modern living, a necessary escape from the intrusion of technology”. Some use their outdoor activities for reflection. For example, Marilyn says, “when friends or relatives die, hill walking keeps me sane”, while Barry states, “I suffer from depression and hill walking beats brooding at home”.

Adapting to ageing and changes in health

During the Covid-19 pandemic, older people (specifically over 60s) were defined as vulnerable. This negative perception is in marked contrast to the stories of our lifelong outdoor

enthusiasts that show many examples of resilience and adaptability despite health problems and ageing. A number of respondents suffer from arthritis and joint problems and as a result have modified the pace or frequency of their outdoor activities or changed to alternative activities. Alex, for example, who had two knee joint replacements says he, “stopped the running, downhill skiing…. forcing a more considered pace. A few fractured bones, discovering you only have one working kidney is what life brings: the pace is slower”. Likewise, Sue who has arthritis in both feet tells how she reduced the distances she walked and no longer climbs mountains. Mary also has arthritis; she changed her activities to cycling, gardening and swimming in the sea.

Some respondents no longer enjoyed the discomfort of getting cold and wet or carrying heavy packs to climbs or taking part on long treks. Ena now not only plans rest days on walking holidays, but also, “no longer go(es) backpacking with a tent as the gear is too much to carry”. Marilyn says how now, at the age of 72, she takes longer to climb Suilven in Scotland, with a walk to the bothy on day one, then climbing the hill on day two, and walking back on day three.

There is also a concern for the risk of injury. Rob says, “I gave up fell running for physical reasons and the greater chance of injury with age and how this would affect your ability to do other outdoor activities”. Several participants were able to modify activities for comfort and greater safety, for example by using open canoes and sit-on-top kayaks rather than white water kayaks. Others who were keen mountain bikers in the past have reverted to road cycling where the journey has replaced the quick thrill of rapid downhill travel. Graham describes how the purchase of an e-bike has opened up possibilities to explore greater distances.

It is clear from this survey that the pleasure our respondents gain from continuing their outdoor activities far outweigh any potential discomfort. Many would define themselves by their love of the outdoors. They show how they can make use of their knowledge and their wealth of experience to adapt and maintain their outdoor lives.

Giving back to others and the outdoor environment

Many of our respondents mention the enjoyment and satisfaction they get from sharing their passion for and expertise in the outdoors. Dennis, who volunteers at a primary school, says “I now get more pleasure from introducing young people to nature and outdoor experiences and watching them develop”. Sam comments, “one of the most pleasing consequences of my interest and activity in the outdoors is passing it on to my two sons. Perhaps a little slow to develop but the outdoors is now an integral part of both their lives”. Some older outdoor enthusiasts share their skills through clubs and organisations such as the Duke of Edinburgh Award. Others continue as advocates for outdoor learning through their writing and lobbying. Deb sums this up, “the outdoors

and nature are still my life - hence wanting to support others to develop a connection through my actual involvement in outdoor connected things, my art and my writing”.

The slower pace of older people’s outdoor activities and reduced interest in challenging themselves often leads to an increasing awareness and understanding of nature and landscapes. Kate says, “Overall I would say my outdoor activities have become even more focussed on experiencing natural and cultural landscapes than on physical challenges”. Alex comments, “Now, physically slower, steadier, more thoughtful, observing and aware…. Now we have time to look down at the flowers, take in the views”

These life stories gave many examples of participants taking action to conserve environments and support community projects. For example, Anne is involved with a local Wildlife Trust and says, “I enjoy the hard work, spending a day in the outdoors, working on scrub clearance for the benefit of chalk grassland flowers and coppicing for the benefit of woodland flowers…”. Sam is involved in a community-based project recycling tools and sending them to several African countries. Chris volunteers to support access agreements on footpaths and promotes initiatives for cycling routes. Sue volunteers as a gardener at a local hospice, Deb talks of giving more time as an activist protecting National Parks and local environments, while Graham, 74, has volunteered his skills as a landscape architect in producing a local Neighbourhood Plan and in opposing inappropriate development in Cornwall. It is not possible to say to what extent lifelong outdoor experiences have influenced these community and environmental activities in later life but emotional attachments to nature and landscape over the years will certainly have played a significant part.

Concluding comments

This research shows that many older people are far from vulnerable and can make considerable contributions to society

and their local communities. Our lifelong outdoor enthusiasts demonstrate their adaptability and ingenuity in maintaining and extending their outdoor interests despite ageing and health issues. Their stories show the significance of early childhood experiences and the social structures such as youth and outdoor clubs, summer camps and outdoor education programmes that have helped maintain their interests.

Clearly, many people will not have had the opportunities of those in our survey. There are many obstacles for adults wishing to engage in outdoor recreation. Ethnic minorities are often under-represented and the ease of access and the cost of reaching outdoor spaces limits families and individuals on low incomes. If greater outdoor participation is to be achieved then more consideration should be given to supporting structures, such as public transport, outdoor activity clubs, guided walks and outdoor events to attract people at different stages of their lives. Comments from participants’ stories emphasise the importance of social interaction and support that is gained from sharing outdoor experiences in clubs and with friends. It is clear that the physical and mental health benefits gained from increased outdoor participation will far outweigh the expenditure of setting up such support p

REFERENCES

1. Collins, D., Cooper, G., & Humberstone, B. (2021). Impact of childhood- researching the impact of childhood on ageing outdoor enthusiasts. Horizons, 93, 25–27.

2. Humberstone B., Collins D., and Cooper, G. (2021) Well Being and Being in the Outdoors, British Educational Research Association Blog.

3. Humberstone, B., Cooper, G. & Collins, D. (2022). Lifelong outdoor enthusiasts’ engagement with nature-based activities later in life, Journal of Adventure Education & Outdoor Learning, Published Online: 29 Mar 2022

4. Cooper, G. (2022) Pathways from childhood outdoor experiences to engagement in later life- the view from older outdoor enthusiasts, Elm Magazine, Published Online: 29 June 2022.

5. Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1975). Beyond Boredom and Anxiety: Experiencing Flow in Work and Play, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

LOVE HER WILD’S OUTDOOR ACADEMY

ENCOURAGING WOMEN TO BE OUTDOOR BEGINNERS AND LEADERS

AUTHOR

SIÂN BREWER

Siân has worked on National Park Youth Voice projects, teaching with outdoor educational charities, training Ten Tors teams and running Discover Your Outdoors as a sole trader. She became involved with LHW whilst working towards becoming an Accredited Practitioner of the IOL.

Love Her Wild’s Outdoor Academy was inspired by countless stories of women feeling they are not fit/fast/brave/skilled enough to get outdoors or have adventures. This grant-funded adventure weekend aimed to give female outdoor beginners the skills and confidence to make the outdoors part of their everyday lives. Part 1 of this series explored why Outdoor Academy was set up and Part 2 went behind the scenes of running such a project. Part 3 delves into how it went…

Outdoor Academy: What we did

Our 12 outdoor beginners had all had the opportunity to share what they felt they needed the most help with during their applications to be part of Outdoor Academy. The leadership team balanced these answers against their wider experience of Love Her Wild’s community and delivering outdoor learning when designing the workshops. Our final workshop programme included:

All the gear and lots of ideas!

What to take outdoors and how to pack it.

Tent-tastic!

What features to look for in a tent and how to put one up!

Nature-inspired wellbeing

How the outdoors can support the 5 ways to well-being.

Nurture Nature

How to leave a positive impact when adventuring.

Redefining adventure

Trialling the concept of micro-adventures.

Navigation skills

Exploring and planning with maps.

Inspire others

Creating resources to help other beginners take their first steps outdoors.

All of our workshops were designed to be achievable for the team to replicate independently (thus, encouraging transferability of learning). There were developed to challenge the definition of what 'outdoorsy' might mean, be adaptable for different abilities and means and have a positive impact on the environment.

We deliberately planned the timings of workshops, using active workshops to generate momentum or re-energise and avoiding more discussion-based ones in the post-lunch slots! Each workshop included a reflection task and was followed by a break (or meal!). We found both of these things really important for allowing the team to digest their learning and pace their energy across the weekend.

Despite having only met once on Zoom, the team bonded quickly, reassured by the emphasis on learning together. We very quickly saw people chipping in to help each other and there was a great willingness to have a go and ask questions, even on things which had previously been described as unknown or challenging.

The impact

We asked the Outdoor Academy team to complete a questionnaire before and after our adventure together to assess their skills and confidence in engaging with the outdoors. We saw a huge increase in the confidence rating and 81% of the team said they would “Definitely” attend a future Love Her Wild event after being part of Outdoor Academy, compared to just 30% before. The team listed 26 outdoor skills they felt they had by the end of the weekend including camping, navigating, planning and teamwork. We encouraged the team to share stories of their experience both to help them reflect upon their learning but also inspire other outdoor beginners within the online Love Her Wild community:

“All the other wilders I’ve met this weekend have the same fears. We all knew more than we thought we did. We’ve supported each other, pushed our comfort zones and laughed more than I ever expected to.” - Carrie

“It really got me thinking about adventures I can have at home. I don’t need to go climb a mountain or jump out of a plane. Adventure is a state of mind. It’s everywhere and anywhere and what I make of it.” - Claudia

Of course, actions speak louder than words, so we have been thrilled that several team members have already sent photos or messages about outdoor adventures, attended or booked on to other Love Her Wild events and even signed up to volunteer with the community.

What next?

We collated the team’s stories, ideas and the bits they enjoyed and found most useful into an outdoor beginners’ inspiration webpage to help others: discoveryouroutdoors.co.uk/ outdooracademy-getoutdoorstoo

By the time you have read this, we will have hosted a Zoom session in June where other female outdoor beginners can hear from our team, learn about other opportunities to get started outdoors and ask questions in a supportive space p

In the next issue, we’ll hear from the Outdoor Academy Leadership Team about how the programme has influenced their personal and professional development.

OPINION

SHOULD WE SAY ‘DISABILITY’?

Can we develop our language to enhance our clients’ experiences? Could this lead to developing our own professional practices to a new level? I think so! And this is how...

Language matters. What we say to individuals can literally ‘make or break’ a developing relationship. Consequently, I am suggesting that when undertaking adventurous activities we should broaden our use of the term impairment, rather than disability, when discussing what people can do whilst on adventure activities. Such a move, I believe, is more inclusive, less isolating and provides an easier and more inclusive starting point for discussions around what an individual can do on that day.

That said, it’s important to remember that people may also prefer other nouns or adjectives which best reference their impairment - we should actively listen and use these.

Let’s explore – what is disability?

The Equality Act 2010 (1) says a disability is a:

‘physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on your ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities’.

This a good starting point as it provides:

• A definition for the classification of an important 22% (2) of the UK population who report a disability.

• Clarifies that the term impairment is in common use within the legal, governance and disability spheres of influence.

• Indicates that those who report a disability are familiar and have an identification with the term impairment.

However, what about the other 78% of the population?

78% who do not have ‘... [an] impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect…’, but are most likely to have some form of impairment that impacts in some small or significant way their ability to perform at their best whilst with us?

78% who do not identify or report as disabled and yet may have internally a ‘cocktail’ of thoughts and feelings around what they cannot do and thereby require reassurance and inspiration from us. Reassurance that unfortunately is not always forthcoming because some practitioners do not start a conversation around ability at the start of the day. Or practitioners start a conversation but use the non-identifying language of disability which can be an immediate barrier.

Edward Kinnear (APIOL) has more than 25 years of experience working in experiential learning and, ever since a chance encounter with Don Mabbs at Dukes Barn Outdoor Activity Centre, has been consciously facilitating outdoor adventure experiences for individuals with impairments across society. As such he is often asked to provide technical advice, staff development, training programmes and additional support to organisations in facilitating experiences for clients of all abilities. In this article, Edward offers his opinion on how our choice of language can improve inclusion in the outdoors.

This is where I believe using the term impairment has a number of advantages for the whole population. Various impairment definitions exist (3), however a starting point can be found in the Cambridge Dictionary (4):

‘Deterioration in the functioning of a body part, organ or system that can be temporary or permanent and can result from injury or disease.’

This medical definition is a start, but by its very nature does not include the variables experienced in life, society and the environment. Consequently, a developed definition that I believe fits the underlying proposition of this article, can be found in the Inclusive Climbing manual (5):

‘Impairment refers to temporary or permanent functional limitation within the individual for learning, physical, mental, sensory or social reasons.’

To clarify, a temporary or permanent functional (ability) limitation can include everything from waking-up tired after a full hill day previously or a broken arm in plaster, through to a persistently painful back or a diagnosed mild mental health disorder. None of these examples necessarily mean that the individual identifies, reports or is classified as having a disability, but they can all be understood as impairments. In the context of adventure activities, I believe that the term impairment offers an improved starting point from which to open the essential conversation about what an individual can do on any given day.

Our Sector – adventurous activities in the outdoors

When delivering adventurous activities, we often work with individuals who have some form of impairment that requires consideration regarding decision-making for the day ahead. Consider examples you may have experienced with your own clients, and the breadth of impairments within the following:

• Diagnosed learning or behavioural disorders.

• Reduced physical abilities.

• Poor mental health disclosures and diagnosed mental health conditions.

• Sight or hearing loss.

• Significantly impactful social backgrounds and influences e.g. recent homelife changes and concerns.

All of these are examples which could easily impact an individual's experience of adventurous activities outdoors. Each has the potential to interfere with that individual's ability to get the most out of the day. I feel that, by adopting the egalitarian term of impairment, that is already accepted in the visual, hearing and mobility impairment communities, we may be better able to engage and tailor outdoor activities to the needs of individuals.

In summary, by using the term impairment we can adopt a ‘sliding scale’ approach to understanding everyone's impairments and functional (ability) limitations on any given day; because we all sit somewhere at some time and for whatever reason, on such a scale. For practitioners, this encourages us to adopt a mindset of empathy, exploration and an understanding of the functionality of everyone. In short, I believe that impairment is a term that is truly inclusive by anyone's definition p

Let us know what you think! Get in touch with the author at edward@earthlyedge. com and send us your thoughts at horizonseditor@outdoor-learning.org.

1. https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2010/15/section/6

2. SCOPE website. Source Family Resources Survey 2021-2022, Department for Work and Pensions.

3. Interesting reading around developing an impairment harmonisation standard https://analysisfunction.civilservice.gov.uk/policy-store/impairment/

4. https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/impairment

5. Disclosure; this article’s author is a co-author of this publication. Gilligan, J. Kinnear, E. Morrison, G. Inclusive Climbing – a manual for inclusive adventure activities in climbing. 2022. Earthly Edge. www.earthlyedge.com

6. An inclusive, cognitive process for everyday use by practitioners, support staff and individuals themselves in any adventure activity. Training provided by edward@ earthlyedge.com and established in the Inclusive Climbing – a manual for inclusive adventure activities in climbing.

7. Inclusion Spectrum, Black K. and Stevenson P. 2007.

Below, Edward shares what he believes could be direct benefits of favouring the term ‘impairment’.

For the individual with an impairment:

• A standardised and accepted single term that is used by outdoor learning practitioners when exploring current functionality.

• Supports individuals to disclose their current functionality through positive conversation.

• Provides reassurance that we, as professionals, are appropriately supporting them the day ahead, because concerns regularly arise as individuals begin to anticipate possible challenges.

For practitioners:

• When used during a developing relationship, ‘impairment’ can prompt individuals to specify their preferred language regarding their impairment. We can then actively listen, adopt their language and deepen the relationship.

• Raising awareness of terminology develops awareness of practice.

• Opening eyes to CPD opportunities.

• Practitioners can be as informed as possible for the day ahead.

For organisations:

• Facilitates an easier adoption and development of an organisation’s philosophy regarding inclusive provision (by focusing on cognitive processes of significant influence such as the Decision-Making Framework (6) or the Inclusion Spectrum (7)).

• Shifts the perspective of an organisation’s staff training towards focusing on behavioural ‘customer care’ skills and not just technical ‘ropes and pulleys’ hard skills.

• Adventure sport National Governing Bodies could shift focus onto ‘impairment’ and begin to develop a functionality approach to coaching, thereby facilitating inclusive decision-making and participation for all. No matter what the sport, clients would know they were at the centre of decisions being made with them.

looking towards the future of wilderness therapy

AUTHOR

DR JENNI MYERS

Jenni Myers, founder of The Nature Mind, has a PhD in Psychology gained through researching Wilderness Therapy, an MA in Interdisciplinary Psychology, and a BSc (hons) in Psychology. She also has an NLP Master Practitioner Certificate, a Certificate in Counselling and has a fascination with people’s relationship with nature.

In this final article of my series exploring wilderness therapy, I will be introducing my own research and discussing the contribution it makes to the understanding and development of residential wilderness therapy programmes. As I have discussed in previous articles, there are currently many forms of wilderness or adventure therapy programmes, a trend which has grown dramatically over the last 20 years. These programmes are primarily aimed at young people and are said to have positive impacts on things ranging from personal awareness (1) and confidence (2), to recovery from addiction and substance abuse (3). Research in this area points to the effectiveness of such treatment programmes (4, 5), yet much of this research fails to examine the effectiveness of the constituent parts of wilderness therapy programmesspecifically the importance of the wilderness environment in which such programmes take place. Furthermore, although wilderness therapy is an intensely personal journey for someone to undertake, a large proportion of wilderness therapy research is quantitative. This neglects the participant’s subjective experience and instead places focus on measuring behaviour and psychology. Existing research describes overall outcomes rather than examining the participant’s experience of individual programme components, such as individual activities, connection to nature, and the group environment. Therefore, the first motivation and aim of my research was to contribute a qualitative examination of wilderness therapy participants’ experience – specifically focused on individual programme components – to the growing body of wilderness therapy research.

The nature-human dichotomy

A common issue I see in the delivery of wilderness therapy programmes is the understanding of nature and the misconception that humans are not a part of it. This creates a human-nature dichotomy where humans and nature are viewed as separate entities. As a result, many wilderness therapy programmes either bracket nature as a component or neglect it altogether. Therefore, another aim of my research was to explore how a new understanding of the human position within nature can be integrated into wilderness therapy and how this would affect participants’ experiences of the wilderness therapy process. To do this, I looked to the philosophy of Daoism, which originated in China around the 4th century BCE. Daoism teaches that humans are one and the same as nature and has developed several practices which draw upon the relationship between humans and the rest of nature. These practices include meditation and cultivation, which aim to increase the flow of Qi (the energy or vibration within our body which gives us life) and dissolve the barriers between oneself and nature.

The research

With this in mind, my research explored the integration of Daoist cultivation and meditation practices into wilderness therapy, and the perceived effect this has upon participants’ experiences of the programme and their identification with nature. Special attention was paid to understanding the participants’ experience of the meditation and cultivation practices, both within the programme and upon returning to their home environment. The programme consisted of a 3-day residential trip in the Yorkshire Dales and was attended by 6 adults with self-reported low mood and anxiety. It was led by a qualified life coach and a qualified counsellor and outdoor leader. The weekend consisted of several activities such as the creation of representations of the self using natural materials, mandala creation, short mindful walks, labyrinth walking, meditation, private and group reflection. The meditations during the programme were positioned to occur either before or following participation in an activity. Participants were given cameras and diaries to document their experiences of the

programme and were interviewed one week after the trip and again six months later. The photographs and diary entries were used as prompts in the interviews.

Following the specially designed programme, participants reported that the meditations and cultivation practices supported them in feeling more relaxed and grounded. Being able to approach activities during the weekend in a more grounded state allowed them to explore themselves in greater depth. During these activities they began to experience a change in perspective – specifically linked to how they relate to themselves and the rest of nature, developing an understanding of where they fit within nature. The meditation practices also provided the participants with a tool which they could take with them when they returned to their home lives.

The participants’ experiences of the meditations and cultivation practices were influenced by several other key ingredients of the programme. Although not directly linked to the integration of Daoist meditation and cultivation practices, each of these factors impact how the participants engaged with these practices and, therefore, should not be overlooked by practitioners looking to adopt this intervention. The first factor to be considered is a participant’s readiness to change. If the participants are not ready to change, they will find it difficult to fully engage with the programme and may have a negative experience of integrating with the group or the environment. In cases where entry into a programme is based on self-referral, this is not likely to be a problem. However, when entry into a programme is not optional, full engagement is less likely and it is more likely that they will need a longer adjustment period.

Another factor which was highlighted was whether participants engaged with the activities alone or as part of a group. Some participants benefited from interacting as part of a group, whereas other participants found group interaction difficult and received greater benefit from the activities when they engaged with them alone, after being given directions on how to perform the activity. With this in mind, the activities within a wilderness therapy programme should be flexible enough to cater for the needs of the group and programme leaders need to be able to assess the participants to understand what would be of greatest benefit to them. For example, although someone may find group interaction difficult, a small amount of group interaction may be beneficial and support them in feeling more comfortable in a group environment. Therefore, a balance needs to be found between time spent as a group and time spent alone. This leads onto the third factor which is ensuring the participants are given the time and space for reflection, both alone and as part of the group. This is because the participants use this time to process the activities they have participated in and develop their identification with nature. The final factor is the positioning of a meditation practice before a more practical activity as the meditation helps the participants feel more relaxed. When the participants approached an activity in a relaxed state, they received a greater benefit as they were able to give their full attention to it.

A full understanding of the impact that the integration of Daoist cultivation methods had on the participants’ lives was not achieved until the six-month follow-up interviews. During these interviews, it became evident that despite initially having a positive impact upon the participants’ lives, it was not something which they were able to maintain. The main reason for this appeared to be not having the time for, or prioritising, self-care. Thus, participants struggled to maintain the cultivation practices which they had learnt and often returned to the situation they were in prior to their participation in the programme. This does not mean that the programme was not

valuable to the participants, as they identified it as being significant to their development. However, because they were not able to make time to continue to reflect upon their experience and how it relates to their lives, the longevity of the programmes impact was lessened.

Final thoughts

The results of my research can be used to strengthen our understanding of how and why wilderness therapy works, or in some cases why it may not work. Specifically, the Daoist perspectives present a new level of understanding which approaches the processes within wilderness therapy from a stance in which humans are an integrated part of nature. Therefore, instead of understanding wilderness therapy from a position situated outside of nature, where it is seen as an external component, it is understood from a position which is situated as part of nature. Greater focus is given to how the participants identify with nature and how strengthening this identification contributes to the positive outcomes of wilderness therapy. However, I also identified a key problem which limits the success of wilderness therapy and that is the participants’ time for self-care upon return to their home environments. The implication this has for the participants is a gradual return to old behaviours, therefore an undoing of the benefits they have gained from attending the programme. This brings into question whether wilderness therapy can be effective as a more conventional therapy, or whether it’s best served to provide temporary respite from the stresses and strains of everyday life.

I argue that wilderness therapy has the potential to provide long-term results, so long as we identify a means through which to support participants in maintaining the positive changes that they have experienced. The answer to this may lie in the provision of an aftercare support group where participants regularly return to the wilderness environment and continue the work they started during the programme. However, further research is needed to explore the effectiveness of this.

What sets an experience of wilderness therapy apart from simply spending time in nature is the structured approach it takes. Although there is currently no defined structure for wilderness therapy, it does contain specific activities which have been designed to target specific therapeutic outcomes such as promoting social interaction, increasing confidence and self-esteem, and understanding thoughts and emotions. Furthermore, these are delivered by qualified counsellors or therapists who are on hand to guide the participants’ experiences of the environment in a way which enhances the benefits of it. Therefore, although simply taking a walk outdoors can have positive effects on factors such as mood and stress levels, I argue that for people experiencing low mood and depression, the positive effects can be enhanced through the participation in a structured programme p

REFERENCES

1. Wilderness Foundation UK, “What We Do,” 2012. [Online]. Available: http://www. wildernessfoundation.org.uk/what-we-do/wilderness-therapy/. [Accessed 27 Nov 2014].

2. Open Sky Wilderness, “Young Adults,” 2009-2014. [Online]. Available: http:// openskywilderness.com/programs/young-adults. [Accessed 27 Nov 2014].

3. WinGate Therapy, “Substance Abuse and Addiction,” 2014. [Online]. Available: http://wingatewildernesstherapy.com/substance-abuse-and-addiction. [Accessed 27 Nov 2014].

4. K. Russell, “An Assessment of Outcomes in Outdoor Behavioural Healthcare Treatment,” Child & Youth Care Forum, vol. 32, no. 6, pp. 355-381, 2003.

5.K. Russell, “Two Years Later: A Qualitative Assessment of Youth Well-Being and the Role of Aftercare in Outdoor Behavioural Healthcare Treatment,” Child & Youth Care Forum, vol. 34, no. 3, pp. 209-239, 2005.

NATURE PREMIUM CAMPAIGNING

As a self-employed Outdoor Educator, Dr Sara Collins was able to leave behind the academic/commercial world and work in a sector that fitted in with her son’s education. Ten years on, during the first Covid lockdown, she co-founded the Nature Premium campaign which calls on government to guarantee sustainable funding for all children to experience regular time in nature. Three years later Sara describes herself as a Changemaker, Outdoor Educator and Expert Den Builder.

Horizons recently caught up with Sara to hear more about how the Nature Premium campaign is progressing.

What is the Nature Premium proposal?

The Nature Premium (naturepremium.org) is a proposal to guarantee regular and ongoing time in nature for ALL children and young people with additional funding for those that need it most.

How is the campaign going?

We are making good progress! This is our first campaign, and we embrace our lack of campaigning experience to be different from the crowd. We are in a good place to take advantage of the remaining time before the next general election and are feeling optimistic.

What do you mean by ‘good place’ in the campaign?

Well, we think we have a corker of an idea. It’s about helping children grow up greener. Nature is not (or should not be) a party-political issue, which means we have found crossparty support through our campaigning. Also, without any commercial competition or branding issues, we’ve found that individuals and organisations feel more able to support our idea and help our campaign flourish.

Earlier this year we became a Specialist Sector Group within the Institute for Outdoor Learning (IOL). We have a constituted Steering Group including representatives from the IOL, Woodland Trust, Learning Through Landscapes, the Mammal Society, the Harmony Project, The Country Trust, Early Education and three head teachers. This provides governance and accountability and a broad range of expertise to develop the campaign. We have a wide and growing base of support. Our proposal is stronger because we have incorporated suggestions from supporters, and always welcome critical friends. Our proposal includes a funding model that would allow the Department for Education (DfE) to test an innovative policy with no financial risk until

key outcomes are achieved. This would help the DfE:

• Introduce a policy that they already accept would benefit all children and young people.

• Help achieve the objectives of the Government’s Sustainability and Climate Change strategy.

• Introduce evidence-based/informed policy supporting government ambition during an economic crisis.

Finally, we are building a funding coalition to finance a threeyear trial to demonstrate how the Nature Premium would work in practice in a range of education settings from early years through to A level colleges.

How will you persuade the Government to fund the Nature Premium?

We propose running an ambitious Social Bridging Finance Trial (SBF) of the Nature Premium. SBF is a model designed to change policy at scale. In this instance the DfE, the funders and Nature Premium campaign would work together to agree key outcomes for the trial. The funders would fund the trial, the Nature Premium would implement the work, and the DfE would agree to sustainably fund a Nature Premium, using a coalition of blended funding, but only when the key outcomes are achieved. This provides a risk-free mechanism for the DfE to explore a concept that they already accept benefits young people’s mental wellbeing and would contribute to achieving their own strategy goals.

The trial has some assumptions:

• Nature Premium funding goes directly from the funder to the education settings.

• Each early years provider or school agrees to key indicators and key outcomes.

• Each early years provider or school interprets nature according to its location, the experiences of its children, the interests of the staff and their connection with the community.

• Funding will be used following 5 key indicators (training staff, using external expertise, modifying grounds, buying kit, work in the community).

• Staff will be supported by a Nature Premium facilitator who will coordinate with local conservation/farming/ gardening non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and local government.

• Key outcomes will be determined with input from Natural England, The Royal College of Psychiatry, funders, and the Department for Education.

FOR EVERY CHILD AND YOUNG PERSON TO HAVE TIME IN NATURE

How much funding would each school receive through the Nature Premium?

We propose that each Key Stage should receive £5000 plus £100 for each child or young person known to be eligible for free school meals (FSM) and £25 for each child or young person not eligible for free school meals (non-FSM). This means that each school would receive annual funding, dependent on their size and cohort.

What would this funding buy?

Early year providers and schools are autonomous, meaning that each education setting will make unique decisions as to how the Nature Premium should be used considering the:

• Location - urban, rural, coastal, moorland, wooded, farmland and more.

• Age of the children and young people.

• Life experiences of the children and young people.

• Interest and experience of staff.

Ultimately, we hope that the Nature Premium would change the education culture by demonstrating that nature is a priority, engage the wider education community to include ALL children and young people in developing and embedding a growing Sustainable Education culture. This will strengthen communities to benefit local education, health, and economy.

We also hope that the Nature Premium would act as a catalyst between the aspirations of a future Net Zero society and the practicalities of creating a knowledgeable and resilient future workforce. Finally, we hope the Nature Premium would provide financial capacity to enable schools to support staff, children and young people to connect to nature.

As with the Sports Premium (a campaign which provides opportunities to be active for children and young people from an early age), the Nature Premium should improve the engagement of all children and young people with regular nature connection activities. The profile of nature and sustainable living would be raised across the school as a tool for whole-school improvement. Further, it should increase confidence, knowledge and skills of teaching staff, whilst increasing participation in community-based nature activities.

How could all early year providers and schools give children opportunities to connect with nature?

We believe that with a cultural change to ‘think nature first’ there are many opportunities using the Five Pathways to Nature Connection Model based around:

• Senses – watch out for wildlife, watch birds overhead or insects on flowers.

• Emotion – take a class outside to a greenspace, sit and close your eyes, take three deep breaths and listen for the natural sounds around you.

• Compassion – put food out for the birds and watch for them. Pick up litter in a local green space.

• Meaning – expand your nature knowledge, read a book, or watch a film.

• Beauty – capture nature’s beauty, take a photo or draw a picture.

What are the next steps?

We are now planning a three-year Nature Premium Social Bridging Finance (SBF) trial working with the expertise of Kenneth Ferguson, who originally led the development of the SBF model. The powerful aspect of Social Bridging Finance is

that Stage One of the framework convenes an initial meeting with all partners to discuss the model and application requirements, including the importance of the SBF contract. While the Nature Premium Steering Group can propose how trial schools are selected and possible key outcomes, the final decisions will be made as part of the SBF framework. This ensures that all parties have an input on the trial design and agree the success criteria. This is a key strength of the SBF model, the funders and policy makers have a voice in how the trial is run.

We hope you agree that the Nature Premium could transform a generation. We want to expand our support base, so if you represent a large organisation or know an influential individual who might be interested then please contact us. We would be delighted to meet and discuss how we might work together to deliver the Nature Premium, answer any questions about the Social Bridging Finance trial and help all children and young

For more information, get in touch with Sara, Nature Premium Co-Founder and Lead saracollins@naturepremium.org.

IN PROFILE

DR SURESH PAUL

Jo Barnett: Welcome to Horizons, Suresh, would you tell us about your current work in outdoor learning?

Dr Suresh Paul: I am the Director of Equal Adventure Developments Ltd, which is a not-for-profit company that designs and makes adventure sports equipment with disabled people and runs inclusion training for outdoor practitioners and outdoor providers. I have a Visiting Professor’s role in Education at Bangor University and I’m also Principal Advocate to the Equal Adventure charity. This is a charity that runs collaborations, research and delivers inclusive expeditions and outdoor activities.

JB: Where did your initial love of the outdoors come from?

SP: My mum. She used to sit me on her knee and talk to me about going climbing; climbing the Cuillin on the Isle of Skye and getting to sit astride the ridge and realising that she’d forgotten her sandwiches. She talked to me about running down out of the Alps because the thunder and lightning was coming, and sitting in the Arctic Circle, having done the King’s Trail washing her feet in the Arctic Ocean and cooling her feet off. And other stories from all the way around the world. So, she was totally my inspiration. And then Jonathan Porritt, who used to run Greenpeace who I used to see on Hampstead Heath. I bumped into him when he was walking. I recognised him off the telly, and I sat down and talked to him. He won’t remember me, but he talked to a nine-year-old boy about environmentalism, which has stayed with me ever since.

JB: When you think about your career in the outdoors, what do you think is the most significant thing you have learnt?

SP: It’s never ending. Development work is never ending…and pace.

JB: Pace?

SP: You need to pace yourself because true development work is never ending. I didn’t think that it was going to be about pace, I thought it was going to be all about the energy. It’s about pacing yourself, because if you want to make a difference, then it’s probably going to take you a long time.

JB: What are you most proud of in your career to-date?

SP: I don’t think I can say I am proud of anything, because I don’t think things finish. There are some things I am content with - clarifying some of the thinking around inclusion with people as part of my PhD. Also clarifying my perspective on the

relationship between inclusion and professional judgement and critical decision making. I am honoured to be part of a range of project teams and expeditions that have sought to contribute to inclusion in outdoor and physical activity. And then the inclusive expeditions in which I’ve been involved. The Coppermine River Expedition still has an impact on me. This was several years before Equal Adventure was founded, and ran between 1995 – 1997, with the aim of learning the skills needed for supporting inclusive expeditions. There were six people with seven legs between them paddling 350 miles down a river in the Northwest Territories of Canada.

Half of the expedition team wore knee-length carbon fibre prosthetics and tested their function, as well as working to a framework that became the British Standard for expeditions and fieldwork. Secondly, it inspired two PhDs that talked about a better design for heel strike and toe-off, both of which made a significant difference to how prosthetics are conceptualised today. Since then, I have designed and built about five hundred products that are currently on the market to the relevant standards to support pretty much any activity in a standard outdoor activity programme. My original goal was to make sure that your average 96-hour outdoor programme is supported by reasonable equipment and reasonable thinking. So, I’m content that as I’ve reached the end of my career, I’ve at least just about got to that point.

JB: What is your top tip for those wanting to make real change?

SP: A great mentor of mine said, “Suresh, you’ll always be lonely, because you will always be trying to find the space where no one else is”. And it’s been true, I’m always looking for this space, where it’s difficult, but I realise that in finding that space I have also found people that have wanted to work to improve things and also make a difference.

JB: What do you think is important for the future of your outdoor learning work and Equal Adventure?

SP: Equal Adventure is seeking to build upon the experiences I have accumulated and mapped over the past 30 years. This includes the designing and making of kit, as well as running research expeditions that have led to new and improved pieces of equipment, and to a methodology for training which supports the development of better professional judgement and better critical decision making. Equal Adventure has built the necessary infrastructure, working from the grass roots level, and can now confidently say that expeditions with disabled people are just ‘expeditions’, and we can show organisations how they can run inclusive fieldwork.

JB: You say you’re coming to the end of your career? What’s next?

SP: I think I’ll go back outdoors. It’s been spreadsheets, project management, reporting accounts, finance, board meetings, marketing, PR, operational standards, facilities management for some time. So, I think I’ll go back outdoors. That’s what I want to do.

JB: Thank you so much Suresh for sharing your inspirational career with IOL Members p

JO BARNETT (IOL CEO) CATCHES UP WITH SURESH TO HEAR ALL ABOUT HIS CAREER IN THE OUTDOORS

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