ISSUE #8 SOLIHULL
SOLIHULL
THE SOLIHULL town of Smaller Earth’s USA Summer Camp office, lies nine miles from Birmingham city centre is a more tranquil setting than the bustling city nearby. Notwithstanding that, it has a pedigree and charm distinctively all of its own with a collection of both famous sons and daughters, including musician and poet Nick Drake, Tony Martin, the former lead singer of Judas Priest, actress Felicity Kendal and 1990s rock band Ocean Colour Scene. The red sandstone parish church of St. Alphege dominates the town landscape and dates from 1220 and is a large and handsome example of English Gothic church architecture, with a traditional 168ft spire. Unlike Birmingham, the Industrial Revolution largely passed Solihull by and until the 20th century Solihull remained a small market town.
In 1901, the population of the town was just 7,500. However, by the 1960s, the population had grown to more than 100,000, due in part to the development of Birmingham Airport and large housing developments by Brummies, as they call themselves, keen to live out of the city. Solihull is also the home of the four-wheel-drive car manufacturer Land Rover’s main production plant and a number of other major companies. The village of Meriden was the famous home of the Triumph motorbike factory from 1942-1983. Whilst Solihull itself has no university, there are five universities within 16 miles of the town; three in Birmingham and two in Coventry. However, Solihull College, formerly known as the Solihull College of Technology, offers several foundation degree and full degree courses. It is this catchment which positions Smaller Earth right at the heart of student life.
Director Kier Bates said the USA Summer Camp company was set up because those involved felt they could do the camp experience better. He said: “We knew that we could offer great service, there was room in the market for us and we LOVED camp! And with a lot of hard work, late nights and stress USA Summer Camp became a success.”
The firm was thriving on its success, when those involved met up Chris Arnold, and as they say, the rest is history! “We’re very proud to be able to work in our home town, live the camp dream and offer so many great jobs for so many cool people. As a company set up to help people go to camp and live the camp dream, we have ended up giving jobs to so many amazing
people and even better letting them re-live their camp dream whilst staying in the industry.” The office, which is now in its seventh year, is growing year on year both in terms of placement and staff. Kier explains: “The vibe in the office is incredible; a little bit like camp! We love having fun and we tend to never take ourselves too seriously and we obviously work hard. They are the key ingredients to making things work so well. We’ve a happy office, fun kids and in many ways it’s like reliving my youth, well now that I’m getting on a little bit!” Team worker Lauren Turner adds: “I think everyone gets on so well because we hire people based a lot on personality, as well as ability. It’s great to see people socialise together as well as work in the same office. Work for me was always boring before summer camp.” Kier adds: We’re excited about the future. We have big plans still and growth to be made, after all realistically we’re still learning the market place and technology evolves. The one sentence which sums up our office is that it is loud, fun and friendly, with more than a few smiles on our faces!”
MEET THE TEAM
KIER BATES Director
I’m just a quiet family man who keeps himself to himself. I have two amazing sons who are too young for camp at least for the time being! I did all my travelling when I was young (younger!). I’ve been to over 50 camps, worked in Greece and travelled across Thailand, Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and the United States. Some of my future plans include wanting to go on safari and swimming with sharks. A fun fact is that I am actually titled as ‘Sir’; so Sir Kier Bates. No need to bow in front of me though :-)
Prior to working for USA Summer Camp I had a variety of jobs working at music venues whilst still at university. I graduated from Staffordshire University in 2012 with a degree in music, journalism and broadcasting. I started with USA Summer Camp in 2013 after working at camp for the first time.
LAUREN TURNER Team Member
I was interviewed by Pat and by Kier and basically talked their ears off about camp and what an incredible experience I had had. At camp I teach horse riding, which I’ve been doing for about ten years. I love my job because talking about camp is my favourite thing! I’d love to experience working in a different country and want to learn as many languages as I can. A largely unknown fact about me is that I was on my university’s cheerleading team for two years and we competed in competitions in the UK!
I have worked with USA Summer Camp since September 2013. Prior to working for Smaller Earth, I spent seven years working at camps, including living and working in Minnesota for 18 months as a camp director with the Girl Scouts.
I am one of two apprentices in the USA Summer Camp and I’m super excited for my first summer camp experience! My aim is to see as much of the world as possible, things like resort work, au pair, summer camp, volunteering etc., are all things I’m interested in experiencing.
My prior-to-camp years also included working at leisure centres and a health club.
KELLY YEWER Team Member
A fun fact about me that not everybody will know is that I have two German shepherd dogs, one of which is a police puppy Aza that I foster up to a year old. Recently, I helped out at the West Midlands Police display team at Crufts Dog Show, at which, me and Aza were featured in the main arena! Equally, you’ll be pleased to know that I was supporting USASC apparel for the show on the final day!
OLIVIA SEWELL Team Member
I’m currently setting up a blog on a whole range of different topics, and hopefully it will act as a travel diary of all my different experiences. I love blogging because it contains all my favourite things including photography, videography, writing, creativity and social media.
MEET THE TEAM I am originally from Cardiff and moved to Birmingham in 2011 to start my degree in English literature and drama, at Birmingham University. Before I started work at Smaller Earth I was employed as a trainee chef at a variety of venues up and down the country. And while I really enjoyed it, I decided to leave it because the hours were pretty unsociable.
KIERAN HOWES
I wanted to do something new and that is why I started working for USA Summer Camp - I’ve really enjoyed right it from day one!
Team Member A not so well known fact about me is that I am Pat’s mentor in business and that I can also speak German, very badly!
REBECCA FAWELL Marketing Manager
While I was at university I was part of a society that organised a charity music festival call ‘Vale Festival’ (www.valefest.co.uk), which is held on the grounds of the student accommodation at the start of summer. So far the festival has raised more than £100,000 for a number of different causes including cancer care, children and patients with mental health issues. I designed the logo and promotional images for both 2013 and 2014. I was also the president of the society in my second year and the festival in that year raised £16,000 for mental health charities Students Against Depression and Young Minds.
I am currently one of the apprentices in the office but am getting really excited about working my first summer at Camp Mariah, which is part of the Fresh Air Fund.
I studied history and politics at Manchester University before going to work at USA Summer Camp.
One of my long-term career goals is to work with underprivileged children in different countries across Africa and Asia.
The best part of university life for me was the freedom, so after graduating I went to camp and worked at Indian Head for two summers.
ALEX BAGNALL Team Member
My first summer I was a swimming instructor and in my second I was a group leader. A fun fact about me is I’m planning on doing a gap year in Canada this summer on a working holiday visa.
DANIELLE REYNOLDS Team Member
A fact about me is that last year I raised more than ÂŁ5,000 for Marie Curie Cancer Care. I did a sponsored trek across the Sahara Desert in which I walked up to eight hours a day. It was difficult but a really overwhelming and rewarding experience. I also was in the top 1% of UK fundraisers for the year 2014.
MEET THE TEAM
SEAN NASH
I first applied to go to camp in 2009 with Camp America. Since then, I have worked at Willoway Day Camp for the past six years. I joined USA Summer Camp in 2011 after completing my second summer and wanted to help others have an easier and more customer service based journey to camp. Before I worked for USA Summer Camp, I was employed at Nando’s for nearly four years and attended Birmingham City University to study television technology and production. I am headed back to camp in Michigan for my seventh summer in June.
Team Leader
Before working for USA Summer Camp, I worked for Royal Caribbean International as on board as a youth leader. I’ve been working with children for more than nine years and I am about to start my ninth summer at Kenmont & Kenwood Camps in CT.
JORDAN HARDY Team Member
I have been involved in scouting since I was a six-year- old and have been volunteering since turning 18. My scout group was recently awarded the prestigious Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service. It is given to only one scout group a year, and is the equivalent to the MBE. It’s an achievement I am very proud of being a part of.
I studied at the University of South Carolina for one year in 2009. It was a big sports school, which was perfect for me. I’m actually an avid fan of the New England Patriots but always support South Carolina in college football and basketball.
Not a lot of people know that I can create really authentic animal noises, so next time, ask to hear my impression of a dolphin!
Before starting my employment at Smaller Earth, I was at university, studying sports science. I was the manager of a under-11’s football team for three years. I first met Jordan at camp in 2012 at Kenmont Kenwood and we’ve been friends ever since.
MATT OATES Team Member
I started working for USA Summer Camp in September 2014 and I’d like to progress and one day become a sales director of a global company. If I wasn’t working for USA Summer Camp, I would like to be either an actor or manager of Nottingham Forrest. My unknown fact it that I once went to an open audition at Granada Studios in Manchester, and after they had whittled 60 people down to the final five which included me, I bottled it and didn’t return to the final audition.
LYNDON ASHWORTH Team Member
I have worked in many roles before starting with USASC, these include nursing assistant on a psychiatric ward, a quality controller at a carpet company and running the best pop aisle supermarket Morrisons has ever known. In fact I was known as ‘pop idol’. I worked at Sherwood Forest camp in Missouri for nine summers and my roles have included head of waterfront, village director (division leader), program director and assistant director. I spent the summer of 2014 at Kenmont Kenwood and helped with the programming. I am fluent in French and have the gift of wit in abundance!
l unching
Mark Hodgson, Programme Manager
Smaller Earth’s effort to impact on the lives
there because some might need one hour
of up to 20m people by 2020 is picking up
whereas others might need 20 hours.
apace as one of its home grown projects
“Someone might come in and say, I have
Another
future
this business plan and ask if they are in the
business entrepreneurs across Merseyside.
right ball park. So we say ‘yes’ you are and
The European match funded project is SE’s
we engage them and say next time come
initiative to tease out all those people with
and have a chat and they don’t come back.
great ideas who struggle for one reason or
That’s it, that’s all that they needed.
another to bring them to fruition.
“Essentially, they just needed for someone
The project itself is being masterminded
else, not their mum not their brother, to say
by Mark Hodgson, who has for the past few
okay, you have it right, just keep going.”
months been working with dozens of people
One of the major factors involved with any
who might have a business idea whether it
business is for budding entrepreneurs
be setting up a business involving a red and
to figure out whether anybody really is
white hearse for use by soccer fans to take
interested in the service they are offering
them to their final resting place or someone
so Another Level through its experienced
who wants to offer beauty treatments that
business mentors can help keep those
are currently unavailable in and around
seedling ideas in full view with a smattering
the city of Liverpool.
of reality thrown in.
Mark explains: “The challenges we have
As Mark explains: “A really big issue is
got in helping them set up a business are
for us to make sure that this is a personal
numerous. That is the journey, and that
journey. Our task is in how we inspire them
journey can take anything from a couple
to get to the place where they can start
of weeks to one year, or depending on the
trading, rather than say this is business,
complexity of the business, anything up to
you are either in or you are out.
ten years.
“Now we understand what doesn’t work
“The European Union says in the beginning
and we understand what might work,
to run the start up programme, you have
so we often can hedge their bets on what
to give 12 hours support and then they can
might work. It’s like a piece of theatre in
start a business. Now in reality, we have to
that you have to see all those different parts
be careful about the messages we put out
and carefully play it to give them the best
Level
helps
identify
Another Level launch event, Church House, Liverpool
chance they have of succeeding.”
“At the same time, I am really conscious of
Make no mistake the project has been a
people coming in with ideas that probably
major challenge for the Another Level
won’t work and if I bluntly tell them that
team, given that they were the junior
then they will disengage. So you have got
partners working alongside some of the
to go through that process with people, let
city’s biggest institutions, businesses and
them discover it themselves but at the same
Liverpool City Council, to help transform
time being honest and let them do that as
the hopes and the dreams of the next
quickly as possible.”
generation of aspiring business people.
Mark also recognises that in moving
“A five week campaign was started last
forward on this project a more focussed
May and from that we had about 80 people
and less scattergun approach is ultimately
who came along from a huge spectrum.
yielding a much higher percentage of
And what we did at the time whether they
entrepreneurial talent to his door.
had a challenging idea or a fantastic idea,
“We now do a lot of work with Liverpool
we gave them the opportunity to move
Community
forward with that through workshops.
College and 99 per cent of them are
“If it was the right place for them then we
undergraduates. We will work with 2,000
gave them a high flying mentor to provide
people to do that and they will ultimately
support to get it going. Now, if it’s a longer
feed in to the start up program.
process and they are not ready for that, we
“The first year created a platform, not
will set tasks or challenges, or as I jokingly
necessarily in terms of results but in
call it, homework, so they can go and test
allowing us to get ready for our second
that idea.
year where the numbers of young people
“So for example, a guy came in and wanted
with business start up ideas are increasing
to design caravans and he wanted to sell
month on month.
the designs to caravan companies. Now
The current program has set its targets
the first bit for me was to think, these
high but it is expecting it will yield an
companies probably had a department
additional 500 jobs across the region by
that do that. So I said before you set up a
2020.
company go along to caravan conventions
Mark adds: “Just like with all the Smaller
and speak to the head of the company
Earth programs, at Another Level, if
and ask if they might buy it. Because if it’s
someone has got the spark then we can
a shutdown no way whatsoever, then do
ignite it.”
College
and
St
Helen’s
something else.
Another Level event, Lox & Caper, Liverpool
COVER PHOTO BY ROBERT DIMOV
DESIGNED BY
2015