Our Values Statement
The Centre recognises the following fourfold nature of its responsibilities to parents, schools, the operating authority, the people and environments visited, and above all to the young people who participate. The following principles embody the responsibilities and values which are central to the work.
Participation
- The Centre wishes to encourage the widest possible participation in outdoor courses and activities. As a general principle all those who wish to take part should able to do so.
- The Centre is committed to keeping the charges for courses as low as it is reasonably possible.
- No person should be prevented from participating on the grounds of gender, religion or ethnic/cultural background.
- Although the remoteness and physical inaccessibility of certain activity locations may make them unsuitable for disabled participants, the centre wishes to encourage full participation by special needs people in appropriate activities and other ventures.
Development
- The Centre seeks to affirm and develop the concept of the whole person, and to encourage young people to expand and fulfil their potential.
- The Centre aims to provide a rich social experience for all participants: to develop inter-personal skills, team work, self confidence and leadership ability for all taking part.
- c) All course and activities will provide opportunities for personal challenge; for insights into personal and group behaviour; for active exploration of the environments visited, and for a high level of enjoyment.
Leadership
- Centre teachers are chosen for their ability to inspire young people, for their understanding of the environments in which the activities take place, and for their skills in working with young people in remote places within a framework and culture of safety.
- Centre teachers will have a balance of technical and communication skills together with positive personal and social qualities such that their work will be competent purposeful and sensitive to the needs of all participants.
- Centre teachers will have a clear understanding of the general educational aims as well as the specific goals and objectives of the activities and study programmes for which they carry responsibility
Safety
- Each participant has the right to be safe, both physically and emotionally and to be stimulated by judiciously chosen opportunities for challenge, discovery and education.
- Every effort will be made to ensure that no individual experiences a personally unacceptable degree of risk or fear.
- An important aim of all the programmes is to enable participants to become confident, resourceful and safe in outdoor environments.
- The centre is committed to the training and development of staff so as to increase awareness of health and safety and good practice in the field.
Environment
- Centre programmes aim to build a wider understanding of environmental issues to address the groundswell of concern about them among young people and to develop a positive approach to the environment and its conservation.
- The Centre encourages young people to examine and interpret the environment from a variety of perspectives, physical, geographical, biological, ecological, sociological.
- All Centre programmes will have a regard to the principle of sustainable use of the environments and communities visited, seeking the least possible adverse physical or cultural impact upon them.