Insurance
Forest School Camps takes responsibility only for the activities listed in the programme. Forest School Camps insures for its liabilities at law. While all possible care is taken to avoid accidents, Forest School Camps does not insure for personal accident or for loss or damage to personal property. Those who are not already insured for personal accident and for all risks in respect of personal effects may wish to make their own arrangements.
If the camper does not live in the United Kingdom permanently we may need to check their insurance cover before they camp.
Travel to Camp
Escorted parties travel between London and our camps. Final details of times and meeting places will be sent in an email (called the Pre Camps Circular) about three weeks before camp is due to start.
Most children and some staff arrive together at camp travelling by train or coach from London (unless otherwise specified in the camp description). This journey is called ‘Escort’ and is the beginning of the camping experience. If possible, children should travel on Escort and full details are sent out before camp.
When coaches are used for Escort, there will be 1 or 2 specific meeting points, usually service stations on motorways, where children can join the Escort party along the route. The camp organiser will communicate where the meet-up points are when travel is arranged.
If travel is by train, campers may arrange to join the escorted party at any station where the train stops. Those doing so are asked to purchase their own tickets to and from the destination (a travel refund will be made).
Medical
All campers should be fully protected against tetanus well before camp.
Ticks are becoming more common on most sites. In areas where ticks are known, campers are encouraged to wear long sleeved t-shirts and long or waterproof trousers tucked into socks to minimise risk of tick bites and tick-borne diseases such as Lyme disease. Wearing insect repellents containing saltidin or citriodiol which are available at chemists or outdoor suppliers is also encouraged. Some insect repellents specifically mention that they are active in repelling ticks. All camps are provided with tick removers. More detailed information on this topic can be found in the Ticks & Lyme Disease section and will be provided by your camp organiser.
Information about Covid precautions will be updated here.
On camp, all participants will be exposed to the elements including local mosquitoes. Campers should bring adequate, high protection sun-cream, sun hats which provide effective cover and insect repellent.
Alcohol and Illegal Drugs
Campers under the age of 18 should not bring any alcohol to camp. It is against the law for children under eighteen to buy cigarettes or tobacco, or to smoke in public places. All FSC camps discourage smoking. Illegal drugs are not tolerated on any FSC site and parents/guardians should prevent their campers from bringing illegal substances to camp. If it is discovered that a child has brought illegal substances to camp, FSC reserves the right to send the child home and to refuse to enrol them on future camps.
Mobile Phones
In life outside camp almost everyone owns a mobile phone and uses it constantly for communication, photography and the internet. At camp we have traditionally managed to do without phones to escape to the beauty of the surroundings and the friendships we make in the field. This has always been one of the things that makes camp that bit more special. We thus ask all children to leave their phones at home. If they are needed to arrange pick up at the end of camp their phones can be looked after by a staff member. We also encourage staff to leave their phones behind wherever possible. Sharing photos of camp on social media is also discouraged so it is best to avoid taking photographs on smartphones.