During the Trip

Contacting your child

Of course, for some children, being away from home may initially be a little stressful. This is natural and only to be expected – even adults can experience ‘homesickness’!
In the vast majority of cases, a day or two of getting to know new friends and being involved in exciting activities will dispel all but the most persistent worries. Your child’s Group Leader will normally keep you informed if there are any persistent problems. This may sound strange, but in our experience it is a good idea not to contact your child (!), particularly during the first couple of days. Children really do settle in much better if undisturbed by parents. We will, of course, pass on any personal messages and all of our centres have fax and/or email facilities for incoming messages/letters. Please use Feedback to send any messages to your child stating which of our centres your child is attending.

Activity Programme

Rockley Adventure trips provide challenge and enjoyment for everyone. Our activity programme has been designed around the courses and guidelines as recommended by the various National Governing Bodies of the sports of sailing, windsurfing, canoeing and surfing. All our activity sessions are tailored to meet the requirements of the abilities and ages of participants - you don’t need any previous experience to enjoy our activities. The Centre Manager/Assistant Manager will take decisions concerning a group’s activities. He/she has the authority to make minor changes to activities, operating procedures or programmes if such action is deemed necessary due to the prevailing weather conditions and/or the ability of the group participants.
All activities are subject to very strict controls and all instructors are trained and instructed in the action and procedures to be followed to provide a safe and enjoyable session.

Equipment

We provide specialist equipment such as buoyancy aids and, at our UK centres, waterproof tops and bottoms for our watersports activities; although children do need to bring personal items such as suitable footwear – wetsuit shoes or old trainers. We recommend that youngsters participating in our watersports activities bring a rash vest or tee shirts and shorts and if possible a shorty wetsuit. These items are widely available and should not present a great cost to parents and will enhance the enjoyment of our activities. We even have our very own "Rockley" branded rash vests which are not only practical but are also a great momento of the trip - check out our Rockley Kit at www.rockleyshop.co.uk and to order online. Our activity equipment conforms to British or European standards.

Bedding

We are unable to provide bedding at any of our centres and your child should bring their own sleeping, pillow and pillowcase; see also our Kit Lists which can be found in Downloads.

Meals

Food is an important part of any trip, especially when you are having such an active time. Mealtimes, in particular, allow youngsters to relax, mix, make new friends and discuss some of the highlights of their day. Our centres provide all meals and unlimited hot and cold drinks. Our menus have been developed over many years of feeding youngsters to provide interesting, balanced and enjoyable meals.

At our French centres we introduce a taste of Gallic cuisine by serving local delicacies during our “French Affair” evening, when the menu includes snails, frogs legs and mussels!

Vegetarian and other special diets required on medical or religious grounds can usually be catered for. Please indicate on our Safety Questionnaire to your school if your child requires a special diet. For very restrictive diets we will require full details from parents that may include suggested menu plans and/or the supply of specialist foodstuffs, which may not be readily available to our catering team at the French centres, to supplement our meals.

Sample Menu for one of our French Centres

Supervision

Children are supervised by Rockley Adventure staff at all times when participating in an organised activity. At all other times the Group Leader and accompanying adults are responsible for the group. In practice, both Rockley Adventure’s staff and the group’s accompanying adults work as a team to ensure that the best possible supervision takes place. For trips that include visits to places such as theme parks or local towns where it is impractical to walk around in a large group, children will be in groups of not less than 3. Our staff and your child’s school staff will regularly meet up with them and are contactable at all times.

Bed Times & Night-time Supervision

It is part of our staff’s role in conjunction with your child’s school staff to get everyone to bed reasonably on time – sometimes easier said than done! Even the fittest children feel tired after a full day of activities followed by our evening entertainment programmes, so we try to insist on sensible bedtimes for children to ensure that everyone gets a good night’s rest. Exact times may vary from centre to centre, but are usually 22.30 to 23.00.
At our French centres where children need to leave their tent to get to the toilet facilities, we have 2 members of our staff on duty throughout the night who patrol the campsite accommodation area.

At our UK centre there is a night duty rota and a member of our staff or the school staff can be contacted at any time should the need arise. The doors to our residential accommodation are locked, although these can be opened from the inside in case of emergency.

Personal Hygiene

All children are expected to take an element of personal responsibility for showering and cleaning their teeth during their trip. Although Group Leaders, school staff and our staff will encourage the regular use of soap and toothpaste!

Discipline and Responsibility

Living alongside and mixing with other youngsters is an extremely valuable part of the Rockley experience and we try to ensure that no one feels left out. Members of the group have an equal right to enjoy themselves and we keep a close check on teasing, bullying or any other anti-social behaviour that may spoil an individual child’s enjoyment. Our experience over many years means that this is rarely a problem, but please tell your child that if they feel they are being picked on, they should inform their Group Leader or any other member of staff immediately. If your child should make contact with you regarding any negative aspect of their trip, please check whether your child’s Group Leader or a member of our staff have been informed. If not, please let us know as soon as possible so that we may take immediate steps to remedy the situation. We have produced a Behaviour Charter for youngsters which is available in Downloads.
When necessary, we will be firm with children who are spoiling the enjoyment and/or jeopardising the safety of others. If problem behaviour is persistent or serious, we will contact the parent or guardian to decide on further action. We reserve the right to send any child home immediately at the parent/guardians’ expense and to charge for any additional costs incurred. No refunds will be considered for any children sent home for behavioural reasons. Children will be asked to pay for any damage caused by wilful behaviour to any Rockley Adventure owned or leased property. Please ensure you have read our Booking Conditions.

Accidents/Incidents

As a residential activity trip, a Rockley Adventure holiday is by its very nature active and therefore minor injuries, such as bumps and scrapes are more likely. All our qualified instructors hold a valid certificate in First Aid. We are very proud of our safety record and it is through the safe practices and procedures of our activities and the adherence by children to the advice given by our staff that has achieved this record.

It is the policy of Rockley Adventure to refer all cases where there is any chance of concussion or any injury, other than minor cuts or abrasions, to a qualified medical practitioner.

An accident book is maintained at each of our Centres into which is logged every accident and injury, however small, that is reported to a member of Rockley Adventure staff. All major accidents are reported to management. In the event of a major accident/incident to a student or instructor, we have an Emergency Procedure system, which will be implemented.

Children MUST report all injuries/accidents to their school staff or a member of Rockley Adventure staff – if we don’t know we can’t help!