Useful information for Teachers and Parents

Are your activities Risk Assessed?

Yes - all activities are risk assessed, we also receive external visits from county councils who 'authorise' our centre for the schools and organisations within their remit.

Do you hold public Liability Insurance?

Yes - we hold £10million public liability insurance

Are your instructors trained to run all activities?

Our team of instructors are all assessed on site specific activities such as High Ropes and Teambuilding tasks, we then have smaller teams of instructors who hold the relevant NGB qualifications to run activities such as Archery, Quad Biking, Air Rifles and Watersports.

What is the teachers role?

All activities are led by instructors, so teachers/group leaders main responsibility is to deal with any welfare/disciplinary issues and ensure that behaviour is not getting out of hand. On overnight stays, after lights out, it is ultimately the teacher's responsibility to look after unsettled students - however a member of our staff is always on 'sleeping duty' should there be an emergency. All group leaders are issued with a copy our Code of Conduct and Responsibilities document.

What is the overnight accommodation like?

All accommodation is in comfortable tents - each teacher will have their own tent and students will share 8 to a tent.

What food can we expect on a residential?

At breakfast there is a choice of hot food or cold cereal. Lunches are a five piece packed lunch including fresh fruit. Our dinner menu consists of healthy and filling food such as Shepherds Pie and Pasta Bolognaise. All special dietary requirements including the number of vegetarians in your group must be received 8 weeks prior to your event. In some circumstances we may ask you to bring accompaniments/replacements to your meals to ensure we can provide a balanced diet.

What are your accident and emergency procedures?

All instructors hold a basic first aid certificate as a minimum to deal with minor injuries. In the case of a more serious injury the Duty Manager will liaise with the group leader to ensure the participant visits a doctor or the local A&E if appropriate. It is the group leader's responsibility to ensure that their own policies in terms of contacting next of kin are followed. All occurrences are recorded in an incidents book when reported to a member of our staff.

Can our group leader visit the centre before the trip?

Yes - we offer site walk round visits and particularly encourage this if you have not visited us before.

What are your arrival and departure times?

For full day trips and residential experiences standard times are 10am arrival and 3pm departure, however as long as we know well in advance we can be flexible.

What if a participant does not want to take part in a specific activity?

At Treejumpers we always encourage children to try every activity so that they don't go home feeling like they missed out. If a child is scared of heights or has other fears about certain activities we will encourage them to go as high or as far as they like, but we will never force them to do anything they do not want to. In this circumstance they will be encouraged to participate in other ways, encourage other group members or take a ground based role where possible.

What do participants need to wear?

Comfortable loose clothing such as Jogging bottoms or cargo trousers, sturdy closed to footwea, a jumper and waterproof jacket. Kit lists are provided in your booking pack.

What are important items for overnight stays?

You will receive a full kit list but important items are sleeping bag and pilow, torch, warm clothing, waterproof jacket, wash bag and towel and a plastic picnic set for meal times.

What is your safeguarding policy?

We ensure children are always under the supervision of both teachers or group leaders and Instructors. Staff are specifically trained in issues such as emotional risk assessments and detailed scenarios which present Child Protection issues in the outdoor environment. For full details please ask for a copy of our Child Protection Policy.

Why do you not have an AALA?

We are often asked about the details of AALA licenses. All of Treejumpers' current activities fall outside of the group of licensed activities covered by AALA. For example whilst Rock Climbing on natural rock requires a license, High Ropes is

not regarded as an activity that needs a license as it is a controlled, man-made environment.

What are your sanitary facilities like?

In our main base camp area we have toilets located in close proximity to the campsite and activity area. For residential visitors, showers are a short walk away and are brick built, with separate facilities for adults and children, showers are in cubicles with locking doors (not curtains). Shower times are embedded in your programme with set times for each visiting group.

CCTV is in operation at our centres.

Do you have a shop?

We have a small tuck shop open at lunchtime and in the evenings during peak season. We sell confectionary, cold drinks and Treejumpers merchandise. We ask that if possible, children bring their pocket money in coins, all cash and valuables remain the responsibility of the participant or group leader at all times.

Other information

Whilst we are accommodating of all groups regardless of background, we will not tolerate physical or verbal abuse, or behaviour that causes concern for the safety of an individual or other visitors. We ask that all group leaders read a copy of our code of conduct and support us in ensuring that Treejumpers is a safe and welcoming environment for all visitors.