Y6 Coven Camp 2006

It is possible to book a week in dormitories, but the camping experience first and foremost gives pupils an early experience of life under a tent whilst teaching team building and  personal organisational skills.

As a holidaymaker, who used to think camping was something Eurocamp did in France with fridges and beds provided, I have personally have learned a lot from camping for real  after many experiences in Coven. unique experiences to our Y6 pupils.

I think  the three great things that come out of Coven are:

• Y6 teachers get to know their Y6 pupils in a relaxed and informal situation


• The two Y6 classes get to know each other socially and interactively being placed in mixed teams.


• Pupils learn the value of teamwork with tasks to accomplish which become life long skills

Your child will come back from Coven as a more confident  but exhausted child  and engaged with “life skills” which will not be itemised in the National Curriculum.

Whatever the pupils do and experience is the same for me and my staff at the camp. We will all come back to school on the Friday happy but exhausted!

The PTFA are organising a film night which is open to Y3-Y6 the day we come back from Coven.

Do a "Sleep Check" on your Y6 child if you choose to send your child to the film show in school after the camp

My staff attending Coven won’t be there.

The new building  at Coven outdoor centre.

Regarding security, the Centre is so difficult to find.

There are no signs to “Coven Outdoor Educational Centre” and you basically drive down a private drive with houses worth £450K and it is at the bottom of that drive. Ask the average Coven householder where the camp is, which I did when I couldn’t find it two years ago. No-one knew it existed, which didn’t help me find it!!! Be re-assured that Coven is a safe place

The gate is closed and locked nightly. Nightly patrols take place  And the camp site floodlit.

Thirdly, when we teachers are privileged to have charge of your child for the best part of a week

Part of the "Den" with the Moose Head

The Larches Classrooms where we spend some time in the evenings before tuck shop and cocoa

The pond near the Larches Classrooms which
will be scoured by Y6 for pond life

The climbing tower the children fear climbing

It looks scary but it isn’t as bad as it looks. The only way I went up first time was because of a "stitch up" by a Y6 pupil who said, "My friend won’t climb. But I persuaded her that if you went first, she would follow "That pupil is no longer a friend of mine!! (Not) But bless her it worked.

Coven gardens

The stone circle is a meeting point for teams

The marquee

First port of call to off load baggage
before we put up the tents

A view from the tent area.
It is a beautiful site with woodlands and a canal

This photo is taken half way down the tent area.

That is why you can see areas where the grass is missing as that is where the tents are placed. The area is floodlit .

The staff tents are nearest to the night toilet block which is the building which looks like a portable cabin in front the main Coven buildings

Our pupils will know where staff tents are should there be a problem in the night.

The old staffroom is the one we will use as it overlooks the campsite/fields  and accessible to our pupils .

There is a new staffroom in the "new build" part of the site which we won’t use.

The woods with various obstacle courses and challenges.

These are out of bounds for the children unless  supervise by Coven staff for an activity

An obstacle course in the woods

The canal at the verge of the woods

The canoes are being made ready for the first
school who arrived just as I left!

The dining hall and Coven food is good!

The Hall gets used for a range of activities

Coven gets broadband next week.

This makes it much easier for me as Head teacher to photograph your children during each day and produce a Coven daily diary and enable you to go onto the Coven section of our school website and see what your child had been up to.

M.K.Tibbetts
11th September 2006

Should you not have received the forms
or misplaced them, see below