Unit 12, Western Industrial Estate
Caerphilly. CF83 1BQ.
Telephone 029 20888899

Education for Sustainable Development and Global Citizenship – ESD&GC

Our Program concentrates heavily on giving attendees an insight into what ESD&GC is all about.
The Welsh Assembly Government states that “Wales is special. It is one of the few world nations with sustainable

development at the heart of government. It is important that the young people throughout the principality understand the crucial issues facing them and realise that they can play a part in helping to shape the future ensuring they are part of the solution and not the problem.”


Action Camp promotes the spirit of ESD&GC demonstrating to attendees how their decisions and lifestyle choices are linked inextricably to the lives of others all over the world. They are taught how everything from the brand of coffee bought to the size of car family’s drive has local and global implications. Attendees take part in exercises that involved buying local produce and showed how it helped to sustain local communities. Research illustrates that people are rapidly becoming more aware of subjects such as carbon footprints and the dangers of climate change.

Action Camp attempts to show that ESD&GC is not an ‘add-on’ but should be integrated into every subject wherever possible. Providing young people with a starting point to help them understand the principles of ESDGC.

• "Be good to yourself"
• "Be good to the planet"
• "Be good to your global neighbours"

Anti Social Behaviour
Groups of young people from across South Wales have the opportunity to mixwith each other, forming new friendships and often building bridges between rival communities. The exercises that the young people undertake help instill a sense of pride and understanding of their responsibility for the good of their community and the future of their planet. Action Camp addresses a number of issues that can directly affect communities and a spirit of teamwork and pride is encouraged throughout the events. Feedback from the youth leaders confirmes that bridges are been built between communities where there have been tensions for generations. South Wales Police organised a camp that specifically targeted fourteen year olds from three notorious communities in Cardiff. They were extremely happy with the outcomesand quote the exercise as a major success.

“We used Action Camp to strengthen links between South Wales Police and the communities of Ely and Caerau. It was a huge success and we will be looking to repeat next year”
Wendy Canning - Acting Police
Sergeant, South Wales Police

Healthy Living
The camps encouraged a healthy lifestyle with the attendees introduced to a wide variety of healthy foods and plenty of physical activity. The concepts of “Five A Day” and “Five x Sixty” were promoted throughout the camp. Written exercises backed up practical work and promote discussion on why in many communities health aspiration is extremely low with populations expecting adulthood to include illness as a feature of life.
Action Camp hope that lessons taught will play a roll in improving overall community health

“Overall I think Action Camp has been a big part of many young peoples lives, it has given them experiences that they wont easily forget. It has made them more aware of the consequences of their own actions, and also taught them how they can live a much healthier lifestyle. It has given these young people very good life skills and helped
them grow in confidence. Action Camp has given 5 young people a chance to gain work experience, and has given
2 of them employment for the summer holidays. I think Action Camp has again demonstrated is an excellent way of bringing young people together in a safe environment.”
Steve Smith.
Communities First Coordinator,
Cwmmer Ward.

Child Poverty
Conversations indicate that many of the young people attending Action Camp often feel left out of activities others enjoy, they miss the chance to swim, to shop, to cook and be with their friends and meet new ones. Published statistics estimate that one in four children and young people have their daily lives blighted by child poverty. Growing up in poverty can damage child development, having a detrimental effect on positive outcomes in adult life. The costs are great and go well beyond the individual, having far reaching destructive effects on their communities.

Action Camp management places significant importance on the social aspect of the camp and tries to ensure the attendees enjoy a short break from their home environment with the opportunity to try many new experiences.

“Some of the young people who attended Action Camp had never seen the sea before. It ws very rewarding watching them experience the beach activities”
Chris Medlicott -
General Manager, Action Camp

Education
98 percent of the attendees of Action Camp achieve an ASDAN Activity Award accrediting their 30 hours of activity. This Award can be used as a standalone award or as a progression route into the Main ASDAN Awards program, which could lead to a GCSE equivalent pass.

Conversations with the attendees indicate a sense of achievement and in many cases a desire to study topics further.

Action Camp feels that accreditation is an important aspect of the event. Many of the attendees are hard to engage, disaffected young people who will not achieve educational success and with educational failure as one of the foundation blocks of poverty relegating a significant proportion of the population to labour market failure with resulting low income, unemployment and benefit dependency. The hope is that from the small success of attaining the Action Camp award all attendees will be inspired to continue and progress in further education.

“The great thing about Action Camp is its not just educational – it’s fun as well. For some of the young people we work with this was the only holiday they had. We will certainly be returning next year”
Hywel Williams –
Glyncoch People in Work Unit

" Our young people thoroughly enjoyed Action Camp last year .... so much so that demand this year meant we had to run two Action Camp residentials - one for the Under 14s and one for the Over 14s. Both groups of young people had a fantastic time at Camp - learning new skills, enjoying new experiences and making new friends from other Community First areas .... all of which are positive outcomes that have been built upon since they have returned to Bryncynon.

Feedback from young people in the community was so positive that our Youth Forum members decided they would like to experience Camp life for themselves, and undertook a weeks "Volunteer Camp" at Action Camp ... assisting young people from other communities, whilst also gaining valuable experience in both project and people management, and gaining hours towards their Millennium Volunteers Gold Certificates.

It is not only the young people in our community that have benefited from an Action Camp experience this year ..... thanks to funding from RCT Homes, our Family Group enjoyed a 3 day residential this year too .... over 30 mums and their children took part in team building activities, improved their health and well-being through learning about healthier lifestyles with the help of BTCV, and got to grips with budget management via a really interesting and thought provoking session from RCT Homes staff. The Families were so impressed and inspired by the activities they undertook, that they have requested further training from both RCT Homes and BTCV upon their return ... fantastic !!!!!

All participants on the 4 Action Camps came away with not only an ASDAN qualification and lots to tell their friends and families about, but with a real buzz about the experience ... and a desire to go again next year. Action Camp definitely gets the "thumbs up" from Bryncynon !!!

Michelle Lenton- Johnson
Chief Executive,
Bryncynon Revival Strategy
Bryncynon Communities First

“Both the young people and staff from
Monmouthshire Youth Service had an amazing time at Action Camp this summer 09, the activities we took part in were education, fun and safe! We look forward to booking next year”

Claire Munday
Senior Youth Worker
Monmouthshire Youth Service

"The Action Camp was informative, challenging, fun and rewarding; everyone agreed we had a fantastic time. We were able to bring young people from different groups from across the area with a wide age range (10-14) to work on projects for the weekend and forge friendships that will last for a very long time. The young people and the staff that attended the camp learnt whilst having fun in a relaxing environment. Where do we sign for next year? Please can we book the sun for our weekend?

James Hart
Communities First Coordinator, Plas Cybi Partnership Holyhead