Our second community day took us to the Calvert Trust in North Devon, near Barnstaple. Calvert is an outdoor adventure centre designed for people with disabilities and additional needs, meaning nothing is of limits. The centre was recommended to us by two of our older clients, who used to go annually and could not speak more highly of it.
We attended with 6 young people from the project, their families as well as Martyn (CIC director) and Luke (CIC Ambassador). We chose to do Rock climbing, Reverse abseiling and Archery – Martyn/Luke and all the young people where able to fully participate in every activity, irrespective of their physical capabilities, this is what makes Calvert so special.
We started the day with Indoor Rock climbing (my personal favourite)! This was a fantastic opportunity for all the young people to push themselves outside of their comfort zone and put all their hard work from the gym into practice. Not only did they have to climb the wall but they also had to support each other by belaying the ropes, this was great to see as they all naturally communicated with each other and worked together throughout the whole activity. A personal highlight for me was seeing Elliot scale the wall, as he was particularly nervous at the start of the activity, but after watching Luke complete the wall it gave him the confidence to give it a go – to top it off at the end of the day he said it was his favourite activity!
Following this we went outside to take part in the reverse abseiling, this involved one person being pulled up a wire by 3 of his mates, when at the top (10 meters up) they had to drop sandbags on a target and then ring a bell. Staying calm whilst up in the air was the aim of the game here as it helped with the focus when dropping the sandbags, all of the young people absolutely nailed it! The most impressive part of this activity for me wasn’t actually the individuals in the air, but the team mates on the ground pulling them up – this was done by reverse walking 15 meters whilst attached to a wire, requiring great balance and teamwork.
Prior to archery we went for a much-needed lunch break, Calvert had cooked up two options; Homity Pie or a vegan Chilli and although the Homity Pie went down a storm with the parents (myself included) I think it may have been the only part of the day that wasn’t enjoyed by the kids !
Lunch time gave a fantastic opportunity for parents and children to socialise with one another and I heard some lovely conversations happening – from grant recommendations right through to activity/club recommendations. And of course, lots of funny stories!
The final activity of the day was Archery and it did not disappoint! Shooting the bow could be done stood, sat or with a preset bow if the individual did not have full use of both arms. We did several competitions where the young people were split into teams to increase the competitiveness, playing games like snakes and ladders! A highlight from this activity was some of the boys shooting their arrows up and over the safety nets – they are clearly getting far too strong! This was the perfect activity to do last as it was slightly less physical than the other two.
All in all, a truly incredible day, filled with new experiences and laughs throughout.
Thanks again to all of our sponsors for making this possible.
Tom Murch
(Director)