The start of 2025 did not get off to a brilliant start as we had some transport issues to solve. The Outdoor Group van died and needed to be replaced. The first planned walk in January was attended by one family . We walked from St Albans back to Watford. When people saw the photos, they wished they had come along as we went through some beautiful scenery. In February the cottage holiday in the Lake District was well attended. A good crowd of people came, and fun was had by all, despite the weather - wet and windy! We still managed time on the beach and some walks in the magnificent Lakes. In March the walk we planned had to be cancelled due to a lack of interest. In April we organised 2 bushcraft days - both were well attended and the children had great fun lighting fires and roaming in the woodland site. The May Day weekend was spent in Watlington , Oxfordshire but was only attended by 2 families. However, we still managed to go canoeing on the Thames and watch the sunset from the top of Watlington Hill. At the end of May we spent 9 days in Swanage which was well attended. Again, we had to fight with the weather – 40 mph winds for five days was a trial, but worth persevering with. Families managed to find some indoor activities and braved the beach when needed. The families still talk about it with fond memories and were looking forward to booking the following year. In June the South Oxhey Baptist Church (our local Church) asked if the Outdoor Group arrange a Church retreat. It was a busy weekend of fellowship and friendship. I was asked before we finished on the Sunday if we could hold a similar weekend next year (2026). At the end of June, we ran our first camp for the Home Education Families over 3 days. This was well attended by families of Home Educators – set up as a holiday where children could meet and socialise, while parents got support and encouragement from others who faced the same challenges of being parent and teacher. Unfortunately, this camp was marred by a lack of care for the site facilities. There had been problems with the facilities before we arrived, but it was not a high priority on the owner’s agenda, so we ended up with no hot water for the showers and washing up – not ideal when catering for 30 people. One of the toilets had a problem too and despite requests for this to be fixed, it was not, which made it very uncomfortable and unhygienic. The safety and comfort of our guests is our priority, so after many years of using this site, we have had to withdraw our patronage. In September we collaborated with Caroline's Cookery – a camp for teenage girls to learn vegetarian cooking skills and socialise with other teenagers in person rather than over their phone’s / social media accounts. Sadly, only couple of people attended, but it was a new concept and a big learning curve for all concerned. It is a concept The Outdoor Group is trying to promote. It is difficult to find teenagers interested in this and to get the price right in these financially difficult times. We will continue to look for opportunities to promote this and collaborate with Caroline further.

2025 was a turbulent year for The Outdoor Group as we explored different ways to run camps and attract people in. It is very hard to predict numbers or interest for camps, especially since COVID. I have noticed that people are leaving decisions to the last minute and watching their money much more. Some of the forums that we have been using (eg Facebook etc) have been taken over by new administration staff who do not let us advertise on their pages. This is a problem we found with the Home Education people. Although we have worked with the Home Education groups for a few years, because my family are not home educators, they would not let us advertise our camps. The Home Educators could advertise camps on our behalf, but it has proved difficult to break into sector fully. The decision to disassociate ourselves from one particular site was a major decision in 2025. Looking back, I can see the stress that this site had caused me over the years - not only in the booking process (it could take 2 weeks for confirmation of a camp, and this could be cancelled at the last minute), but the boundaries of what we could and could not do changed every time we were camping there. As we were setting up camp the goal posts and timings of events would be changed to suit the owners, despite hiring the camp exclusively. We continue to consult the stakeholders on what they would like to see and do. Some stakeholders suggested that we do a camp for mountain bikers and in October I found a camp in the Surrey Hills which I visited. We have plan 2 trips in 2026. We were contacted by a Special Needs School to provide activities as part of their Duke of Edinburgh experience in 2026. The planning and work towards this is ongoing. (If applicable, please just

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