Half term in October when everyone else was taking a break we were hard at work organising and facilitating OUT – a pan European training course focusing on inspiring youth leaders to use outdoor education for young people’s development.
30 youth workers from 10 nations came together to explore, experience and appreciate the outdoor classroom and learn how we can use what is around us to build capacity and overcome challenges both individually and in a team.
This training programme was funded by the EU’s Youth In Action programme, managed by the British Council and delivered at Fairplay House Outdoor Education Centre in Essex. The truly international flavour was reflected by the training team from Greece and the UK with participants came from Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Portugual, Romania, Spain, Slovakia and the UK.
Four days in with everyone exhausted it was time for some culture around London and shopping!!! Then it was back to work for the final 2 days, planning how the learning could be applied at a local/ European level with participants discussing their own initiatives and potential joint ventures for the future.
Ideas for projects were shared along with current information available about future funding processes. Evaluations done, youth passes achieved and friendships cemented it was finally time to go…til we meet again.
