From Thursday 12th September to Friday 13th September, 68 Year 9s and 11 staff covering different shifts, enjoyed camping and outdoor activities at Whitwell Hall Country Centre.

The trip was a wonderful opportunity for students to step outside their comfort zones, both physically and mentally. Whether they were setting up their tents and cooking or working together in team-building exercises, the girls had a chance to push their limits and discover new strengths. It was also a fantastic time for them to form stronger bonds with each other and their tutors, supporting and encouraging one another throughout the activities. The experience not only fostered resilience but also created lasting memories of camaraderie and growth.

Here, Head of Year 9 Mrs Rachel Gaul and some of the students talk through their trip diaries:

Having packed all our kit into the coach, we travelled to Whitwell Hall and arrived in glorious sunshine. The students were all allocated to their tents.

“The tents were green and house-shaped with a door that opened and closed using the Dutch lacing method. Upon arrival, we had to lay out the ground sheet (tarpaulin) and set up our sleeping bags. There was a skirt of plastic around the bottom of the walls that stopped water from getting under the ground sheet.” Amelie

After settling in, we took a guided tour of the site, where students familiarised themselves with their surroundings. The tour was an excellent way for the girls to appreciate the natural beauty of the site.

Following the tour, we jumped straight into some team-building activities, starting with a lively game of Capture the Flag. Divided into teams, the students immediately tapped into their competitive spirit, strategising together and working as a unit. It was inspiring to see the group problem-solving, building trust, and encouraging each other—all while having a lot of fun. This activity was a great way to break the ice and set the stage for collaboration throughout the rest of the trip.

After an energetic morning, we paused for lunch, giving everyone a chance to relax and refuel. The conversations were full of anticipation, as the students shared their excitement for the days ahead.

“After lunch, we all split ourselves into small groups and were handed clipboards containing a map and stamp sheet. We sat and listened to the instructions given by John (a member of staff at Whitwell). Using the map provided we had to locate where each of the 10 stamps were hidden in the grounds; all in a certain amount of time. To begin the activity, each group was allocated a stamp to start from so the year group was spread out. And so the trekking began! My group was given the stamp furthest away from the meeting point, meaning that we only successfully found a grand total of four stamps. Finding the stamps was definitely a challenge as they were very well hidden and involved clambering over stiles, bridges and uneven terrain, trudging through nettles up to our chests and walking through shaded woodland. Some of us were unfortunate enough to fall into one of the muddy ditches on site! Given just under an hour to collect every stamp, nobody was able to complete the entire stamp sheet but the highest number of stamps collected was about seven or eight. Overall, this was a tiring yet entertaining experience which most of us thoroughly enjoyed.” Luli

“Next, in our teaching groups, we went into different areas of the site to light some fires. This would help us with cooking meals in the evening and the following day. We were in the woods so that twigs and branches around us could be used as kindling. My group’s instructor was John, who thoroughly explained the task and how to do it safely. He told us about the five different thicknesses of wood that needed to be collected: pencil lead, pinky finger, index finger, thumb, and wrist width. Our objective was to boil a pint of water with the fire that we would make in teams of four or five. To begin with, we acquired a fire light and a cotton ball that we set alight using flint and steel. We had to create a spark using an acute angle facing away from us. Then we could start piling the thinnest width of twig upon a backstop that was a wrist width branch. To build the fire up we had to lay the wood in an alternating pattern similar to the board game Jenga. However, it needed to be done gradually so as not to suffocate the flame. A fireproof glove was provided too as an aid for moving hot objects. Unfortunately, my team’s fire went out at the beginning but we soon got it going again. Once it was big enough, we could place a metal grid over the top that the pan of water would sit on. We covered the pan with twigs as a makeshift lid so it boiled faster. The wind tended to change direction quite often and that meant shifting position to avoid being blinded by smoke. Once we saw large bubbles in the water we knew it was boiling and the task was finished, and John put the fires out for us.” Chloë

Using their newly acquired skills, teams of girls in each form class cooked an evening meal of burgers and sausages over their self-built open fires, with ice-cream for dessert The girls then geared up for a magical bat walk, where they explored the woods with torches, used detectors to spot bats in their natural habitat and learnt more about these fascinating creatures. The night ended around a warm campfire, where we gathered to toast marshmallows, chat, and enjoy the calm of the night—bringing a perfect close to an adventure-filled day.

“I really loved Whitwell because the sky was full of stars.” Connie A-T

Friday dawned sunny after a chilly night below double figures, but everyone was in good spirits. It was a day packed with hands-on learning and creativity. A hearty breakfast was cooked over our 4 formclass wood fires to fuel up for the day. Thereafter there was a rotation of 3 activities. The girls explored the local ecosystem during the river dipping session, discovering various aquatic creatures (the crayfish were large and abundant!) and learning about their habitats. Another challenge was shelter building, which tested their problem-solving skills as they worked in teams to create sturdy structures from natural materials. The paracord bracelet making activity in the sunshine in front of the pretty old Hall was also much enjoyed.

“I really like the paracord bracelet making because once you learned how to do it it made you very proud of yourself once you completed a full bracelet. It was also really nice weather when we did it which created a nice atmosphere for us and it was a nice relaxing activity after all of the other things we’d been doing.” Frankie

“I really enjoyed doing the shelter building as it was a lot of fun having to make sure our shelters were waterproof before having a bucket of cold water thrown over them whilst we were inside. My group managed to do this very well and we managed to stay completely dry. It was also fun to see how different groups had interpreted the task as all the shelters were very different. I also really enjoyed doing the paracord activity as it was a lovely souvenir to bring back from our trip and it was fun to make.” Freya

Finally, the girls also tried their hands at firing wet sponges from catapults, a fun and energetic activity that sparked their competitive sides, and got several teachers (willingly!) quite wet! After a full day of activities, we wrapped up with a well-deserved evening meal of pasta bolognese, again cooked by different form class cooking teams over the open fires, followed by swiss roll. Everyone had the chance to reflect on the achievements and memories made during the two days before clearing the site and returning to school and on home to showers, to rid ourselves of the strong smell of wood smoke, and to warm, comfortable beds!