Make your donation go further!

Every penny counts as far as Camp&Trek is concerned so please act now to help us make the most of the Gift Aid Scheme.

Through the scheme - once you have agreed - we can claim back an extra 25 pence from Her Majesty's Customs & Excise for every £1 that you give. However, if you don't sign up to the Gift Aid Scheme the we cannot take advantage of the opportunity.

So if you are paying Income Tax/or Capital Gains Tax and are planning on supporting Camp&Trek then – simply by filling out the form on our "Donations" page and marking the Gift Aid declaration - we can claim the extra cash back from the Inland Revenue.

In addition, if a donor is a higher rate taxpayer, they too can benefit from tax relief as they can claim back the difference between the higher rate of tax at 40 per cent and the basic rate of tax at 20 per cent on the full value of the donation – a total of 20 per cent. So if £1 was donated, the gross donation would be £1.25, so the donor could claim 25 pence back.

Last year the money we were able to claim back allowed young people to join us who might not otherwise have been able to do so.

In fact if you spare a few pments filling out the form just once then we can continue to claim Gift Aid as long as you make a donation to Camp&Trek. The only time you would need to notify us is if you no longer pay an amount of Income Tax or Capital Gains Tax equal to the tax we reclaim – i.e. 25p for every £1 you give.

So if you want to support us - and make every penny count - then please make a donation now and fill out the Gift Aid form. Just click on the link below and help us to help young people make the most of their lives.

Donation Form

Less places now...but still optimistic for the future

2012 will sadly see a more restricted programme than in previous years as Camp&Trek – like everyone else – continues to feel the impact of the on-going economic climate.

However, despite the financial gloom we are still determined to put on a programme that will impact on as many young people as possible. Although this is unlikely to match our numbers in 2011 we believe this is both a realistic and prudent policy bearing in mind the current circumstances.

We continue though to be amazed at the fantastic support we receive and are so grateful to the charitable trusts and funds, businesses, organisations, churches and individuals who make it possible for us to maintain our annual programme and remain optimistic for the future.

Camp&Trek was founded with the aim of offering opportunities to participate in outdoor adventurous activities to disadvantaged young people. We have stuck with that basic remit over the years and now we reach out to young people aged between 12 and 25 years who either through poverty, neglect, family breakdown, too much responsibility at an early age, learning difficulties or physical disabilities have limited access to the Great Outdoors.

We hope one of our courses not only provides the opportunity to relax or be extremely energetic in the wonderful surroundings of the Highlands but facilitates and supports young people’s growth through dependence to independence, by encouraging their personal and social development.

We have seen how providing young people with a range of activities in small groups, accommodated in a sympathetic and supportive residential environment, can give them new practical and social skills, while significantly improving their self-confidence. At the same time it engenders a more positive outlook on their own individual lives and often better equips them to play a more significant role in their own communities.

In 2011we provided 92 places and our courses began with a group of young people travelling to Nethy Bridge, a new venue for us on the Scottish mainland, which proved to be highly successful and may well form the base for more courses in the future. It offers less complicated transport links then to the west coast and the islands, which could assist some of our groups travelling from further south, yet still retains that “Highland” feel about it.

We also staged two five day residential courses using our old friends at Whitewave Activities in the beautiful surroundings of the north of Skye. Then finally, it was back to the Isle of Raasay for two more residential stays with this year’s fine summer weather contributing to the usual feel good factor there.

In recent years we have worked primarily with young carers groups and they, once again, formed the bulk of those attending. In addition we also worked with community based youth action groups who are involved with very disadvantaged young people seen as being at risk of offending or have come to the attention of the justice system.

Our courses are highly subsidised and we are always ready to discuss costs and the needs of different groups. Under its charitable status, Camp&Trek has a wide remit in regard to young people and would always be willing to chat about the possibility of working with groups from different backgrounds.

It may be possible to tailor courses to meet the needs of certain young people so give us a ring or drop us an email to find out more. This can be done in the first instance by contacting our Outdoor Activities Co-ordinator, Agnes Dickson either by emailing ops@campandtrek.org.uk or telephone 01571-844262. We look forward to hearing from you.

did you know?

Camp&Trek’s patrons are:
Archbishop Desmond Tutu
The Marquess of Bath
Phil Collins LVO

Michael JP Davies CBE
Peter Jay
Mark Knopfler
Tim Waterstone