The benefits of taking young people out of their comfort zone to a residential outdoor activity centre are immeasurable. "We get young people here, big tough teens, who are scared of the night because it is so dark," says David Watts, operations and centre manager at UK Youth's Avon Tyrrell facility in the New Forest. "They can't identify basic animals. Some have experience of nothing but a square mile in the city."
Out of their comfort zone
Taking part in outdoor activities can help develop self-esteem, responsibility, problem-solving skills, teamwork, independence, tolerance, social skills and, of course, physical health. Chas Cowell is youth development and training manager for the sail training charity Tall Ships Youth Trust. As he recalls: "We had a group from King's Cross, and one of their youth workers said he got more out of the young people in six days than he had for the past 18 months working on a youth project."
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