A taste of Outward Bound Adventure

Teachers, youth group workers and employers responsible for developing skills in young people joined us at Outward Bound for 24 hours so they could experience how we weave employability skills into our residential programmes. Delegates also got to experience our experiential learning processes first hand. It’s fair to say, everyone jumped in wholeheartedly and fully embraced the experience.

LEAVING THE COMFORT ZONE BEHIND

And there was no time to waste! After arrivals and lunch, our delegates split into four groups to go out onto the loch to take part in either sea kayaking, canoeing, raft building or Tyrolean traverse. But the groups were not just enjoying some outdoor activities in an awe-inspiring location – they were experiencing first-hand how these activities build key skills in young people through experiential learning and taking them outside of their comfort zone. Everyone got stuck in and comfort zones were left behind!

On return to the centre, the four groups then used inspiring spaces around the centre such as learning yurts, to prepare presentations to ‘sell’ the benefits of the activity they had just taken part in to the other groups. To make this happen, they had to work as a team to get the task done – an environment indicative of a real work situation. This gave the opportunity to show one of the many approaches our instructors use to develop employability and personal skills in young people.

ACHIEVING MORE THAN YOU THINK

Day two started off with an impromptu ‘jog and dip’ in the loch for those delegates who were keen to experience Outward Bound to the full after hearing this rite of passage from the instructors the day before. This was then followed by a hearty breakfast and tour of the site and its redevelopment before another day out in the wilderness.

The delegates chose their own activities today from several mountainous options, such as rock climbing and abseiling. After grabbing their kit and lunch, the groups headed out into the Highlands on a glorious sunny day to spend more time finding out about how Outward Bound uses the outdoors to stretch young people to achieve more than they think possible. Given that most of the delegates tried some of their activities for the very first time, they also went away knowing that they can do things that they didn’t think was possible!