Whether teaching skills or using different activities as a meaningful way of enabling young people to engage with their own learning, the focus of the course is the development of the whole person. A visit to the Frank Chapman Centre is often the most memorable learning experience in a young persons school career, providing, for many, their first time away from home and a chance to see and experience the world in a different way.
No matter what the activity, staff recognise that every person has a different start point and will need differing support to enable them to progress and achieve as much as possible. Tutorial staff at the Centre design educational programmes that are based on the educational needs of individuals and the group as a whole.
Activities that are adventurous, progressive, innovative, challenging and exciting provide opportunities for young people to take ownership of their experience and be challenged at a pace appropriate to their stage of development, no matter what their background or previous experience.
The activities themselves often require commitment, endeavour and resilience. As a result, many young people develop leadership qualities and grow in self-confidence and self-respect, often finding a voice that may not be apparent in their everyday lives.
By using real life settings and experiences, young people have the opportunity to develop an understanding of risk and consequence in a stimulating and challenging environment.
A residential course can help to develop core values, our ethos reflecting a focus on the emotional, physical and mental well-being of every individual.
The skills that young people use and develop during a residential visit are skills for life.
Both the young people themselves and their accompanying staff recognise the importance of the residential for getting to know each other in a different setting – a positive process that often has far-reaching consequences following a residential course.
Taking part in the daily life at the Centre, whether by working with others on activities, completing communal duty jobs and looking after personal belongings, fosters independence, responsibility – for yourself, others and the environment – and an awareness of the issues inherent in living as responsible citizens in both a close and a global community.
A residential trip away at the Frank Chapman Centre compliments many aspects of the Social, Moral, Spiritual and Cultural development of young people, supported by OFSTED.