At this time of year, we begin to consider options for our Year 5 children’s four-night residential visit when they are in Year 6. As well as providing a fantastic opportunity for the children to try a wide variety of outdoor adventurous activities, this is also an opportunity for the class to spend time together with their friends before they move on to secondary school. It is something that we place a very high regard on and commitment to at High Firs as we know what an important – and fun! – experience it is for our children. Many of our children will have older siblings who have already attended and, for the first time this year we will have a Year 6 class who will have attended a shorter residential opportunity in Year 4. We really hope that lots of the children will want to come along and we want to be able to enable as many children as we can to do so.

We are very conscious, however, in the current financial climate of the cost implications and considerations for parents in allowing their child to attend. This year we are therefore consulting parents on their views on this and have a number of proposed options to share with you. These are:
• OPTION 1 Keeping the current offer: a four-night stay at the PGL site at Little Canada, Isle of Wight in June 2025. Cost: approx. maximum £630 with payment options spread from initial deposit in July 2024 and regular payments to May 2024.
• OPTION 2 Keeping the current location but changing the date: a four-night stay at the PGL site at Little Canada, Isle of Wight in October 2024. Cost: approx. maximum £400 with payment options spread from initial deposit in July 2024 and two instalments of payments by end of September 2024.
• OPTION 3: Change of location to Blackland Farm, East Grinstead: a four night-stay at Blackland Farm in June 2025 – this is where the children went in Year 4 but a wider range of activities (including water-based activities) would be on offer due to the longer stay and summer season. Cost: approx. maximum £450 with payment options from initial deposit in July 2024 and regular payments to May 2024.

Costs for all options are dependent on numbers attending and the amounts shown are upper estimates which may be reduced if more than minimum numbers attend. July deposit payment will be approx £40.

Both Little Canada and Blackland Farm offer a wide range of outdoor activities, which you can see on their websites:
https://blacklandfarm.org/
https://adventureholidays.pgl.co.uk/camps/little-canada/

We have held very successful previous visits to both sites over a number of years and are very much looking forward to taking Year 6 away again next year.

Please let us know your preference by Friday 5th July.

We will then review the outcomes and make our final decision for 2024/25. Information on this will then be shared as soon as possible with parents. If for any reason your child does not want to attend please also let us know this by completing the comments textbox.