Camp CLAPA

Camp CLAPA

• You will have the opportunity to enjoy lots of activities on Camp! Take a look at the timetable below for an example of a typical weekend at Camp
• Camps also include plenty of free time when you can choose to relax or play games with new friends 
• We will encourage you to take part in all of the activities, but this is your weekend, and the most important thing is that you make positive memories and have fun! So if you don’t like heights, or you get tired or you just need to take some time out, all of this is fine! The weekend is about challenging yourself but also having the agency to tell us when you need to step out of activities or take a break.
• A team of CLAPA staff and volunteers lead camps and most volunteers are adults who were born with a cleft.  You will also get to know CLAPA volunteers, they are there to support you, to encourage you to get involved and to help keep you safe. Most volunteers have a connection to cleft and will be happy to share their experiences with you
• Camps are designed to help you build confidence, feel good about yourself, and feel connected to others born with a cleft, they can also be a space to talk about cleft-related topics if you would like to 
• We hope you leave the weekend feeling positive and part of a community.

“I loved my Clapa residential.  It was great fun. We did archery, rock climbing and had a campfire with marshmallows! Rock climbing was a bit scary but I climbed up a little bit and was proud. It was very special because everybody was born with a cleft like me. I had an operation the week after the residential and it was really nice to see other children who have operations. I made three really good friends. We all shared a room together and stayed up late chatting and being cheeky! We even had secret snacks in our room. My favorite memory was going to the tuck shop with my new friends. I can’t wait to go on another Clapa residential because they are so much fun and no parents allowed!“

• A Zoom catch-up with Camp CLAPA staff helps us to get to know you, find out how you are feeling about camp and learn about any support needs or or things we need to know
• Then a whole group pre-meet on Zoom usually helps everyone get to know each other a little before the weekend. These are generally about an hour long and involve lots of fun games and activities and some information about the weekend
• We will invite you to a Zoom catch up with everyone after Camp so that we can celebrate your achievements and share our memories from the weekend.
• A few weeks before we will send you a Camp welcome pack with all of the details you should need. Things like what to pack, what activities we will be doing, who the CLAPA staff and volunteers will be, who you will be sharing a room with and what time we’ll arrive and leave the centre.

Young people of all backgrounds, races, religions, genders, sexualities, and differences are welcome at our events. If there’s anything we can do to make you feel more comfortable and welcome, please let us know when you sign up (there’s a space on the signup form to do this). 

Each weekend looks a little different, depending on the centre and the activities we can choose from but a typical weekend will look something like this:

If you have any questions about Camp CLAPA Weekends, please email [email protected].

Hope to see you on a CLAPA weekend soon!

All the Camp CLAPA Activity Weekends in 2024 have now finished – look out for 2025 dates and locations to be announced in the Spring! Make sure to sign up to alerts about events and opportunities relevant to you, and for CLAPA Connect e-newsletters to learn all about the rest of our work.