Leeds Beckett University - City Campus,
Woodhouse Lane,
LS1 3HE
Carnegie Great Outdoors helps young victims of Manchester bombing
The young people, aged between 10 and 16 years old, spent a week in the Lake District doing activities including canoeing, abseiling, climbing, hill walking and ghyll scrambling all aimed at personal development.
All of them were at the Manchester Arena when the bomb exploded nearly a year ago – some were in the arena and heard the bomb, and some were up close to the explosion and were injured or tried to help those around them. Leeds Beckett student Courtney Boyle tragically died in the Manchester attack.
Dave Bunting, Outdoor Development Manager for Carnegie Great Outdoors, said: “We had 11 girls and two boys who had all been affected by the bombing in some way. These children had simply gone to a concert not expecting it to end in tragedy.
“At the beginning of the week we had a group of young people, some of whom hadn’t been away from home and their families since the bombing. At the beginning, there were some tears and you could see a visible lack of confidence in some of them. However, by the end of the week you could see positive change in all of them and see how they had made some significant gains in a short time.
“It is amazing how powerful the outdoor environment, combined with well-balanced activities, can be for a group who have had a shared experience of any kind, but especially powerful and emotional if they have experienced something of this nature.
“We were delighted to be able to work with this group and really hope that their time with us as a lasting impact on their future.”
Since the course finished, Climbing Out has received some feedback from the parents of the children who took part:
· “She has been smiling so much more since she came back and the friendships she has made along the way are there for life. You have made me one step closer to get my daughter back.”
· “He slept for six hours each night over the weekend after the Climbing Out programme. This is more sleep than he’s had in one night since the attack.”
· “She has not stopped smiling since she got home. The girl we dropped off the first day had lost all her confidence, how she is now is a huge difference. We are really proud of her and will be forever grateful to you and your team.”
The Climbing Out charity was founded by Kelda Wood after she suffered a serious leg injury. She has represented Great Britain as a member of the GB Paracanoe squad. The charity works in partnership with Carnegie Great Outdoors and the Youth Hostel Association to run the five-day programmes for young people facing a life changing injury, illness or trauma.
This year, they will be running eight five-day programmes. Each programme relies on donations, if you would like to help go to https://www.justgiving.com/climbingout