Any experiences of the Woodcraft Folk?

[bourneville]

I have family friends in Scotland whose kids are now late teens/early 20s who went to Woodcraft and absolutely rave about it, so I have looked into it for dd who is 2.6. Unfortunately there aren't any "Elfin" groups locally, only groups for over 5 yo but the woman who emailed me back said i am welcome to bring dd, that her baby has been going since he was born and that it is all very family friendly etc and they could find a way for us to be involved. Sounded v nice, but was just wondering if anyone else is involved with Woodcraft and what sort of things i could get involved with, bearing in mind dd is only 2.6?

My friend takes her 4 children to Woodcraft. I'm not exactly sure what goes on (can't get the image of little children sitting around whittling out of my head)but I know that they have been on some great camping trips during the summer holidays.

There is an active Woodcraft Folk branch in our city and I know people who were involved in it long ago, when their now grown-up children were little. I can't give you any info about what they do for young children, but I do remember looking at the national website a while ago, so you could try there. I know that they do a lot of worthwhile activities with older children - outdoor stuff a la guides/scouts - but also that they have camps where the children learn how to make decisions, run a community fairly etc. It sounds a bit like the scouts/guides, but without all the queen and country ideology. We shall definitely get involved when DD is a bit older (she is 3).

Thanks all. Will check it out. That's what i liked the sound of OldieMum - not all queen & country or competitive like brownies/guides (not that i know much about thme, ijust know my mum didn't send us to brownies for that reason! We would've loved to have gone to brownies,so i'd like dd to be involved in something outisde school, that tbh sounds more worthwhile! )

I didn't realise Woodcraft Folk was still going! I had completely forgotton but I used to go as a child, it was great fun, we learnt a lot about wildlife and the environment - recycling and not littering, that kind of thing.

Hi,
we have been taking DS4 for about year now. He loves it, at this age it seems to be a bit of alternative playgroup. They have lots of camping trips and day outings on the weekends as. We hope to continue to go for many years to come

Wow total blast from the past!

In the Woodcraft Folk from Elfin, through Pioneer and up to Venturer and I loved it! I'm sure I still have my shirt somewhere. It was much better than guides and brownies, less up itself and far more lentil weavey (if thats your bag) I was gutted when we moved to Plymouth and there was no active group there. Guides always seemed very prissy in comparison.

More seriously though its good honest fun. We used to go on lots of nature hikes and rambles, do lots of conservation stuff, lots of environmental stuff covered etc. We used to go camping on Co-Op farms and help with jobs like milking cows and the like.

If theres a strong group in your area I couldn't recommend it highly enough!

If you want more info have a peek on their website - thier bigger than the scout / guide movement (or they were when I was a memeber)

\link{http://www.woodcraft.org.uk/aboutus/who.php\Woodcraft Folk}

Lots of friends here go, they all seem to love it (as do the children!). I know people have taken little ones along, but I think the activities are usually geared towards older ones, aren't they. Seems like a nice community feel though.

I heard a nice thing about it a while ago, from someone who was re-upholstering our sofa. He had just got back from a Woodcraft Folk camping weekend with his children, He said he felt a real sadness driving down the hill from the campsite, away from an environment that felt classless and back into the real world of class divisions. It was very touching.

my brother & i went as children & i have very happy memories of it, especially the camping trips & the singing. i enjoyed it much more than brownies.

sounds fantastic
I clicked on the link about the Global Village and international sister organisations but can't find specific countries, anyone know if they have anything similar Downunder over here?

Excellent, have had what i already thought confirmed! :) Will go along soon with dd even though she's too young just to introduce ourselves!

Glad you mentioned it bourneville - you got me thinking. DD is too young as well at the moment (only 2) but I'm going to start researching and maybe go along and have a look see how active they are in our area.

I LOVED it as a kid - so she should enjoy it I hope!

Suzy I'm sure they do have a sister organisastion over in Australia. I'm suret here were Australians at the worl djamboree thin I went to as a kid. It may not be called woodcraft folk - often they have a different name in different nations. I'm sure you'd be able to find out through the co-op movement which they are strongly connected with.