Sleeping Under the Stars: Families Experience Their First Campout!

We recently welcomed eight families to the Nature & Wellbeing Centre for our very first overnight campout on site with our friends at ecobirmingham.

For almost every family, this was their first time camping, and everyone embraced the experience with enthusiasm. With support from staff and volunteers, tents were pitched, sleeping bags rolled out as we settled into our home for the night.

Once camp was set up, we learnt how to light a fire and took turns lighting our own using a flint. We then harvested fresh vegetables grown at the Nature & Wellbeing Centre, especially enjoying the small joy of unveiling a hidden potato from beneath the earth, before prepared our evening meal together over the open fire. Sharing food around the campfire, chatting and getting to know one another was a real highlight and a reminder that some of the best moments happen around a shared meal outdoors.

As darkness fell, we were joined by bat expert Emily who led us on a night walk around Edgbaston Reservoir. Armed with bat detectors, families listened to the ultrasonic calls of bats, discovering a hidden world that comes alive after sunset.

Back at camp, we gathered around the fire once more for hot chocolate and popcorn before everyone headed off to their tents.

The night was mostly peaceful, with one lucky camper being woken by the call of a tawny owl. As dawn broke, the reservoir’s waterbirds were first to announce the new day, soon joined by a blackbird.

After lighting the morning fire, everyone began to slowly emerge for a breakfast of freshly harvested potatoes fried over the fire alongside toasted croissants and bread, served with the Red Shed’s homemade gooseberry jam. Campfire coffee was also very welcome! Some of our younger campers were so cosy in their tents they didn’t want to leave them!

After breakfast we explored finds in the overnight moth trap, identifying several larger moths including a Yellow Underwing and a Dusky Thorn, before beginning the task of taking down our tents and squeezing them into their always-to-tight bags.

The feedback from families was overwhelmingly positive. For many, this campout gave them the confidence to try something completely new, discover the joy of sleeping outdoors and everyone wanted to do it again – and stay another night! Feedback included:

“My girls enjoyed being for the first time in a tent, eating popcorn around a campfire.”

“Sitting by the fire, having breakfast, so kind and helpful, delicious food, cosy tent.”

“I enjoy all but mostly putting up the tent.”

“I enjoyed picking veg with my children.”

“Community feel, being together round the campfire.”

“It felt like visiting relatives who instantly take care of you, make sure you’ve eaten, you’re comfortable and you’ve slept well”.

We’re already looking forward to planning more family campouts in the future.

Can you help?

One thing we learnt is that access to camping equipment can be a barrier for many families who would love to experience nights like this. Tents and sleeping bags were kindly donated or borrowed for this campout, however collecting and storing them all is difficult for us!

If you work for, or know of, an organisation that might be interested in partnering with us by sharing tents, camping equipment or outdoor gear for future campouts, we’d love to hear from you. Please email lizzie.forrester@bsettlement.org.uk if you think you can help.