The new initiative is a response to a report that the National Trust commissioned which revealed that fewer than one in ten children regularly play in wild places compared to 50 years ago. Did you know?…

• A third have never climbed a tree
• One in ten can’t ride a bike
• Three times as many children are taken to hospital after falling out of bed, as falling from a tree

Children under 12 years old now have a list to refer to get them in touch with the great outdoors, and this includes everything from running around in the rain to canoeing down a river.

Kids can not only pick up a free 50 Things To Do Before You’re 11¾ scrapbook from participating National Trust properties but they can also continue the fun at home by visiting: nationaltrust.org.uk/50things where they can fill in their completed activities and earn points towards their very own explorer badge.

Below, is the full list of 50 Things To Do Before You’re 11 ¾ and we have indicated the outdoor activities that Cobnor Activities Centre either already offers or could possibly offer from that list:

Level 1 – Adventurer

• Climb a tree- we can’t offer this at the moment
• Roll down a really big hill – we might be able to do this at Kingly Vale*
• Camp out in the wild – we can do this!
• Build a den – we can do this!
• Skim a stone – we can do this!
• Run around in the rain – we can do this!
• Fly a kite – we might be able to do this*
• Catch a fish with a net – we might be able to do this*
• Eat an apple straight from a tree – we might be able to do this*
• Play conkers – we might be able to do this (as long as we have some conkers!)*

Level 2 – Discoverer

• Throw some snow – we can’t offer this at the moment, unless there’s snow!
• Hunt for treasure on the beach – we can do this!
• Make a mud pie – we can do this!
• Dam a stream – we can fight the tide!
• Go sledging – we can’t offer this at the moment
• Bury someone in the sand – we can do this!
• Set up a snail race – we might be able to do this*
• Balance on a fallen tree – we might be able to do this*
• Swing on a rope swing – we can do this!
• Make a mud slide – we can do this!

Level 3 – Ranger

• Eat blackberries growing in the wild – we might be able to do this*
• Take a look inside a tree – we might be able to do this*
• Visit an island – we can do this!
• Feel like you’re flying in the wind – we might be able to do this*
• Make a grass trumpet – we can do this!
• Hunt for fossils and bones – we can’t offer this at the moment
• Watch the sun wake up – we can do this!
• Climb a huge hill – we can do this!
• Get behind a waterfall – we can’t offer this at the moment
• Feed a bird from your hand – we can’t offer this at the moment

Level 4 – Tracker

• Hunt for bugs – we can do this!
• Find some frogspawn – we can’t offer this at the moment
• Catch a butterfly in a net – we can’t offer this at the moment
• Track wild animals – we might be able to do this*
• Discover what’s in a pond – we might be able to do this*
• Call an owl – we might be able to do this*
• Check out the crazy creatures in a rock pool – we can’t offer this at the moment
• Bring up a butterfly – we can’t offer this at the moment
• Catch a crab – we can do this!
• Go on a nature walk at night – we might be able to do this*

Level 5 – Explorer

• Plant it, grow it, eat it – we can’t offer this at the moment
• Go wild swimming- we can’t offer this at the moment
• Go rafting – we can do this!
• Light a fire without matches – we might be able to do this*
• Find your way with a map and compass – we can do this!
• Try bouldering – we can do this (using an artificial wall)!
• Cook on a campfire – we can do this!
• Try abseiling – we can do this!
• Find a geocache – we can’t offer this at the moment
• Canoe down a river – we can canoe or kayak in Chichester Harbour or Chichester Ship Canal!

You will notice that there are some outdoor activities on this list that we already offer as part of our Multi-Activity Camps, such as abseiling, camping out in the wild, hunting for treasure on the beach, rafting and orienteering (finding your way with a map and compass). There are also activities that we can offer variations of, such as canoeing in Chichester Harbour rather than down a river or fighting the tide in Chichester Harbour rather than damming a stream.

*There are some activities that we might be able to offer for group bookings, given enough notice and if parents provide permission for their children to take part in these activities with us. For example, if you are a school group or other youth organisation that would like to do some of your 50 Things with Cobnor, please get in touch and we will be happy to accommodate as many of these outdoor activities as possible, taking into account seasons and availability.

Get in touch with us today for further information on how we can help you complete your 50 Things To Do Before You’re 11 ¾ list at Cobnor Activities Centre. Happy adventuring!

Over 1000 people turned out to see Collective Spirit (a name chosen by the public vote) take to the water at Thornham Marina in nearby Emsworth.

Gary Winters and Gregg Whelan, known as Lone Twin, gathered wooden donations with stories behind them from across the South East over the past year and pieced them together to create a floating collage of memories.

Wood donated to the project include bits from the Mary Rose, Brighton’s West Pier, the London 2012 velodrome and Jimi Hendrix’ guitar. What a fantastic legacy for sailing and cycling enthusiasts alike!

In the two months leading up to the Olympics, the 30ft yacht, which can reach speeds of over 20 knots, will sail along the South Coast taking a route including Portsmouth, Margate, Brighton and Hastings until she arrives at the Olympic sailing venues in Weymouth and Portland, Dorset.

The Boat Project’s spokeswoman, Tracy Jones, commented on the launch:

“We have had an absolutely superb day and, despite the weather, it’s gone brilliantly.

“More than 1,000 people have come to see the boat with many of them trying to spot the pieces they have donated.

“People have also been desperate to have a go on the tiller because that’s where the Jimi Hendrix bit is.”

The Cobnor Activities Centre team is delighted to hear of a community project combining sailing and culture for the 2012 Olympics and we can’t wait to hear more on Collective Spirit’s progress as she makes her way along the South Coast.

Go-Ride is British Cycling’s development programme for young people, which provides a fun yet safe way to introduce young riders to cycle sport as well as a platform for them to improve their bike handling skills.

Launching on St George’s Day, so you can think of Go-Ride at Cobnor as a chance to climb upon a trusty bicycle steed and slay those cycling demons!

We can provide both bicycles and helmets but you are welcome to bring your own if you or your child prefers.

Our planned West Sussex routes over the next eight weeks will run through and close to the South Downs Way Cycle Route and include locations such as: Centurion Way, West Dean Village, Stansted and Stoughton.

The cost of the eight week course is just £52 – a bargain when you think of the new cycling skills and mountain bike confidence your child will achieve with this outdoor activity course.

We have just 14 places available but these places are filling fast so please get in touch if you’d like to book a place for Go-Ride at Cobnor.

Cobnor Activities Centre also offers British Schools Cycling Association Mountain Bike/Off Road Leaders’ Courses, which are affiliated with British Cycling. Please see our scheduled courses page to check details, dates and availability of all cycling and mountain biking courses.

Last week, Jess Lavery and Georgie Mothersele of Emsworth, just down the road from Cobnor Activities Centre, joined almost 350 of Brittain’s best sailors to battle it out at the 2012 RYA Volvo Youth National Championships for the second year running.

The 420 dinghy sailors brought home gold to Chichester Harbour when they took part in last year’s event held at Hayling Island. They were then selected to go to Croatia for the ISAF Youth Sailing World Championships in 2011, where they finished in the top ten. After their trip to Croatia, they claimed silver at the 2011 Open 420 Junior European Championships in Belgium. Just recently, they finished fifth overall and were the second female sailors back at the 420 Spring Championships, held in Weymouth Bay – home of sailing for the 2012 Olympics.

After their fifth race out on the Welsh waters near Pwllheli Sailing Club last weekend, where they finished sixth, Jess commented:

“We’re a lot more relaxed this year, we’ve come into the regatta with the same approach as we did last year and there is still at least five more races to which we can easily claw back places on the top female boat – so actually we are feeling pretty positive!”

These Chichester Harbour girls did not disappoint, they managed to gain some momentum and finished a fantastic fifth out of thirty six 420 teams at this year’s 2012 RYA Volvo Youth National Championships. Next, they’re off to the ISAF Youth Sailing World Championships in Dublin where they’ll be up against tough competition from Bermuda, Norway, Sweden and New Zealand for a top place.

World champion sailor Ben Ainslie, who is competing for his fourth consecutive gold medal at the 2012 Olympics, is also a previous RYA Volvo Youth National Championship winner so Cobnor Activities Centre is holding out big hope for these local girls.

Have you been encouraged by Jess and Georgie to try your hand at sailing? Check out Cobnor Activities Centre’s upcoming RYA sailing courses here.

After meeting Mary Atkinson when she took part in Chichester Copywriter’s Writers’ Retreat last year, and on hearing that she needed prize donations for her charity fundraiser, we were only too happy to help. Mary held a Japanese Evening in Chichester on 10^th March to raise money to work with COCORO in order to bring positive touch to children affected in last year’s devastating Tsunami in Japan. Read more about Mary’s project here.

Cobnor Activities Centre donated a £40 voucher to the cause, valid for use against many of our sessions and courses including Multi-Activity Days during the Easter Holidays. This voucher was sold in a charity auction as part of a ‘Fun for all the Family’ package, which also included a term of gymnastics classes at Southbourne Gym Club, two day tickets to the Weald and Downland Museum and other prizes. The fun-filled package reached a fantastic £75.00 at auction, going some way towards more than £1500 raised that evening.

Our fundraising efforts didn’t stop there this March; we were also contacted via Twitter by a young lady called Sarah Bevis who has previously enjoyed outdoor activities at Cobnor Activities Centre. Sarah asked whether we would be prepared to donate a raffle prize for the Chichester High School Sixth Form Quiz Night in aid of Amnesty International. Again, we obliged and Sarah and her comrades raised £500 at their quiz last week!

If you’re organising a fundraising event in the Chichester area and you’re looking for raffle prizes, Cobnor Activities Centre might be able to help. Just contact a member of our marketing team with details of your charity and event.

Here are some photos by James Saunders (JWS Photography) of Mary Atkinson’s fundraiser, which was attended by Chief Sailing Intructor Pete and Kate from Cobnor Activities Centre:

Whether you want to enjoy the lighter evenings or you are looking to take up a new sport, Cobnor Activities Centre has the ideal solution. Come and join us on one of our evening or weekend classes, open to both adults and children, which start in April 2012.

There are a range of evening and weekend outdoor activity courses for you to choose from:

• Learn to Sail
• Learn to Kayaking
• Learn Canoeing
• Learn Archery
• Improve your Mountain Biking skills

Perhaps your kids are looking for fun over the Easter Holidays or you are a parent wanting a bit of peace and quiet, if so our exciting Spring Multi-Activity Days could be the option.

Not only are Multi-Activity Days at Cobnor Activities Centre affordable – just £38 per day – they are also available for any number of days during the Easter Break and there are different activities running each day. This means that kids can come along when they are available, they won’t get bored and they’ll learn some new skills!

Visit our full programme of scheduled outdoor activities to find out more. Call us on: 01243 572791 or email sail@cobnor.com to book on to one of our evening courses, weekend courses or Multi-Activity Days.

Presenters Julia Bradbury and Hugh Dennis took a look at what the South Downs has to offer, from East Sussex to Hampshire. They talked about the myriad outdoor activities that are associated with this area and paid special attention to West Sussex, where Cobnor is located.

Not only are walks and mountain biking popular along the South Downs Way, a route that Hugh admitted to favouring, but also West Sussex’s chalky Downs are ideal for horse racing. Goodwood, near Chichester, is well-known for its race course and the calcium-rich grass found throughout the South Downs means that the area is ideal to rear thoroughbred horses.

The BBC presenters also looked at chalk climbing and paragliding towards East Sussex. Our Chief Sailing Instructor, Pete, is due to go paragliding on the South Downs this summer and he can’t wait – yet another outdoor activity experience to add to his list! And, although Cobnor can’t offer chalk climbing, we do have a fantastic climbing wall and abseiling tower on-site which would make a great starting point for those interested in chalk climbing.

Julia Bradbury also met with a local archer in what looked like Kingley Vale woods, an area where we often carry out orientation sessions during Multi-Activity Camps in the summer. The local revealed a passion for archery using a more traditional method – flint arrow-heads. Together, they created razor-sharp flint arrow-heads from shafts of local flint, a technique for used by hunters in the Stone Age. Cobnor Activities Centre offers archery sessions for all ages and abilities but we opt for more conventional arrows!

See a clip of The Great British Countryside on iPlayer here.

Get in contact with us to book sailing lessons or to find out more about archery, climbing, mountain biking and all the other outdoor activities that our South Downs location has to offer.

Mary Atkinson at the Writers' Retreat, Cobnor, 2011.

Cobnor Activities Centre is supporting a Chichester based therapist and author, Mary Atkinson, in her initiative to bring support to the victims of the Japanese Tsunami through positive touch.

An article in the Chichester Observer (Thursday 9th February 2102) launched her campaign to raise £3000 to ensure that the project goes ahead in April 2012 – just over a year after the disaster.

The Tsunami – A Year On

We were all so shocked by the terrifying pictures of the devastating earthquake and Tsunami that hit Japan on March 2011. As the powerful Tsunami swept through the east, local people were forced to flee their homes, offices and schools. 14,728 people were killed and thousands are still missing.

Nearly a year later, Mary Atkinson says she feels privileged to have the opportunity to volunteer to do something positive to help. In April 2012, she is joining a group of Japanese holistic therapists to set up and deliver a positive touch for children programme in kindergartens and schools in Rikuzentakata, Iwate, one of the cities hardest hit by the Tsunami. Of a population of 24,000 there are 2000 killed or missing.

Mary’s invitation comes from COCORO (The Japanese word for Mind) a charity set up by Japanese aromatherapist, Takiko Ando, to help heal emotional wounds through soothing massage and the therapeutic power of essential oils.

The benefits of Takiko’s work are remarkable.  Haunted by shock and fear, local people have lost loved ones, homes and possessions.  Conditioned by their culture not to burden others with their suffering, they experience recurring nightmares, depression and high anxiety levels. However, with calming massage, people begin to talk more openly about their grief and trauma, and say they sleep better and feel new hope for the future.

Positive Touch for Tsunami Children

In October 2011, Takiko asked for Mary’s help in developing COCORO’s work with children as she had read her books Healing Touch for Children and Hand and Foot Massage . Inspired by Takiko’s dedication and request, Mary became determined to do all to make valuable initiative happen.

Mary’s aim is to share knowledge and experience with COCORO therapists, local teachers and social workers to educate children and adults in supporting each other through nurturing touch. The benefits will continue long after we have left for the UK.

How you can help COCORO’s work

• Mary aims to raise £3000 to set up and deliver the positive touch for children training programme so that the children continue to get benefits for many years to come.  A project account has been set up at the Nationwide Building Society. If you would like to make a donation please contact Mary Atkinson.
• Several fund-raising activities are being organised and prizes (large and small) are needed for an auction, raffle and tombola to be held on March 10th, the anniversary weekend of the Tsunami.

Cobnor Activities Centre’s aim is to help educate young people, to develop their physical, mental and spiritual capacities so that they may grow to full maturity as individuals and members of society and that their conditions of life may be improved.

It’s our pleasure to offer Mary a voucher prize for her raffle so that we can help her to raise the funds needed to set up and deliver the positive touch for children training programme. Through helping Mary, Cobnor Activities Centre can contribute to helping to develop the mental and spiritual capacities of young Japanese people after the terrible ordeal that they suffered last year.

The Charlton Chase is a night navigation exercise run for the youth of West Sussex by the County Youth & Community Service. Running since 1981, it’s an elite event run over open country on the South Downs and bad weather is always a big risk. This challenging outdoor activity event involves:

• Team Work
• Navigation Skills
• Physical Demands

This year, Cobnor Activities Centre entered three teams in the standard section, where teams of 4 (aged 15-21 years) walked at 4 km per hour. They were tasked with navigating and undertaking team challenges in under 8 hours. The teams were named Team Anything, The Hopalongs and It’s The Journey.

However, the temperature was -4°C, the wind speed was at least 30 knots and overnight snow made conditions hazardous on roads surrounding the area meaning that the event had to be abandoned. This is where the planning and training for the event really paid off – all participants were cooperative and good humoured and regrouped safely back at Seaford College. Once back at base, Cobnor’s teams and staff enjoyed a well-earned breakfast and lashings of hot chocolate before travelling home.

“Cobnor Activities Centre was established in 1979 and continues to offer a range of courses to give young people in the local area the opportunity to experience challenging outdoor activities, both water and land based,” explains Mark Murray-Brown, Centre Manager. “But we are receiving an increasing number of enquiries from businesses and organisations in the South of England looking to offer their staff ‘something different’ in the way of team-building, with an ever-diminishing budget. We realise that we are perfectly positioned to meet this increase in demand and we are able to offer a tailor-made day in an idyllic setting. Cobnor can offer groups, ranging from 8 to 100 people, a team-building experience that is affordable and fun as well as achieving the desired purpose of getting teams to work more effectively together.”

Companies and organisations work with the instructors at Cobnor to plan their bespoke day around a variety of activities, which could include: sailing, canoeing, kayaking, climbing, mountain biking, archery, low ropes, orienteering and raft building. There is also optional on-site catering and a residential block. Cobnor is served by good road and rail links to London, Surrey, Hampshire and Sussex.

After attending a corporate activities day last year, Vanessa Aquilina, a teacher from Bosham Primary School, said: “We had a fantastic corporate day at Cobnor. What a wonderful programme you put together for us! It was extremely well organised, and the lunch on the beach was superb. What a great way to spend a day … and team build with your colleagues at the same time.”

Should you wish to find out more about our team-building activities or make a booking, please call us on: 01243 572791 or email: sail@cobnor.com.