Oakley Holidays
Established in
1919
Registered Charity No. 1093381
Limited Company No. 4487467
Registered Charity No. 1093381
Limited Company No. 4487467
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Oakley Holidays |
Established in
1919 Registered Charity No. 1093381 Limited Company No. 4487467 |
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91 years since the first Oakley Holiday at Ardingly in Sussex, 98 boys and girls attended the summer 2010 holiday - again held at Bilton Grange, an imposing house full of character which stands in 160 acres of beautiful parkland on the outskirts of Rugby. 18 members were at their first Oakley Holiday and five were leaders for the first time.
The thirteen comfortable dormitories used ranged in size from 5 to 10 people and everyone enjoyed the top-class cooking from the school catering team which included cooked breakfasts on request and a picnic.  
The excellently-kept playing fields were an ideal setting for some closely-contested team games of volleyball and podex as well as an energetic and popular football and hockey tournament involving 15 sides. The Water Games were manic as usual and a Wide Game involving Werewolves was exciting and slightly scary.
In the afternoons there was a very wide variety of activities to choose from - everything from padder tennis, Japanese for beginners and cookery to face painting, Quidditch and water polo in the heated indoor pool, as well as our own tournaments, played in pairs, of tiddlywinks and walking-stick golf.  
In morning Quiet Times, in discussions groups and in our evening services we thought about and debated a number of current personal, social, religious and environmental topics. These included including the life of Gandhi , the role of celebrities, the importance of the family and issues surrounding an individual’s rights at the start and at the end of life.
Our visit, on a beautiful summer morning, to the nearby country park at Draycote Water included a walk by the reservoir, the creation of a collage from natural materials and ice lollies.  
The dramatic rising of the moon added drama at twilight as each dormitory launched a Chinese Lantern. Toasted Marshmallows and community singing round a bonfire brought one evening to a happy close.
Members contributed over £675 to three chosen charities. Further details of these and several other ‘green’ and charity activities are detailed on a special Charity Review webpage. The raked theatre seating, lighting and stage of the Ravenscroft Hall was just right for members to put on an excellent range of diverse entertainment each evening, many of them devised together by dormitories This featured comedy sketches including The Final Countdown, A Missing Cat and The Ugliest Man in the World. The audience also enjoyed violin, piano, flugelhorn, saxophone and guitar solos, tap, ballet and Egyptian dancing, together with juggling, story-telling, quizzes, solo and ensemble vocal items and community singing.  
Certificates of achievement and a book were presented to new members to mark their first holiday and those making a significant contribution as leaders for the first time marked their new role at the Holidays by choosing gifts for communities in developing countries worth £100.
At the end of the week members were delighted to hear that there will be only a small increase in the cost of the two holidays planned at Bilton Grange for April and July in 2011 and 2012 and that the regional reunions planned for all members in the Christmas Holidays will include the groups from Fareham, Lytham and London.   |
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