My favorite memories come from the sessions I’ve had with kids. Even with the short amount of time you get with a group, you really get to build a relationship with them and you can really see the amount of trust and respect there is. Of course there are always challenges, and for me it was learning how to correct kids if they are disrespectful. I noticed most kids are just having fun and don’t bother on purpose, so if I say it calmly and with respect, they react the same way. There is the occasional kid that still won’t listen but teachers are there to help and there is always the option to take the kid out of the session.

I’d say anyone can give Firm Foundations a go because even if you don’t like the job by the end, you will learn a lot about yourself and gain many useful skills. There are two major characteristics I have seen from the people that enjoy working here and those are: If you enjoy outdoor work, and if you enjoy spending time with people. At the end of the day, the best way for you to know if you are going to like it or not is to do it. My favorite session to do is Canoeing because of how peaceful it is. And any rope session would be my favorite to instruct because you see the kids pushing beyond their limits and you can encourage them to do so. I really enjoyed my time at Whitemoor but personally this industry is not for me, I might use some of the qualifications earned but that’s it.

Working in this industry is exhausting, especially when it comes to the busy season. You are expected to work evenings and weekends, and even though you do get your weekend days back, there were a couple weeks where I worked 40 hours a week. During winter and especially between December and November, there aren’t as many groups coming to the center so you could say you get to recover from other months, but you are still working the same amount of hours (excluding weekends and evenings).

To finish off, I’ll also mention the good things of my year. The amount of opportunities you get is incredible. Not only do you get trained in completely different activities but every single day you earn up hours on them and keep improving. Even if you’d like to improve on a specific skill, Whitemoor offers Personal Performance Awards, which gives you further training purely for your personal gain. This is Whitemoor specific, but I was very impressed by how organized some aspects were. There are different groups assigned to do equipment safety checks and every week we alternate on which one of them starts off the day with a morning message and then ends it by making sure everything has been packed down. Also, everything was color coded, from the schools arriving to the equipment sets, which made work in that place effective and easy to understand. Regarding the environment, there is a lot of support around you, if you are ever struggling on a specific session or don’t feel comfortable enough to do it by yourself, there will always be someone willing to help you and in many different ways. Even if it happens everywhere, you won’t believe the amount of amazing people you will meet. Each person has such a unique personality and I am very grateful I got to know these people.