£100
funds a child’s first guided trip to the top of a mountain
£500
funds a child’s residential week exploring the rugged outdoors
£6,000
funds a school group of 12 for a residential week in the rugged outdoors
£30,000
funds a school year group for a residential week
About Us
The Mountain Adventure Fund (MAF) is a major initiative that has been launched to provide children and young people from financially disadvantaged backgrounds throughout the United Kingdom with the opportunity to spend a week in the mountains and to be inspired and motivated by the challenges mountain environments have to offer.
This initiative is spearheaded by the Mountain Training Trust who operate the historic Plas y Brenin Centre in Eryri (Snowdonia) and who will make the Centre the hub for this groundbreaking scheme. Plas y Brenin is the National Outdoor Centre for England and has been the inspiration for many of the leading climbers and mountaineers in the UK, with the local area holding particular historical significance as the training ground for Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay’s 1953 Everest expedition.
In Autumn 2023, the Mountain Training Trust and Plas y Brenin ran a successful pilot for the Mountain Adventure Fund (MAF) with a programme which enabled 50 children from two inner-city London schools to join two one-week outdoor activity courses.
We have extended the pilot this year to take up to 150 children and young people to Plas y Brenin for both introductory and progression courses in the outdoors.
On the back of this success we are now formally launching the MAF programme to give up to 500 children and young people the opportunity to experience the benefits of adventure in the rugged outdoors.
We want everyone with a passion for the outdoors to support us to pass on your passion and enjoyment to others.
What We Offer
We offer the funding for schools and other participating organisations to take children and young people to a residential multi-adventure week at Plas y Brenin. The weeks range from an introduction to a range of outdoor activities to progression courses that will extend their skills along the established nationally recognised pathways. We also help the schools and participating organisations to give their children the opportunity to continue pursuing these activities throughout the year in their local communities at local climbing walls, paddling and other centres.
The multi-adventure weeks at Plas y Brenin are five-day programmes tailored to the needs and abilities of the group, immersing the participants in diverse outdoor challenges.
A typical example for an introductory week would be:
- Day 1: Arrival at the centre, orientation, and engaging in team-building activities.
- Day 2: Climbing and abseiling under the guidance of qualified instructors.
- Day 3: Mountain walking and navigation skill development.
- Day 4: Gorge walking and paddle sports to build water confidence.
- Day 5: Concluding activities, group reflections, and departure.
We typically fund 75% of the course plus full travel costs, with the remainder provided by the schools or families. We strive to ensure no child misses out due to financial constraints and we can potentially commit to a higher level of funding depending on the specific circumstances.
For 2024, we have raised funds to take up to 150 children from across the country to Plas y Brenin. This includes Year 6 children experiencing their first adventure in the outdoors, Year 7 returnees from the pilot programme progressing their skills in the outdoors and young people from inner-city climbing walls experiencing real rock for the first time.
We are now planning our programme for 2025, with the goal of extending the impact of our programme further, enabling up to 500 children and young people to experience the benefits of adventure in the rugged outdoors.
If you are a school, club, or society interested in getting involved or learning more about the programme, please contact us at info@mountainadventurefund.org.
Our Impact
Generational shift: Fewer than 10% of children now play in wild places compared with 40% of adults when they were young.
Mental health: Mental health is one of the biggest challenges facing our society today – across the whole population, but especially in children and young people, with the periods of lockdown during Covid exacerbating this problem. An estimated one in five children and young people suffered a mental health disorder in 2023, a marked deterioration on the pre covid period.
A number of studies have shown that taking part in nature-based activities or immersing yourself in nature help people who are suffering from mental ill-health recover their personal strength and resilience and contribute to a reduction in levels of anxiety, stress and depression.
Physical Health: The latest Government survey confirms that in the UK over 36% of 10-11 year olds are overweight or obese! Without support or intervention these young people are likely to require medical help all their lives and will be much more prone than those of normal weight to develop non-communicable diseases like diabetes and cardiovascular diseases at a younger age.
Educational outcomes: Students who are physically active tend to have better grades, school attendance, cognitive performance and classroom behaviour; and the outcome of all the class improves if those with the poorest behaviour improve.
Participation in our outdoor courses is designed to foster crucial personal and social outcomes among children:
- Confidence and Character: Boosting self-esteem through challenging outdoor activities.
- Emotional Wellbeing: Supporting mental health by connecting with nature and peers.
- Resilience: Encouraging perseverance and adaptability in unfamiliar environments.
- Managing risk: learning how to deal with new challenges and difficult situations
- Social and Emotional Awareness: Enhancing teamwork, communication, and empathy.
- Leadership skills: Taking the initiative, working in teams, making and developing friendships and shared interests.
- Activity Skills: Developing competence in a wide range of outdoor pursuits.
- Broadened Horizons: Inspiring a lifelong interest in outdoor learning and physical activity. Showing young people that there are careers to aim for in the outdoor world.
- Environmental Awareness: Instilling a sense of responsibility towards the natural world and respect for the natural environment – instilling this as a lifelong passion.
Support Us
MAF has been funded so far by generous donations from companies and private individuals, all motivated by their strong belief in the beneficial impact of rugged outdoor activities on children’s personal development, physical well-being and mental health.
The initiative is now raising funds for the 2025 program and beyond, and is appealing to every person and organisation in the UK with an interest in the outdoors and outdoor activities and sports to help give the next generation the same opportunity as has clearly motivated and helped us.
Whether you are an occasional hiker or an avid climber, a brilliant kayaker or curious hillwalker, we can all make an impact on these children – inspiring them to be motivated by the outdoors and respectful for the beauty of natural environments.
All personal donations are eligible for Gift Aid, making your support go even further in providing life-changing outdoor experiences.
We can’t do this without your support and there are many ways that you can achieve that.
Corporate Sponsorship
Companies are fantastic partners for us, supporting us both financially and with their employees acting as volunteers. We can tailor the partnership with you depending on the size of your organization and help you fulfil your ESG ambitions in a very tangible way.
Whether you are involved in the outdoor industry or employ people who are active in the outdoors, please consider supporting us.
Strategic partnerships – We value close relationships with companies and organisations and as well as funding there are many ways you could partner with us; we can tailor this to match your organisation’s interests and priorities.
Chosen charity of the year – If your team or employee base are active in the outdoors then this would be very consistent with your values and interests, make a difference of the lives of the next generation through sharing our passion for the outdoors.
Endorsement and marketing – If you believe in what we are doing then help us spread the word in your business and social communities – endorsing our message and encouraging interest and support; using your social media channels to spread our messages and achievements with your input.
Events – We can provide you with a list of fundraising ideas and events in which you could participate to raise money on our behalf; alternatively, we can create bespoke events, challenges or competitions for you and your teams or for you to compete against peer organisations – all linked to the theme of being challenged by the outdoors.
Employee development – All of what we do in the outdoors could be relevant to your employees; we offer opportunities to get involved as volunteers and for those interested to develop their skills and experience in their chosen outdoor activities – up to elite level.
Please contact us at info@mountainadventurefund.org for more details.
Personal Donations
By donating to us as a one off or as a regular donation you are making a difference to the next generation and giving them the chance to be inspired positively by the outdoors in everything they do.
Please help us make this impact by being as generous as you can:
Watch the Film
Learn from the children who've benefitted from the MAF.
