Explore and protect your local National Trail with the kids this summer

Less screen-time, more green-time 

The school holidays are here and many of us are looking for low-cost adventures to enjoy with the kids. With climate change threatening much of what we all love about the South West, many parents and grandparents are keen to teach kids their role in caring for our wild places. Taking part in the South West Coast Path Association’s Challenge over the summer is a great way to achieve both!

Photo credit: Andrea Lim

Make the South West Coast Path Challenge your school holiday project in 5 easy steps:

1) Introduce your kids to their region's spectacular 630-mile National Trail, find out why it needs protecting here. 

2) Plan some exciting adventures on the Trail using the family walk finder and FREE downloadable Coast Path Explorer resources (there are spotter guides, colouring-in sheets, child-friendly maps and more to bring the Path alive). There are some great ideas for themed-walks below. 

3) Set a target together – how about pledging to cover 30 miles of the Coast Path during the summer holidays and raise £60, £2 for every mile you cover? Create a fundraising page or download a sponsorship form from the Challenge Fundraising Hub so your kids can collect small donations from friends, family and neighbours. 

4) Register your fundraising target on the Association website to receive a FREE South West Coast Path Challenge pack by post (including an awesome colourful wall map). 

5) Get exploring and show the kids what an amazing thing they're doing to conserve this unique natural space, right on their doorstep. Don’t forget to take some photos for the kids to look back at when they are older!

Here are some of the Association’s favourite family friendly ideas to make clocking up the miles extra fun

• Organise a group walk with a few other families from the school and bring a pot-luck picnic to share. Ask every family that comes along to put £5 in the pot as their contribution to your fundraiser. Pasties anyone?!
• Try a ‘pick the Path’ and help prevent more plastic getting into our seas. It might sound a bizarre one for the kids, but we’ve been told by several parents that their children enjoy nothing more than a simple litter pick! Just remember some gloves and bags to keep it hygienic.
• Have a go at the Rubbings Trail at Wembury, near Plymouth, designed especially for children. Can you collect all the rubbings on the route?
• And if it rains? How about hosting a Coast Path themed 'crafternoon'? You could print out the colouring-in sheets from the website or paint stones with ocean scenes and ask for a small donation from everyone that joins in.

Ted, 8, uses his school holidays to fundraise every year, he told us why in his own words:

“I like doing fundraising events in the holidays because I can combine me being kind and doing what I love." - well said Ted! 

For more information about the South West Coast Path Challenge and to register for a FREE fundraising pack (including wall map) head to the South West Coast Path Association website. 

For support contact Challenge@southwestcoastpath.org.uk

Have a great summer on the Trail!