Tag: summer holidays

UK Government launches Rediscover Summer campaign

  • The campaign highlights a range of activities and opportunities for families, children and young people such as exploring a local museum or discovering a National Cycling Network Trail
  • Families encouraged to get back out and Rediscover Summer after a year of missed opportunities

The government’s Rediscover Summer campaign has launched to help inspire families to get out and about safely and make the most out of summer.

Whether it’s visiting the places that inspired your favourite books, trying out a new sport or even learning how to code, the campaign will show families that there are plenty of new activities to try wherever they live. Throughout the duration of the campaign, each week of the summer holidays will promote a separate theme from sport and creativity to nature and heritage.

A Save The Children survey has shown how the pandemic has negatively impacted the social lives of our children and young people, with a third of children playing alone more, and a quarter having played less sport since the pandemic, raising concerns about the impact on their well-being.

To help combat this, the government is encouraging families to Rediscover Summer and enjoy the range of leisure activities on offer after a year of missed opportunities.

Tourism Minister Nigel Huddleston said: “Our young people deserve a summer filled with exciting and enriching activities after everything they’ve missed out on as we’ve fought to control the virus.

“We want families to get out there and enjoy what’s on offer, and our Rediscover Summer campaign will help them do that. The summer has been given the best possible start with a terrific England run in the Euros.”

Children and Families Minister Vicky Ford said: “Rediscover Summer will provide families with some fantastic opportunities to get back to the activities they may have missed out on over the last year.

“Our Summer Home Activities list will offer up more free ideas and options for children to stay active and have fun, and our expanded Holiday Activities and Food programme will also help families access opportunities both indoors and outdoors.

“Parents have worked so hard to keep their children entertained so I hope they can take advantage of these to use the holidays creatively, helping to boost children’s wellbeing after what has been a really difficult time.

Launching today, a gov.uk page features a taste of the activities available over the summer to inspire parents and families and help young people get involved in their local communities. The activities suggested range from the Summer Reading Challenge to Chance to Shine cricket sessions and from trips to the Imperial War Museum to Mercury Theatre’s Family sing-a-long.

No matter where you live, the campaign will show there is something for everyone.

Visit the Rediscover Summer guide

Working closely with our partners, including Arts Council England, Sport England and National Museums Greenwich to help promote the breadth of summer activities on offer, this campaign will help get young people out and about this summer and make a difference in their communities.

This campaign will also be supported by the Summer Home Activities List due to be published online in the coming weeks which will inspire activities for families to do in and around their home this summer.

Royston Wardieburn Community Centre to reopen next week

Phased reopening for capital’s community centres

A number of community centres will be providing a variety of children, youth and adult work next week as part of a phased approach by the City of Edinburgh Council to opening up more public services.

The centres at Jack Kane, South Bridge, Royston Wardieburn, Ratho, Clovenstone, Pentland and Goodtrees will be open in a limited way from Monday 12 July.

More community centres will have limited opening over the coming weeks as management committees liaise with the Council over what services can be provided in line with the latest health advice.

Up to now community centres had only been accessed to support essential services such as food poverty programmes, support for vulnerable groups and regulated childcare. From Monday there will be access for key youth groups and other children and adult activities.

The activities being provided are in addition to the Get into Summer programme of events which aims to children and their families to play, socialise and re-connect over the summer holidays.

Councillor Donald Wilson, Culture and Communities Convener for the City of Edinburgh Council, said: “It’s absolutely vital for our citizens that our community centres are able to welcome them back as soon as possible so it’s welcome that we’ve been able to accelerate their opening.

“They’re a focal hub for our communities and you can’t underestimate the positive effect they have on people of all ages who benefit enormously from using them.”

Councillor Amy McNeese-Mechan, Culture and Communities Vice Convener for the City of Edinburgh Council, said: “I’m sure people will be pleased to hear that essential services such as youth work along with other activities will soon be resuming in our community centres.

“These buildings are much-loved local spaces, like our libraries and sports venues, and the important role they will play in the city’s recovery from the pandemic is immeasurable.”

A passport to summer fun!

While COVID-19 travel restrictions mean that many of us will be having staycations this year, Edinburgh Leisure has their own passport for a summer of fun for your children and the family.

With the summer holidays approaching, the city’s biggest sports and leisure provider, Edinburgh Leisure, is bringing back the summer fun safely to their centres. Whether you are looking for a one-off activity for the family to enjoy, or some fast-track lessons to help make up for lost time, Edinburgh Leisure has it covered.

For gymnastics and aqua camps, children can be booked in for a day or for the whole week. Early drop-offs and late pick-ups are available.

A must for anyone who enjoys water, at the Aqua Camp, children from the age of 7 years can enjoy a variety of pool activities whilst working towards recognised Scottish Swimming and Royal Life Saving Society awards.

Little gymnasts from Primary 1+ will be entertained by Edinburgh Leisure’s coaches with activities including technique practice, stretching, and conditioning, vault and bar sessions into Tumbles’ foam pits, beam sessions, coaching the coaches, learning how to judge, and working on a routine.

And with climbing set to feature for the first time at the Tokyo 2021 Olympics, inspire them with the adventure and climbing camps at EICA Ratho. If your child is between 8-14 years old and new to climbing, the EICA’s week-long Adventure Camp brings together thrilling indoor and outdoor activities including climbing, Clip ‘n Climb, and abseiling.

For older children between 10-17 years, and more experienced climbers looking to get outdoors, Edinburgh Leisure’s Rock Camp combines bouldering and indoor sessions with outdoor ‘trad’ and sport climbing at some of Central Scotland’s most renowned crags.

And for children looking for some sports coaching lessons, there is lots of choice across the city whether your child wants to try something new, or just enjoy more of their favourite classes. Coaching sessions are available in tennis, swimming, gymnastics, diving, trampoline, climbing and dance.

And new for this year, is Swim Diving and Fun and Deep-Water Swimming and Fun sessions.

In Swim Diving and Fun, swimmers will learn how to shallow dive for swimming starts, this includes push and glide skills, handstands, surface dives and more. In Deep Water Swimming and Fun, the coaches cover the fun things everyone loves to do in deep water and how to keep safe near water. Being underwater is a lot of fun and there will be games and activities to help swimmers improve their underwater skills.

Also in the pool, there will be some Summer Diving session on the diving boards at the Commie Pool or for 9–14-year-olds, they can book into the pool with their friends for Edinburgh Leisure’s Junior Swim sessions.

And teens can also stay active in the holidays with the NRG Zone Gym Camps for S1 – 15-year-olds. With full access to Edinburgh Leisure’s well-equipped gyms, Edinburgh Leisure’s trained instructors will be on-hand to coach correct technique and use of equipment.

Gym access at any time accreditation is granted after completion of Edinburgh Leisure’s 5-day camp. Keep an eye on Edinburgh Leisure’s website for more information including how to book. It’s free to junior members but costs £21 for non-members.

And if you are looking for family activities, Edinburgh Leisure has lots of choices for the family to enjoy together and to burn off surplus energy.

The very first in Scotland, Edinburgh Leisure’s AquaDash and new AquaDash Extreme at the Royal Commonwealth Pool is a fantastic inflatable playground on water. Fun-seekers will slide, climb, and bounce their way through the thrilling obstacles, beating each one and racing friends and family.

Or take the experience to new heights with AquaDash Extreme, with its awesome addition of double slides from the 3m or 5m dive platforms. Spaces are popular, so make sure you book well in advance. Booking goes live 28 days before for each available session so ensure you check Edinburgh Leisure’s website regularly.

And Clip ‘n Climb at the Edinburgh International Climbing Arena will have the family reaching new heights with 15 climbing elements providing a range of features and levels suitable for children and adults. And it is suitable for beginners.

There’s also a Family Climb Taster session at the EICA. Even if you’ve never climbed before, this 90-minute taster session is for you. Children must be 4 years+ with at least 1 adult 18 years+ in the group for up to 3 children, or 2 adults 18 year+ in the group for up to 4 children. Maximum of 4 children per session.

To find out more about the activities and book online, visit:

Holiday Club – Edinburgh Leisure

We’re all going on a summer holiday?

England lifts self–isolation for lower risk countries in time for the holidays

  • Passengers returning to or visiting England from certain destinations – Germany, France, Spain and Italy – will no longer need to self-isolate on arrival from 10 July. More countries will be added to the list later today
  • Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) will set out exemptions for a number of destinations from its global advisory against ‘all but essential’ international travel, with changes coming into effect on 4 July.
  • All passengers, except those on a small list of exemptions, will still be required to provide contact information on arrival in the UK.
  • Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have not yet decided their own arrangements.

Passengers returning or visiting from certain destinations which pose a reduced risk to the public health of UK citizens, including Spain and Italy, will no longer need to self-isolate when arriving in England, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps will set out today (Friday 3 July).

The Scottish Government is yet to make a decision on whether to relax travel restrictions.

The new measures will come into force from 10 July, meaning that people arriving from selected destinations will be able to enter England without needing to self-isolate, unless they have been in or transited through non-exempt countries in the preceding 14 days.

A risk assessment has been conducted by the Joint Biosecurity Centre, in close consultation with Public Health England and the Chief Medical Officer. The assessment draws on a range of factors including the prevalence of coronavirus, the numbers of new cases and potential trajectory of the disease in that destination.

The list of countries will be published later today. A number of countries will be exempted from the requirement for passengers arriving into England to self-isolate for 14 days. All passengers, except those on a small list of exemptions, will still be required to provide contact information on arrival in the UK.

The Government’s expectation is that a number of the exempted countries will also not require arrivals from the UK to self-isolate. This will mean that holidaymakers travelling to and from certain destinations will not need to self-isolate on either leg of their journey.

The exempted countries and territories will be kept under constant review, so that if the health risks increase self-isolation measures can be re-introduced to help stop the spread of the disease into England.

The Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) has also updated its global advisory against ‘all but essential’ international travel to exempt certain destinations that no longer pose an unacceptably high risk of COVID-19.

When planning holidays or overseas travel, people should therefore check the latest FCO travel advice on gov.uk, including whether there are any self-isolation measures in place for their outbound or return journey.

If the country or territory they are visiting is exempt, they will not have to self-isolate on their return to England. Passengers should also stay alert to any changes to local public health measures while they are travelling, including by subscribing to FCO Travel Advice updates. 

The Government continues to work closely with international partners around the world to discuss arrangements for travellers arriving from the UK and will continue this engagement ahead of the changes coming into force.

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said: “Today marks the next step in carefully reopening our great nation. Whether you are a holidaymaker ready to travel abroad or a business eager to open your doors again, this is good news for British people and great news for British businesses.

“The entire nation has worked tirelessly to get to this stage, therefore safety must remain our watch word and we will not hesitate to move quickly to protect ourselves if infection rates rise in countries we are reconnecting with.”

The FCO’s Travel Advice is based on an assessment of a range of factors that could present risks to British nationals when abroad, using different criteria to the list of countries exempted from self-isolation measures.

It is based on a range of factors including epidemiological risks, capacity of local healthcare systems, transport options and law and order. These Travel Advice exemptions will come into effect on 4 July and will be kept under review.

All passengers, except those on a small list of exemptions, will still be required to provide contact information on arrival in the UK, including details of countries or territories they have been in or through during the previous 14 days. Existing public health advice on hand hygiene, face coverings, and social distancing must also be followed.

The exemptions from self-isolation apply to all modes of international transport, including sea and international rail routes as well as flights.

The Devolved Administrations will set out their own approach to exemptions, and so passengers returning to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland should ensure they follow the laws and guidance which applies there.

Frazzled parents and holiday blues: holiday competition

Edinburgh mums and dads could be in for a treat this summer, as Drayton Manor Park is giving away £500 cash, as well as FREE theme park tickets and hotel stays to parents who are frazzled by the summer holidays.

The giveaway comes after a survey by the family attraction found that Edinburgh parents will last fewer than three weeks into the summer holidays before they start feeling completely fed up – and one in five confess they find it the most STRESSFUL time of the year. Continue reading Frazzled parents and holiday blues: holiday competition