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School holiday activities in North Essex
School’s out and the local kids and teens are marauding off with a merry band of coaches for a summer holiday adventure in Dragon Wood! These big five-hour adventures include some of our most popular outdoor activities for a great-value day out.
Our unique activity days are for parents and children to enjoy together. You can book yourself a ticket to try the activities alongside your child, or just watch them have fun and cheer them on!
The centre is in Bures, near Colchester and Sudbury; easily accessible for families from Essex or Suffolk by road or rail.
Suitable for kids and teens
The activity days are suitable for ages 7-16. Choose your day using the calendar above. Although groups on each day are often of mixed ages, our coaches tailor the sessions and may split groups so everyone gets coaching and equipment suitable for their age and ability.
Accompanying adults can join in any session. Just book yourself a space alongside your child and let yourself have an adventure too!
“Wow! I cannot fault this place. We went for a day of bushcraft (survival!) and archery with a 7 and a 9 year-old. Mark led the bushcraft session with such professionalism and humour; handling fidgety boys with a light touch and challenging them to get out of their comfort zone. Mark is so knowledgeable. We all learned so much about the basics of survival, built a shelter and a fire and had a load of fun doing it.”
Family holiday fun with a difference
Our school holiday adventures aren’t your usual drag; they’re about embracing the outdoors, getting active and trying something out of the ordinary! Experienced coaches will guide you through archery, medieval battle skills (new for this year!) and woodland survival (also known as bushcraft or forest school). All children must be accompanied by an adult, no drop-offs please, but we only require one adult per group of friends so draw straws to see who will be lucky enough to stay!
Please bring along warm clothes, sensible shoes that cover the whole foot, and a packed lunch. Hot drinks will be available free of charge and bottled water if its hot. Seating in our cosy sheltered campfire area is where you will spend lunch or you can find your own family spot away from everyone else.
All coaches are enhanced DBS-checked and have years of experience in teaching the activities they deliver. We have been providing experiences, courses and parties for ages 7+ at this centre for ten years and have an excellent local reputation.
“We booked the 5-hour activity session as a family for part of our Summer staycation. Our first experience with White Dragon and what a superb day we had…During the day we all tried activities we’d never tried before and came away with plenty of ‘do it again’ sentiment. A win for any parent looking to inspire the kids. In fact the same was true for the parents!”
Become a real archer
After a full safety briefing and demonstration by our coach, you’ll be kitted out with age-appropriate (but real) bows and arrows. Coaches will be on hand to help you stay safe and improve your technique as you launch your arrows at targets. Whether you’ve done archery at school or never tried it before, we’ll build your confidence and help you to increase your skills.
Build your outlaw camp
This part will begin with a little chat about what survival is all about. Bring some stories of your time in the woods or camping if you have any! Your coach will help you learn the safe way to handle a knife, then through a simple progression of skills you will construct a shelter, help build a fire, collect water and hopefully see it come to boil as we teach you how to filter and purify wild water.
Groups are often mixed in age, from 7 to 16, but if you’re booking for a teen don’t worry – we tailor our coaching and often split the group, so older kids can try out some more advanced skills and younger ones get teaching that suits their dexterity and understanding.
Lead your family into battle
JOIN OUR ARMY! Fun coaches will lead your family into a laughter-packed and exciting ‘battle’ (with some proper history taught along the way).
Beginning with some spearperson practice, everyone will be given a “spear” (no sharp points, our staff have an aversion!). Your captain will drill you in the art of holding the line, advancing towards the “enemy” then attacking the coach as they cower behind their shield!
If the warriors are up for it, you’ll also learn some basic (and historically accurate!) swordfighting with our safe LARP-style swords, before you go one-on-one with an opponent.
FAQs
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These adventures really are suitable for all ages 7-16, plus adults. Our experienced coaches will adapt the day depending on who is booked in. Sometimes that might mean splitting the group so teens and older children learn different skills to the younger participants. Families can always opt to stay together throughout the day if preferred. Don’t worry - you’ll always enjoy a day that’s pitched to your child’s
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Yes, all our coaches and instructors are enhanced DBS-checked, trained in the activities they deliver, and are First Aiders! We are an established small business which has been providing kids’ experiences, activities and holiday camps at our site for over ten years. You can read more about our staff on the About Us page.
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Our school holiday adventures are outdoors in our five acres of woodland and sports zones! If you visited during winter, you may have seen our indoor castle-themed hall… we promise you our outdoor areas are even more beautiful, with rambling woodlands and glorious sweeps of grassy outdoor ranges to enjoy the springtime in. If the weather is really bad, we may move indoors, but that’s very rare.
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No, you don’t have to. You can join in if you want to (just book yourself a place) and coaches will teach you (at a more adult level) alongside the children. Or you can watch and cheer your child/ren on. There is a shelter inside the woods with tea, coffee, seating and water available.
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We’re easy to reach by road, with lots of parking, and Bures train station is close by down a country lane. Check out our Directions page.
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Yes, please bring a packed lunch. Lunch will be eaten ‘around the campfire’ under shelter in the woods, or you can find your own spot away from others for some family time if you like.
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Our staff are experienced, compassionate and great at working with young people, including those with additional needs. If your family has special requirements, you can let us know through the booking form. We’re also happy to help with any questions before you book - just drop us a line at info@whitedragonactivitycentre.co.uk.