5 reasons why you should work on a Special Needs camp

By Camp America on 30/11/2018

Considering a Special Needs camp next summer? You will be after this blog post!

In January, we have so many amazing Special Needs camps coming to our Recruitment Fairs. They’re looking for people willing to try something new and step outside their comfort zone. We think that’s YOU! Wondering why our participants return to Special Needs camps year after year? Here’s 5 reasons why… 

1. It’ll be the most rewarding experience

Working on a Special Needs camp is the most rewarding experience you could ask for. You’ll spend your summer caring for campers who need extra love and support and being the person able to help them swim, help them up a climbing wall or kick a ball for a first time will really impact your life as well as theirs. So many of our previous participants always talk about how it’s not only the campers lives being changed whilst you’re a counsellor, but yours too!

2. A challenge will help you grow

We know working on a Special Needs camp will be a challenge, just like all our camps can be. The hours can be long, the campers can be tiring and you may be going into the role with little or no experience. However, a challenge is the best possible way to grow over the summer. Stepping outside your comfort zone and having times that’ll test your patience is how the summer will be all the more rewarding for you. Do you ever remember the jobs you had that were easy breezy? Definitely not. But we promise you’ll remember the ones that test you, because those are the ones you’ll get the most out of. Camp is the hardest job you’ll ever love, but there’s a reason people return year after year.

3. You’ll get extra support and training

Lots of people believe working on a Special Needs camp is daunting, particularly if you have no prior experience in the field. However, that doesn’t matter at all! Our camps are just looking for people willing to try something new and put their all into being a counsellor. You’ll get extra support and a longer training session than you would at any other camp type to ensure you’re completely prepared for the role. By the time training is over, you’ll have made a tonne of new friends and will be prepared for the best summer of your life!

4. You’ll gain life skills

We know so many previous participants who have worked on Special Needs camps and ended up changing their career path so they can continue in this field. You’ll come away from summer with more patience, independence, resilience, passion and confidence than you had before camp and those are the kind of skills that’ll stay with you for life. A summer at camp is the ultimate CV enhancer and no matter what career you go into, the fact you’ve spent a summer changing lives will make you stand out amongst the rest!

5. You'll make incredible connections

No matter what camp you work on, you’ll create huge bonds with staff and campers alike that you can’t find anywhere else. On a Special Needs camp, you’ll most likely be working 1-1 with a camper which means you’ll create an even stronger bond! Your campers will look up to you and see you as a camp superhero (which you are) and knowing that they are dependent on you to go about their day and participate in all the activities at camp will provide you with huge fulfilment. Camp can be hard work at times, but having an amazing support system around you means it won’t be long until you make friends that’ll last a lifetime. These people will be with you through the tears of joy when your camper tries something new for the first time, or tears of sadness when their parents come to pick them up at the end of summer!

Working on a Special Needs camp will set you up for a summer like no other next year. We promise that trying something new and challenging yourself will be the best thing you ever do.

Check out the Special Needs camps coming to our Edinburgh, Manchester and London Recruitment Fairs!