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Camp Safety Print Content
An Emergency Action Plan (EAP) is a written procedure that helps camp personnel and campers prepare for and respond to a variety of emergencies. It is a vital safety training tool which can greatly reduce preventable injuries and property damage. Every camp with recreational activities should have one, and if they don’t that should be a red flag to parents and caregivers.
A comprehensive list of questions that every parent or caregiver should consider before sending their precious cargo to camp. Simply because a family member or friend refers a camp does not guarantee that the camp complies with essential health and safety standards. Does the camp operate with a valid license? Have they background checked all staff members, including the owner-operators? What kind of insurance policy covers the camp? Have their been prior injuries? Are inspection reports available? What kind of training do counselors and managers receive? Does the camp comply with mandated reporter policies? Is there an effective emergency action plan in place?
This document comes by way of the Redwoods Group, a risk assessment company that serves youth-facing organizations such as the YMCA and American Camp Association whose member organizations continue to face considerable legal challenges related to sexual abuse, drownings, injuries and other health and safety issues. This document is largely for the youth industry, however, it offers parents/guardians/stakeholders a glimpse into potential sexual abuse prevention planning at camps.
Parents-Caregivers too often forget or fail to include children in the camp decision-making process, despite the fact that going to camp can be a momentous time in a child’s life. Also, camps are not the only child car option for a child, not to mention, all kids are not ready or built for a camp experience. Review these simple conversation starters with your kids to help make the right decision for your child and your family.
The Summer Camp Handbook’ is the book for you! Rather than a catalog of camps, this book offers excellent advice about choosing camps, packing essential camp gear, and emotionally preparing your child (as well as yourself) for the approaching summer camp season. Recently restored for its 15th anniversary edition, this book contains beautiful, new illustrations, an enhanced layout, and updated sections on technology, homesickness, and outcomes. Written by doctors, Christopher Thurber and Jon Malinowski, and re-published by Everything Summer Camp, this is the book that all parents and summer campers need. Order your copy today.
Choosing a camp is choosing a child care program. It’s a very important and difficult decision. As ChildCare. gov says, if possible, make time to visit several options to spend time watching what happens in the program and to ask lots of questions. Once you have visited and talked to the owner or director and the other adults who will be caring for and attending to your child, compare what you have seen and heard at each program to pick the best one for your family. This checklist covers 15 “must-haves”: the most important questions about health, safety, and quality. Although it pertains to traditional child care, camps ARE child care.
The American Academy of Pediatrics has created recommendations for health appraisal and preparation of young people before participation in day, resident, or family camps and to guide health and safety practices at camp. These recommendations are intended for parents and families, primary health care providers and camp administration and health center staff. Although camps have diverse environments, there are general guidelines that apply to all situations and specific recommendations that are appropriate under special conditions.
As you consider sending your children to camp, you may be focused on the logistics and the emotions and the finances. But you should be prioritizing summer camp safety as the most important component in your decision. It’s hard to know what to look for. According to this recent national survey by the University of Michigan Health C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital, only half of parents surveyed said they could determine if a camp was safe for their child. One key safety indicator to look for? If the camp says it is accredited by the American Camp Association, do not place much if any value in that claim. ACA accredited and member camps have been fraught with child sex abuse, injury, death, COVID outbreaks and more. The ACA is a camp lobby group that sells a good story, but advocates for camps at the expense of kids. We’ve done the research. We know.
The Beau Biden Foundation is one of our strategic partners. While we work with them on their updated camp safety training curriculum and an updated version of this handout, this version still gets the job done.
Camp Safety Videos from The Redwoods Group
Meow Meow Foundation does not endorse or support the Redwoods Group. We offer these videos for you to use/share at your own discretion. Although this content is aimed at camp staff, parents can ask the staff how they handle these issues.