The Children's Challenge

Great couple of days in the hills with my eldest son, honing some climbing and scrambling skills. Brilliant fun! Huge thanks to Mick Jones for his guidance and expertise. Couldn’t have been better!

Great couple of days in Snowdonia taking on some famous ridges. Amazing. @ Crib Goch

Some Via Ferrata to cap an excellent few days in the Lakes. Great experience for Year 6 children to bolster confidence before hitting secondary school. A definite Children’s Challenge adventure!

Phenomenal day walking from Patterdale to Ambleside. No wind, glorious sunshine and star jumps were the order of the day. For me, days just don’t get much better.
I’m so glad The Children’s Challenge is now doing official Mountain Training Hill & Mountain skills courses so everybody has the chance to safely enjoy outdoor adventures with their family. @ Fairfield

Epic day yesterday taking two different routes up Red Screes and then meeting at the top. Great recce for a potential Children’s Challenge adventure! @ Red Screes

Great day walking up Helvellyn via Striding Edge on the way up and Swirral Edge on the way down. @ Helvellyn

Gentle afternoon family walk in the Lakes. Glorious conditions and amazing scenery. Looking forward to five days of adventure!

Extremely excited to announce that The Children’s Challenge is now an accredited provider of the superb Hill & Mountain Skills courses designed by Mountain Training. We are extremely fortunate to have the highly experienced Mick Jones (as pictured) leading the courses, sure to inspire and educate in equal measure. The 2 day courses are designed to enable individuals to navigate their way safely through the hill & mountain environments of the UK, setting families up for a lifetime of adventure. Coming to a Primary School Expedition Society near you!!

As we enter the final day of the competition, there is everything still to play for. After all the walking, cycling, scootering and travelling in a wheelchair undertaken over the past 6 days, the final results will be decided after one last push to the line. You may be leading the field as the marathon enters the stadium for a final lap, but if you don’t have the killer instinct to make one last decisive sprint for home, leaving nothing on the table, then all that hard work could all be in vain. Don’t let that happen. Remember - Pain is temporary. Glory is forever.

The absolute distance competition is extremely close with only 135km separating our new leaders Bramingham with Stoke Bishop, who have led the field for the majority of the competition. We know Stoke Bishop have the ability to produce a distance of over 1,000km in a day. Can they do it now, to reclaim their title as the undisputed national distance champion? Can Roecroft stay ahead of Hiltingbury to claim 3rd? This is going to be a huge day!

On an average distance per pupil basis, Shiplake Primary remain in the lead, but after a relatively subdued Saturday distance of 1.76km per pupil, they are at risk of losing to their nemesis Alexander Hosea on the final day. This would be hugely disappointing for Shiplake and they need to ensure they mobilise the troops and put in the distances that they are accustomed to, to become the greatest pound or pound endurance machine, the country has yet seen. Shiplake - don’t stop fighting until you cross the line!

On a pupil participation basis, Stoke bishop have amassed a total of 518 pupil entries, with Bramingham 2nd on 506. It is highly likely that whoever wins this competition today, also wins the absolute distance battle. Sound the Horn of Gondor, mobilise the troops, and lets see who truly has the most powerful army!

On a percentage participation basis, the key battle is for 3rd spot, with Ranby being only 0.3% behind Y Bont Faen Primary. This is a battle of WhatsApp!

Finally, on a staff basis, Bramingham staff are just 6km ahead of Edward Peake. The battle between these two schools has been incredible. No matter what happens today, the schools will have increased respect for the grit and determination that exists within all their members of staff.

Good luck everybody - it all comes down to today! Go for it!

With just two days to go, the competition is extremely close. Now it’s just a question of who wants it more!

Day 2 sees the total distance travelled by primary school pupils and staff ramp up to 7,749km. This is over 1,300km further than the prior day and a clear indication that families are beginning to find their form.

On an absolute distance basis, Stoke Bishop and Alexander Hosea remain in 1st and 2nd spot, with only 8km separating Bramingham and Shiplake Primary in 3rd and 4th respectively. The tightness at the top continues further down the table with only 10km separating 5th from 9th and 1km separating 10th from 11th. The competition remains wide open with no quarter asked and no quarter given. Which of our top 10 will blink first?

Shiplake Primary continue to dominate the average distance per pupil competition with a stunning 2.54km travelled per pupil on average on Day 2. As an ‘Expedition Society’ school, the grit and tenacity that we are witnessing should come as no surprise. It should be applauded nonetheless. There has been no change to the positioning of the top 5 but the margins are increasingly fine, with just 30 metres separating 3rd and 4th and 10 metres separating 5th and 6th. In this competition, every participant a school can muster and every metre they walk really counts!

Stoke Bishop and Alexander Hosea lead the absolute pupil participation competition but across the board there has been a marked increase in pupils battling the elements and getting outside to do their bit. Families across the country are asking not what their school can do for them, but what they can do for their school! Special mentions must go to Cloudside Academy, Leedon Lower School and The Vale Academy who are charging up the rankings and into contention. Keep the WhatsApp’s going and lets keep getting boots on the ground. Who knows how far we can all walk as a collective!

Finally, a new league has been created recognising those teachers who lead from the front. Roecroft Lower School, as a collective entity, are just outside the top 10 in many of the competitions, but we now know that the teachers and members of staff at the school have been immense, clocking up a total of 187km. The recognition of this performance can only inspire their pupils.

Great evening making Bannock Twisters inspired by . A touch of butter as a treat after a hard week home schooling. I’m sure Ed wouldn’t mind!