GO West

Dates

8^th to 14^th August at the Pioneer Centre, Cleobury Mortimer.

Arrivals and Departures

We are in the process of finalising arrivals for Contagious GO West (another group is at the Pioneer Centre just before us). The plan is for arrivals to be from 2:00-3:15pm. Our leaders will direct where to go from the entrance to the Pioneer Centre.

If you are needing to arrive late then please email admin@contagious.org.uk in the weeks before Contagious or contact Rosemary (phone number will be emailed to you) on the day.

We would love parents to join us at the final response meeting at 11.30am on Friday to get an overview of what we’ve learnt throughout the week and to hear from some of the young people. After the response meeting you are invited to join us for a picnic lunch at 12.30pm. The young people will be provided with lunch by the venue, but please bring a picnic lunch for yourselves. The conference will finish at 1pm.

accommodation

The young people’s rooms have between 2 and 6 beds each with an en-suite bathroom. Most young people will be in a room of 3 or 4. We do what we can to meet sharing requests made at the time of booking, although this cannot be guaranteed. We are sorry if your child is initially disappointed by their rooming, but I’m sure you can understand we are not always able to meet such requests. All bedding is provided but please bring a towel.

There are several common rooms located around the buildings which we will use for activities and as a space for young people to hang out during free time. The site also has lots of outdoor space which we will make the most of through the week. Meals are taken in a large dining hall, which is shared with the MAX conference.

What to bring

Spending Money:  There is a small tuck shop on site at the Pioneer Centre and we will be running a bookstall, so you may like to send your child with some cash although this is not essential.  Any money you bring will be the young person’s own responsibility to look after and manage.

Music and other talents: We want to encourage young people in using their talents for God, so we will host an evening called GO Celebration where young people will join together to worship Jesus with their gifts. So if their talent is music, art, drama, comedy, dance, juggling, producing videos, photography, or WHATEVER, they will  have an opportunity to showcase their skills. If they want to bring along their instrument or anything else they are very welcome. However, they will remain the responsibility of the young person, and Contagious can take no responsibility if it is lost or damaged during the conference. We would also like to involve the young people in the worship band in the morning and evening meetings: if your child would be able and willing to do this, please do send me an email in advance.

• Suitable Clothes: We have a full programme of activities including sports, messy games, crafts, dancing, creative projects and team challenges.  Also please bring an OLD WHITE T SHIRT for Paint Wars’ that will get covered in powder paint (that may not wash out!).  Please bring a range of clothes and footwear for outdoors, indoors, muddy and wet environments or casual clothes for the evenings.  We are trusting that the weather will be good for us to be outside for most of the week. 
• Suitable footwear: This year, our programme includes raftbuilding, water games and paint wars. Young people will need to wear trainers (not crocs) for these activities to protect their feet. However, they will obviously become very wet and messy! Please also send your child with another pair of trainers for other sports and games, as well as an indoor pair of shoes.
• Clothing appropriate for a range of weather and activities
• Swimwear which will be worn under shorts and t-shirt (for water games)
• Old clothing and a white t-shirt for ‘paint wars’
• Pyjamas 
• Exclusively indoor trainers and other outdoor trainers (not just crocs please) including some to wear for wet/messy activities (water games, raft building and paint wars). 
• A pair of goggles if you have them (for the water games and paint wars)
• Towels (having a spare will be helpful following the water games) 
• Bible (We will be teaching from the New International Version)
• Pens (young people will be provided with their own teaching booklets for writing notes in)
• Toiletries, sun cream, hat and sunglasses
• Small light up alarm clock or watch (young people will not have their phones overnight)
• Money for the tuck shop and bookstall
• Supply of any medication needed plus any up-to-date information written down.
• A reusable water bottle

PLEASE DO NOT include any snacks that contain nuts as we have others attending who have severe nut allergies.

Photographs and social media

We are hoping to take some general photos or videos during the week that may be used for publicity, uploaded on our website or shared on social media sites.

If you have particular concerns about social media, photographs or publicity, please inform us by emailing admin@contagious.org.uk.

Mobile Phone policy

At Contagious GO we are happy for children and young people to bring their phones to camp although we cannot take responsibility for their loss or damage.  We require that all electronic devices are handed in at registration. We will keep these safe and give phones out for an hour each day (this will be 8.45am, after breakfast) for young people to contact parents/carers and friends. We understand that you may wish to speak to your child so in an emergency you can contact Rosemary (number on email to parents).

MEDICAL, Pastoral and Dietary Information

If you wish to update anything less than six weeks before the conference please email admin@contagious.org.uk. This is because we often pull the relevant information for each Conference from the booking website around six weeks before the conference, and by emailing us we can make sure that the necessary people are notified.

Expectations

When you booked onto Contagious, we asked you to agree to our terms and conditions. You can access them here. In particular, please note our expectations with regards to behaviour throughout the week. 

Contacting us

You should have contact information from the parent communication email that you have been sent (this is usually about a month before the conference).

If you have any non-urgent enquiries that you can also contact Contagious at admin@contagious.org.uk. In an emergency or if you can’t find the phone numbers on your email you can call our safeguarding number on 07300 044 849 and we’ll get you the information that you need.

FAQs

What does a typical day look like?

The day starts with wake up followed by a filling breakfast. We then go into our morning meeting together. This meeting includes singing, activities and challenges, and teaching from one of the leaders. After the morning meeting there will be a short break followed by some time in SUS (small) groups going through part of the Bible together. After SUS we will have our lunch and then go into afternoon activities. The activities are a mix of all-together activities (such as water games, wide games and inflatables) and option activities (sports, craft, alternative). After dinner, there is another meeting similar to the morning meeting, followed by an evening activity (these have included junk heap challenges, wide games, quizzes and film nights) before bed.

How are young people kept safe at Contagious?

We are serious about keeping all children and young people safe at Contagious. If you would like to read our safeguarding policy then you can access that here.

How can I be praying for Contagious? 

We would love it if you could be praying for us throughout the week! It is only through God’s word applied to the hearts of the young people through the Holy Spirit’s work that lives are changed. Please be praying for faithful teaching and for hearts opened to the good news of the gospel. For particular points for prayer check out our dedicated page.

What is being taught at Contagious this year?

This summer we’ll be seeking the Way of Wisdom in the book of Proverbs, and see how this points us to the fact that it is only through union with Christ that true wisdom can be found.

Proverbs invites us to listen to the words of wisdom from a father to his son, written to encourage youth to grow in wisdom. This summer we want to see lives shaped and changed as we listen to God’s wisdom for all of life. Proverbs is both poetic and practical. It is not just a series of moral sayings but is a story that is filled with rich truths and points us forward to Christ.