SEXTA VISITADURÍA GENERAL Participación en el evento

Selecting and recruiting research participants for the study entailed different processes. The ways in which OBT staff and young people were selected and engaged is outlined below.

3.4.1. OBT Instructors

Instructor participants were recruited through the OBT. I adopted a purposive approach to sampling (Patton 2002) to ensure informants were representative of the types of people that OBT employs. The sample sought to include both long standing and new employees, a range of ages, male and female (where possible, given that the outdoor education is a male-dominated industry (Collins 2000; Lugg 2001; Wright & Gray 2013), and a variety of job roles. This sampling technique sought to gather the perspectives of OBT staff with varied biographies and trajectories. OBT were an open and welcoming organisation, keen to support this research. Given this, participants for Stage One were selected in the field, with the support of a senior staff member to coordinate an interview schedule.

3.4.2. Schools and young people

Four schools were chosen for Stages Two and Three of the research: two schools were located in more rural settings, and two were located in more urban settings (which consequently offered contrasting demographic characteristics). One school from each category was already taking part in a one-week OBT course at either the Aberdovey Centre or Ogwen Cottage at the time of the research design. The selection of case-study schools aimed to provide an opportunity for comparison between schools with distinctly different demographics. As such, the schools that took part were selected according the following criteria;

• Participating in an Adventure & Challenge course; • Young people in the age bracket 12-14;

• Located in a local authority district categorised as either largely rural (rural including

hub towns 50-79%), or urban with major conurbation according to the DEFRA 2011

Rural-Urban Classification of Local Authorities and other geographies (RUC2011) (Defra 2017a) (Appendix 2).

The OBT facilitated access to schools to participate in the study. To an extent, this gave the recruitment process a ‘political edge’, as suitable schools were selected first by the OBT based

on certain factors. However, having the backing of the Trust meant that recruiting schools was a straight forward task as teachers were happy to take part in a project supported by the OBT. In addition, despite the ‘manufactured’ nature of the recruitment process, it was still possible to identify case study schools which fulfilled specific characteristics (outlined above) to address this study’s research questions.

It was important that informants were engaged in similar OBT programmes and were of the same age bracket to provide consistency and opportunities for comparison across the study. Mainstream education in England and Wales dictates that the majority of young people start a new school aged 11-12. Attending a new school can be associated with building and maintaining new peer groups and adult relationships, negotiating new rules and systems, as well as coinciding with the physiological changes associated with puberty. As such, the chosen age bracket marks a significant event in the life course of young people, related to identity formation and individuality, self-esteem and security, and overall social and emotional development (Valentine 2003).

Weller (2006) also stakes a claim for ‘teenagers’ geographies’, suggesting that particularly

young teenagers have been neglected in children’s geographies. She highlights the ‘fuzziness’

of boundaries between childhood and adulthood, arguing that teenagers distance themselves from both and occupy an ‘in-betweenness’, which is highly mobile depending on context. This notion of being ‘in-between’ or in-flux is a useful starting point when looking at developmental experiences for young people in this study, aged 12-14 (Ibid.).

3.4.3. 2011 Rural-Urban Classification of Local Authorities Districts in England

In relation to the school selection, it is important to highlight that local authorities are categorised as rural or urban based on the percentage of their resident population in rural areas or ‘rural-related’ hub towns. These are built-up areas with a population of 10,000 to 30,000 and a certain concentration of residential dwellings and non-residential establishments (Defra 2017b). The use of the term ‘rural’ in this classification relates to settlement form and dwelling density; the classification is not based on character or use of the land, policy or economic function (for further details on the methodology of RUC2011, see Bibby & Brindley 2016). The RUC2011 of local authorities was chosen as the reference point for school selection. Despite the classification not being based on character or use of land, the location of the four case study schools clearly provided divergent opportunities for access to urban and more rural

spaces (Figure 3.1). This allowed informants to be representative of a range of young people’s experiences and interactions with nature and the outdoors in their everyday lives (see Chapter 2). Although the immediate physical setting was the primary motivation for the selection of schools, the over-lapping social and economic geographies of class, race and urbanism across the UK provided some useful contrasting demographics between the four schools (Table 3.2).

Figure 3. 1 Map of the British Isles showing the 2011 Rural-Urban Classification of Local Authority Districts, highlighting the locations of the case study schools (Defra 2017a)

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Table 3. 2 Selected demographic characteristics for Local Authorities in which case study schools are located (Public Health England 2015; UK Data Service Census Support 2011; ONS 2013; Open Data Communities 2015)

*% for Lincolnshire local authority, as data only available for top level local authority

South Kesteven

(largely rural)

Tower Hamlets

(urban - major conurbation)

Wiltshire

(largely rural)

Hackney

(urban - major conurbation)

Index of Multiple Deprivation

(2015) 14.2 35.7 13.5 35.3

Population Density (People per

square km) (2014 data) 145 13,798 147 13,511 E thn ic it y (% ) (2011 ce nsu s dat a ) White 97.5 45.2 96.6 54.7 Asian/British Asian 1.2 41.1 1.3 10.5 Black/Black British 0.4 7.3 0.7 23.1

Mixed Ethnic Group 0.9 4.1 1.2 6.4

Other Ethnic Group 0.1 2.3 0.2 5.3

E li g ible and C lai m ing F re e School Me a ls (%) (2015 da ta) Local Authority 12.1* 39.1 7.7 32.8 Regional 13.6 19 11.7 19 National 14.9 14.9 14.9 14.9

3.4.4. Case study schools

The four (anonymised) schools participating in the research were Meadow Grass Academy, Woodland Academy, Wall Flower High, and Mountain Ridge High. This section provides an overview of each school and characteristics (also see Table 3.3).

Meadow Grass Academy is located in South Kesteven, a RUC2011 largely rural (rural

including hub towns 50-79%) local authority area (Defra 2017a) (Figure 3.1). This is amongst

the 50% least deprived neighbourhoods in the country (Open Data Communities 2015). The school is a mixed secondary comprehensive, sponsor-led academy. It is considerably smaller than the average-sized secondary school, with an above average proportion of disadvantaged pupils and pupils with a statement of special educational needs. The majority of pupils that attend the school are from a white British background (Ofsted 2017). All students have the opportunity to go on an OBT course in year 7, and therefore some of the members of the group had been on an OBT course before with the school. The chosen fieldwork week was an additional trip, and the opportunity was opened up to students from years 7-10. The school part funds the students’ place on OBT courses.

Woodland Academy is located in Tower Hamlets, a RUC2011 urban (major conurbation) local authority area (Defra 2017a) (Figure 3.1). This is amongst the 20% most deprived neighbourhoods in the country (Open Data Communities 2015). It is an all-girls comprehensive school, much larger-than-average with almost 1500 pupils. Nearly all students are of Bangladeshi heritage with a very small minority from other backgrounds (Ofsted 2013), and most are practicing Muslims. This reflects the ethnic and religious composition of the local area, which is over 40% Asian (ONS 2013) (Table 3.2). The majority of students speak English as an additional language. Over two-thirds of pupils are eligible for free school meals, which is above average. The proportion of students with a statement of special education needs is also above average (Ofsted 2013). The school offers OBT trips to all year 8 and 9 students, although the future of these trips is under question due to government funding cuts.

Mountain Ridge High is located in Wiltshire, a RUC2011 largely rural (rural including hub

towns 50-79%) local authority area (Defra 2017a) (Figure 3.1). This is amongst the 50% least

deprived neighbourhoods in the country (Open Data Communities 2015). It is a mixed secondary comprehensive of average size. It is located in a Garrison town6, and as such a high

number of service children attend the school. The majority of pupils are from White British backgrounds and those eligible for free school meals is below average. The proportion of students with a statement of special educational needs is in line with the national average (Ofsted 2016). The school offers the trip to pupil premium7 students in year 9, and those who would be seen to benefit most from the experience. The trip is sponsored by a National company.

Wallflower High School is located in Hackney, a RUC2011 urban (major conurbation) local authority area (Defra 2017a) (Figure 3.1). This is amongst the 10% most deprived neighbourhoods in the country (Open Data Communities 2015). Approximately half of students are eligible for free school meals, which is above the national average. The proportion of disabled students or those with special educational needs is also above average. The school represents the culturally and linguistically diverse local community, with a high proportion of students of minority ethnic heritage, and 90% living within half a mile of the school (Ofsted 2012). The school offers OBT trips as a reward for those students in years 7-9 who excel in school work, so again, some of the members of the group had been on an OBT course before with the school at the Aberdovey centre.

It is worth noting that groups were often ‘manufactured’ to take part in the research project. For example, Meadow Grass Academy were part of a four-school trip with mixed groups. The lead teacher deliberately created a group of young people solely from Meadow Grass, suggesting that these students would ‘just get on with it’. This highlights the difficulty in avoiding the political nature of the sampling process, especially in children’s geographies.

Table 3. 3 Case study schools, centres, and groups by gender

School Urban/Rural LA Centre Male

participants

Female participants Meadow Grass

Academy Rural Aberdovey 3 9

Woodland

Academy Urban Aberdovey 0 11

Mountain Ridge

High Rural Ogwen 5 7

Wallflower High

School Urban Ogwen 8 4

7 _{The pupil premium is additional funding for publicly funded schools in England. It’s designed} decrease the attainment gap for the most disadvantaged pupils (by income or family upheaval).

3.4.5. Case study centres

As noted, the ethnography of OBT programmes (Stage Two) with these four schools was carried out at two OBT centres – Outward Bound Aberdovey and Ogwen Cottage (Figure 3.2). The centres were chosen as the basis for the fieldwork as they were different in a number of ways, and therefore offered participants a distinctly different Outward Bound experience. The fieldwork with Meadow Grass Academy and Woodland Academy was conducted at Aberdovey, and the fieldwork with Wallflower High School and Mountain Ridge High at Ogwen Cottage.

Figure 3. 2 Photos showing Outward Bound Aberdovey (top) and Ogwen Cottage (bottom). Aberdovey is set in relatively large grounds, accessed via a long drive. In contrast, Ogwen is situated on the edge of a main road (authors own photographs).

Aberdovey is the original OBT centre, located on the West coast of Wales on the Dyfi estuary, a UNESCO world biosphere reserve and the very bottom of Snowdownia National Park. The centre was originally 3 private residences, one of which still exists as the main house, whilst the other 2 have been replaced by dormitory blocks. The site has recently benefited from an investment in new purpose-built equipment stores and individual group cages, and a new hall used for meetings and as a social area. It can comfortably fit 15 groups (12 individuals per group) which means that it usually hosts more than one school at a time, and has over 50 regular instructors. The centre site is relatively large, incorporating the main house and dining hall, the new block incorporating stores, the hall and review rooms, and the dormitory houses. In the grounds there are spaces for dynamic challenges such as a climbing wall, trapeze and challenge wall, as well as a large back field with woodland areas where groups regularly have camp fires. The centre has access to a private wharf, where it stores water sports equipment. This was the site of the warehouse when Aberdovey functioned as a port, but was rebuilt 12 years ago. There is a building with changing rooms and showers, review rooms and equipment stores at the wharf site, located in the village of Aberdovey, a ten minute walk from the centre. The wharf is perhaps one of the most famous places in OBT history, as the location of the legendary ‘jetty jump’8 _{(Figure 3.3). The centre has access to four log cabins up in the surrounding hills and} mountains, one of which has been newly built. These allow the Trust to continue to run overnight expeditions throughout the winter months when the weather is more challenging. In contrast, Ogwen Cottage is the Trust’s newest acquisition, opening as an OBT centre for the first time in September 2015. It is situated in Gwynedd, north-west Wales, on Llyn Ogwen9 and the A5 London-Holyhead road. The centre is owned by the National Trust and leased to the OBT. In the summer months it operates as a National Trust visitors’ centre when the area is popular with walkers and climbers. The centre has a history in outdoor pursuits, formerly as a base for climbers, then as a mountaineering school, and, most recently as part of Birmingham City Council’s Outdoor Learning Service from 1964 until its sale in 2014. The centre can accommodate 3 groups at a time, with everything housed the same building: dormitories, dining room, review rooms and a social room, instructor office and one drying room which doubles up as a kit cage. There is a small ‘stores’ building across the road from the centre (Figure 3.4).

8 _{This was an element of the original OBT courses, whereby participants ran down to the jetty} and jumped into the estuary. It has been adapted for modern courses, but still retains its significance as the first challenge young people face when they arrive at the centre.

This is split into two rooms, plus an undercover area and a shipping container used as a store. The centre’s canoes are kept at a farm a few miles away. The site is significantly smaller than Aberdovey, with no onsite activities and the stores area located across the road next to the lake. The OBT have a 5 year contract with the National Trust, which restricts changes and improvements they can make to the site. Instructors based at Aberdovey work across both Aberdovey and Ogwen, with a group of 5 instructors driving up to Ogwen on a Monday, and staying on site for the duration of the course. The centre does not run all year round as the small capacity means that is does not suit all of the OBT’s clients.

The activities the OBT used varied greatly across centres and courses, but as Chapter 2 outlined, often included such tasks as backpacking and overnight camping (the ‘expedition’), climbing, gorge walking, canoeing and raft building. A typical day in an OBT course begins with breakfast in the dining hall at 7.30am, group activities 9am – 5pm (mostly off-site), free time and dinner between 5pm – 7pm, and an evening activity 7pm – 8.30pm.

Figure 3. 3 The wharf at Aberdovey, showing the jetty on the right-hand side (authors own photograph)

Figure 3. 4 The stores at Ogwen Cottage (authors own photograph)