Rock UK (formerly Barnabas Adventure Centres) is a national UK

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

charity Charity may refer to: Giving * Charitable organization or charity, a non-profit organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being of persons * Charity (practice), the practice of being benevolent, giving and sharing * Ch ...

that is passionate about developing young people, bringing adventure into learning in the outdoors, to transform young lives. Rock UK welcome 70,000 visitors to their 4 centres each year. They provide outdoor residential stays and day visit for groups including primary and secondary schools, colleges, youth groups, uniformed groups, Christian retreats as well as families, individuals and corporate team building. A wide range of over 40

outdoor education Outdoor education is organized learning that takes place in the outdoors. Outdoor education programs sometimes involve residential or journey wilderness-based experiences in which students participate in a variety of adventurous challenges and out ...

activities are offered including

climbing Climbing is the activity of using one's hands, feet, or any other part of the body to ascend a steep topographical object that can range from the world's tallest mountains (e.g. the eight thousanders), to small boulders. Climbing is done fo ...

abseiling Abseiling ( ; ), also known as rappelling ( ; ), is the controlled descent of a steep slope, such as a rock face, by moving down a rope. When abseiling the person descending controls their own movement down the rope, in contrast to Bela ...

archery Archery is the sport, practice, or skill of using a bow to shoot arrows.Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 17 The word comes from the Latin ''arcus'', meaning bow. Historically, archery has been used for hunting and combat. In m ...

fencing Fencing is a group of three related combat sports. The three disciplines in modern fencing are the foil, the épée, and the sabre (also ''saber''); winning points are made through the weapon's contact with an opponent. A fourth discipline, s ...

, gorge walking, high ropes,

mountain biking Mountain biking is a sport of riding bicycles off-road, often over rough terrain, usually using specially designed mountain bikes. Mountain bikes share similarities with other bikes but incorporate features designed to enhance durability and pe ...

, night walk,

orienteering Orienteering is a group of sports that require navigational skills using a map and compass to navigate from point to point in diverse and usually unfamiliar terrain whilst moving at speed. Participants are given a topographical map, usually a s ...

kayaking Kayaking is the use of a kayak for moving over water. It is distinguished from canoeing by the sitting position of the paddler and the number of blades on the paddle. A kayak is a low-to-the-water, canoe-like boat in which the paddler sits fac ...

, open canoeing,

raft building A raft is any flat structure for support or transportation over water. It is usually of basic design, characterized by the absence of a hull. Rafts are usually kept afloat by using any combination of buoyant materials such as wood, sealed barre ...

, team development,

go-karting Kart racing or karting is a road racing variant of motorsport with open-wheel, four-wheeled vehicles known as go-karts or shifter karts. They are usually raced on scaled-down circuits, although some professional kart races are also held on ful ...

and

swimming Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that r ...

. Since they began nearly 100 years ago the essence of what they do hasn’t really changed. They give young people and those who are young at heart, a chance to experience exhilarating adventure in a safe and affirming environment. Rock UK helps young people to push boundaries, widen their horizon, grow in confidence, build resilience and develop many other skills for life.

Locations

Rock UK runs four

Outdoor Activity Outdoor recreation or outdoor activity refers to recreation done outside, most commonly in natural settings. The activities that encompass outdoor recreation vary depending on the physical environment they are being carried out in. These activitie ...

Centres around the country, including:
Carroty Wood
- A site set in mature woodlands (

Tonbridge Tonbridge ( ) is a market town in Kent, England, on the River Medway, north of Royal Tunbridge Wells, south west of Maidstone and south east of London. In the administrative borough of Tonbridge and Malling, it had an estimated population ...

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

)
Frontier Centre
- A site in the heart of England (

Irthlingborough Irthlingborough () is a town on the River Nene in North Northamptonshire, England. It had a population of 8,900 at the 2011 census and was the smallest town in England to have had a Football League team, Rushden & Diamonds F.C., prior to the ...

Northants Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is kn ...

)
Whithaugh Park
- Set in among the hills of Scotland's Border Country (

Newcastleton Newcastleton, also called Copshaw Holm, is a village in Liddesdale, the Scottish Borders, a few miles from the border with England, on the Liddel Water. It is within the county of Roxburghshire. It is the site of Hermitage Castle. Newcastleton ...

Scottish Borders The Scottish Borders ( sco, the Mairches, 'the Marches'; gd, Crìochan na h-Alba) is one of 32 council areas of Scotland. It borders the City of Edinburgh, Dumfries and Galloway, East Lothian, Midlothian, South Lanarkshire, West Lothi ...

)
Summit Centre
- formerly known as the Welsh International Climbing Centre (

Treharris Treharris is a small town and community (Wales), community (and electoral ward) in the Taff Bargoed Valley in the south of Merthyr Tydfil County Borough, South Wales. It is located about west of Trelewis, from which it is separated by the Taff Ba ...

South Wales South Wales ( cy, De Cymru) is a loosely defined region of Wales bordered by England to the east and mid Wales to the north. Generally considered to include the historic counties of Glamorgan and Monmouthshire, south Wales extends westwards ...

)

History

Rock UK began its life in 1922 when a group of

Sunday school A Sunday school is an educational institution, usually (but not always) Christian in character. Other religions including Buddhism, Islam, and Judaism have also organised Sunday schools in their temples and mosques, particularly in the West. Su ...

teachers from London decided to take their groups on an adventure holiday. The groups purchased Belgrave House in Littlehampton so that they could return regularly and in 1924 also decided to rent a field at Climping, which was used as a canvas

campsite A campsite, also known as a campground or camping pitch, is a place used for overnight stay in an outdoor area. In British English, a ''campsite'' is an area, usually divided into a number of pitches, where people can camp overnight using te ...

. Camps continued to be run at both of these locations for 50 years under the name of the 'Belgrave Trust'. In 1977, Belgrave House was sold in order to expand the work, with the proceeds being used to buy Carroty Wood in

which was turned into an outdoor pursuits centre. In the following years, Halls Green (now closed), Whithaugh Park and the Frontier Centre were also purchased. The Belgrave Trust underwent a number of name changes before finally becoming known as Barnabas Adventure Centres. In 2009, the organisation was renamed "Rock UK". In October 2010 Rock UK opened Summit Centre is South Wales. Summit Centre has had a £4m investment, completed in Spring 2018 to redevelop the activity centre. The former coal mine has been turned into a unique destination which offers fully catered, en-suite accommodation with 104 beds, meeting rooms, an indoor climbing centre, café and fun outdoor children’s play area. The adventure centre offers over 20 instructed activities. The centre was officially opened in February 2019 with a visit from HRH the Prince of Wales. In 2019, with funding from the Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE), as well as generous donations from Northamptonshire Community Foundation and Peter Harrison Foundation, Frontier Centre built a brand new High Ropes experience. The new adrenalin-filled Aerial Adventure course includes high ropes, abseil tower, abseil slope, climbing wall, twin zip wire and several thrilling team building challenges. It opened in February 2020.

Affiliations and links

Each of the activity centres are licensed by th
Adventure Activities Licensing Authority (AALA)
and hold th
Learning Outside the Classroom (LOtC) Quality Badge
Rock UK also has strong links with the Northamptonshire Association of Youth Groups (NAYC) having taken over the running of the Frontier Centre from NAYC in 2004. Rock UK is also a member o
Christian Camping International (CCI)

References

External links

Rock UK official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rock Uk Christian charities based in the United Kingdom 1922 establishments in the United Kingdom