The Summit Club
| DOI | 10.1177/026455057502200108 |
| Date | 01 March 1975 |
| Published date | 01 March 1975 |
| Author | M.R. Bunning |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
22
The
Summit
Club
M.
R.
BUNNING
Surrey
IN
PORTRAYING
the
development
of
this
Activities
Group,
I
hope
to
share
with
others
the
difficulties
and
successes
experienced
whilst
the
Club
was
evolving.
Equally
I
may
show
anyone
contemplating
a
similar
venture
a
little
of
what
lies
ahead!
New
to
the
Service,
I
had
experienced
disappointment
as
to
the
value
of
office
and
home
contact
with
some
youngsters
on
supervision.
In
an
effort
to
inject
some
&dquo;life&dquo;
into
my
work
with
them,
I
had
been
looking
around
for
a
focus
in
a
different
setting.
Conversations
with
a
Voluntary
Associate
attached
to
my
office
discovered
his
considerable
talent
in
outdoor
pursuits.
Having
led
a
mountain
rescue
team
when
he
was
in
the
Services,
he
seemed
to
have
the
necessary
qualifications
to
satisfy
any
insurance
firm
we
might
approach
for
cover.
More
to
the
point,
we
were
rapidly
developing
a
personal
friendship
and
seemed
to
share
a
similar
approach
to
the
needs
of
the
deprived
youngsters
on
my
caseload.
For
my
part,
I
was
simply
seeking
an
activity
which
would
provide
me
with
the
opportunity
to
work
with
a
bunch
of
youngsters
in
a
&dquo;captive
audience&dquo;
situation,
giving
me
time
to
be with
them
inten-
sively,
and
build
up
a
fund
of
shared
experiences
to
enliven
my
contact
with
them.
&dquo;Mountain
pursuits&dquo;
attracted
me
as there
was
a
certain
romance
about
the
expression
which
was
likely
to
appeal
to
boys
when
I
attempted
to
sell
the
idea
to
them
and
also
one
could
probably
involve
a
wide
age
range
as
even
young
men
could
not
dismiss
the
idea
as
&dquo;childish&dquo;.
The
theme
was
developed
between
the
volunteer
and
myself.
He
had
Service
contacts
in
Scotland
and
initially
we
had
wild
notions
of
using
some
of
the
marvellous
locations
enjoyed
by
the
Army
there.
This
idea
reached
Brigadier
level
but
then
came
to
nothing.
After
other
similar
failures
the
Westmorland
Probation
Service
came
to
our
rescue
naming
a
charity
which
ran
a
small
farmstead
in the
Lake
District.
On
contact-
ing
their
organiser,
a
week
in
September
was
booked.
Obtaining
a
mini-
bus
proved
yet
another
headache
as
the
cost
of
hire
was
prohibitive.
Charity-supported
vans
usually
have
regular
bookings
on
certain
days,
and
to
ask
for
a
booking
of
one
complete
week
proved
a
stumbling
block.
However,
eventually
a
local
group
agreed
to
loan
their
van
to
us
in
return
for
a
small
donation.
This
flurry
of
activity
all
took
place
in
the
spring
and
it
was
tempting
to
sit
back
in
the
knowledge
that
accommodation
and
transport
was
secured.
However,
the
realisation
then
dawned
that
no
money
from
oificial
funds
was
to
be
forthcoming,
and
an
expected
expenditure
of
JE100
had
to
be
covered
in
some
way.
An
appeal
for
funds
from
local
well-wishers
had
to
be
organised.
Whom
should
we
approach?
How
should
requests
be
worded?
How
much
could
we
expect?
Personal
contacts
proved
to
be
far
and
away
the
most
successful;
luckily
local
firms
were
generous
and
we
eventually
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