viaferrata

Rank Aspire Residential

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In February, our pilot group of Rank Aspire Programme (RAP) members made their way up to the Lake District to embark on group activities and tackling the Via Ferrater. Despite some challenging weather, the group completed the challenge, bonded with their fellow Aspire members and attended sessions on personal and professional development.

One of the attendees, Erin, has given us an account of her time on the residential:

“It was exciting to see all of the other people on the programme and catching up as we all came through from the train station. We then headed towards the centre which was beautiful! I had never been to the Lake District before and the views were really spectacular. We all eventually arrived at the centre and got started on activities and catching up with everyone’s journey through the programme. I was really happy to hear how everyone is excelling in their placements.

We covered a few different activities such as an Imposter Syndrome workshop which several of us felt we could identify with (and learned a lot from), how to overcome it, and recognise our achievements as being hard-earned – not simply luck. Another issue we identified is that most of us struggled with accepting compliments and the activity showed us how to accept compliments from others, which was really nice.

We were all given the opportunity to do the Via Ferrata, which is probably one of the scariest things I have ever done. It involved essentially clinging to the side of a mountain by a small hook. I am glad to say I have done it but it was terrifying!

The last day we woke up to so much snow which was beautiful to look at but left us unsure of how we were all getting home. After the minibus was cancelled, we were all put into cars and were all set to go home. However, the snow made it very difficult and left car wheels spinning but not moving. We weren’t sure whether it was a last minute team building activity but we all teamed together to push cars up snowy hills. It was a lovely residential and I look forward to seeing everyone again!” – Erin, Rank Aspire @ Brook.

GAP Residential, May – Nayaab Yaseen Review

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On arrival in Cumbria I was greeted by staff and other Gappers, which meant we were able to bond as a group from the onset. The residential was 3 days long and was packed with loads of activities ensuring that we got the most of our time in the Lakes; this made it particularly enjoyable. Out of all the activities the Via-Ferrata was the most memorable for a number of reasons; firstly I was hanging mid air at one point! The Via-Ferrata was made up of vertical climbing and a lot of mountain edge exposure; it was a very terrifying yet thrilling experience. What made the experience particularly memorable was the support that I got from the other Gappers. I was very nervous at the start, but the whole way through the Via-Ferrata I had constant words of encouragement. It’s hard not to bond with someone when you’re clinging on to them mid air! Over the few days we developed really good friendships and we are still in contact with each other; in fact we’re in a group chat.

All in all, the experience was absolutely fantastic and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I benefited in a number of ways including pushing myself to do something I didn’t think I could do. The rest of the group told me they could hear my shenanigans from the other side of the mountain so I was really proud that I persevered. I am really looking forward to the next residential and being reunited with my fellow Gappers.

Nayaab Yaseen – Lindley Educational Trust