Survival Skills

Survival skills are the practical know-how that helps people stay safe, warm and easy to find if they're ever stuck outdoors. They cover protecting yourself from the weather, letting rescuers know where you are, finding safe water, making fire and getting food. For families, learning them together is an exciting way to build confidence in the outdoors.

Survival experts put things in order, because some needs are far more urgent than others. The very first step is to stay calm. Many people remember the word STOP: stop, think, observe and plan.

Protection comes first. That means first aid, the right clothes and a shelter to keep off the wind, rain and cold.

Location is about being found. Staying in one place and making yourself easy to spot, with a whistle, bright colours or a signal laid out on the ground, helps rescuers reach you.

Water comes next. Water from streams and ponds needs to be made safe before drinking, usually by boiling or filtering it.

Fire gives warmth and light, a way to boil water and a big boost to everyone's spirits.

Food comes last, because people can manage without it for much longer than they can without water.

Trapping is one of the traditional ways people found food in the wild, and it's all about three ideas: trigger, tension and release. A bent stick or a weight stores the tension. The trigger holds it in place until something nudges it, then the release lets it all go. Building a small model is a brilliant way to understand the clever engineering behind it, without catching anything at all. In the UK, trapping wild animals is controlled by law, so models like this are for learning only.

Yes. Children love the challenge of working out what they would do first, and the answers are often surprising. Your Activity Leader walks the group through each priority with practical, hands-on skills, then sets a survival scenario where everyone puts it all together. It encourages teamwork, calm thinking and a healthy respect for nature. Grown-ups usually pick up a few new tricks too.

Dress for the weather and the woods: layers, a waterproof jacket, long trousers and sturdy closed-toe shoes. That's a survival skill in itself, because the right clothing is your first layer of protection.

You might also like Shelter Building, Fire Lighting and Orienteering.

See all Camp Kindling activities