PGL 2026 

Tuesday 9th June 2026

Two happy teachers awoke this morning after a good night's sleep. All the children settled really well and most reported that they slept really well and so much better than the previous night.  With our energy levels high, we set off for breakfast to give us the fuel to get through another busy day,

First up today was climbing and the sensory trail.  All the children set themselves a goal of how high they wanted to get on the wall and it was great to see the children achieve, and in some cases, exceed their own personal challenges.  There were some impressive skills on display as they climbed the wall, getting down however was not as graceful with many children appearing to lose the ability to use their legs and ending up on their bottoms!  Still, a lot of fun was had and a lot of fears conquered.

The next activity, the sensory trail, proved a different challenge.  In this activity the children were blindfolded and had to work together to negiotiate a pathway through the woods.  It relied on them using their senses and communicating what was happening for the people behind.  This was more of a struggle as communication was lost behind screams and laughter.  We did make it out eventually though!

After a break for lunch, we got ready for our next activities.  Whereas in the morning we had been climbing, we now had the opportunity to abseil down the tower.  This took nerves of steel as it was very windy at the top of the abseil tower.  Some children decided this was a step too far (I can't say I blame them either!) others decided to give it a go but made the decision not to abseil down and others bravely gave it a go.  There was lots of encouragement either way which was lovely to see.  We also completed orienteering around the site.  This was a lot of fun and I am hoping that all the running around will burn off any energy they have so they sleep later.

After dinner we played some PGL games and we are now packing to come home.  The children are all looking forward to seeing you all tomorrow. We will email when we are about half an hour away and aim to be back around 4pm.

See you tomorrow!

Monday 8th June 2026

Last night was a bit of a mixed bag when it came to sleeping.  Some children slept well, some slept on and off and others ... well, let's not dwell on that for too long. This morning we woke ready for a new day.  The forecast had not looked too promising but the day started positively so we kept our fingers crossed.  Our first activities were raft building and aeroball.  There was a lot of good communication and team work on display making the rafts.  As a result, both groups were able to build a raft which stayed afloat and stayed together.  You would hope that this meant all  the children stayed dry but alas, once one slipped in many others followed and we ended the session with lots of happy but soggy children! 

During aeroball you could see all Mrs Romain's hard work with the netball club paying off. There was some great shooting on display in the sports hall.  The children enjoyed bouncing up and down trying to beat their opponent.  I have to say though, the speed and intensity definitely dwindled as their legs got tired and they ran out of steam. 

After a hearty lunch, we then set out for our next activities, archery and the zip wire.  The dark clouds were beginning to gather at this point and we thought we were going to get caught in the rain, but fortunately the weather held and the children were able to enjoy speeding through the air on the zip wire.  In the archery session we saw some impressive skills and a couple of children managed to score a bullseye.  

After dinner, we headed to our camp fire to toast marshmellows and have a good sing song.  All the children threw themselves into the singing, joining in with all the action songs.  They certainly enjoyed the marshmellows and even a suprise downpour which soaked us, didn't dampen their spirits.  We were then rewarded with a beautiful double rainbow.

It is now time to settle the children down.  We are very much hoping the full day of activities will have tired them out and we will all get a good night's sleep tonight.  Wish us luck!

Sunday 7th June 2026

27 very excited (and maybe a little apprehensive) children boarded the coach this afternoon and made their way to East Sussex.  The journey down was a good one, the traffic was on our side and the children laughed and joked together to pass the time.  We only got asked about 47 times, how long we had to go before we arrived, so both Mrs Romain and I count that as a good journey!

When we arrived at Windmill Hill PGL site, we were met by our leader Abby.  She led us to our rooms and we quickly dropped off our bags before heading to our free time area.  After a few instuctions on what is going to happen, the children had some time to play together before we headed into dinner.  Lasagne or a sausage roll was on offer tonight, along with pasta, chips and a choice of vegetables.  There was also an unlimited salad bar which had a wide variety of choice. This was then topped off with a muffin or fruit for dessert.

After dinner,we returned to our rooms and the children had time to unpack and of course have some snacks.  It had been at least ten minutes since they had eaten and so clearly needed more nourishment!  

This evening our activity was Passport around the World.  The children were split into teams and using a map were sent around the site, looking for various information boards of countries.  The children had to read 3 questions and then return to base to share their answers.  I have to say, the children showed their knowledge of the world superbly and I was impressed with their knowledge.

After this, it was back to our rooms, I believe more snacks were then needed (well they had been running around for a while so they will have burned off some energy) and now we are currently working on them falling asleep.  Not sure this is going to happen quickly.

The weather has been kind to us today.  Wish us luck for tomorrow.