Probably, each of us visited the summer camp at least once in our childhood. Such camps have not lost their popularity in our days. Moreover, children's camps have become a profitable, albeit difficult business for many entrepreneurs. The children's camp is a special program for recreation and good time for children and adolescents, which is usually carried out during the summer months.
The main goal of most camps is educational and cultural development. There are several main types of camps for children. Children's health camps are usually located outside the city. This can be either a standard recreation center (with stationary buildings - residential buildings, dining rooms, showers, etc.), or a tent camp (a variant of a tourist camp).
The second and perhaps the most common type of summer camp is a daytime school camp, which is located on the basis of schools and institutions of additional education. In their form and purpose, they resemble kindergartens, although they are intended for older children. Such camps operate only in the daytime (from morning to evening or from morning to lunch). During the day, children can attend various clubs or sports sections, walk on the school site under the supervision of teachers, or go on various excursions.
Documents governing the activities of summer camps
If you intend to open a camp of one of the above types, then read the two main documents that govern their activities: “Sanitary and epidemiological rules and regulations of SanPiN 08/18/2019.1204-03 dated March 17, 2003” (for stationary camps) and “Sanitary epidemiological requirements for the arrangement, maintenance and organization of the operating mode of children's camp tourist camps during the summer holidays SanPiN 08/18/2019.2605-10. "
According to the sanitary requirements for the operation of children's tourist camps and institutions with children's daytime vacations, groups for children of primary school age must consist of a maximum of 25 people, older children - up to 30 people, and one shift cannot last less than 21 days. At the same time, vacationers are fed two or three times depending on the time of their stay in the day camp. Documents regulate almost all the nuances, including prohibitions on fried eggs and okroshka in the children's menu and the requirements for the weight of one serving of fruit (which should be at least 100 grams).
The instructions for the camps are no less detailed, and in the second document “Sanitary and epidemiological requirements for the construction, maintenance and organization of the operating mode of camp tourist camps for children during the summer holidays”, which refers to the work of institutions for children from 12 years old, traveling with tents or living in them at the base. So, for example, you can take children to such a camp only at a temperature of no lower than 15 degrees at night, and no higher than 30 degrees during the day (which is simply impossible to observe in many regions). All the details of organizing children's tourist vacations down to the composition of the equipment (tent, campfire set, first-aid kit, guitar and lantern) are also written there.
The main types of children's summer camps
The sanatorium-type camp is located on the basis of medical centers or schools, which are located near clinics and other medical institutions. The main purpose of such a camp is not so much relaxation and entertainment as the general improvement of the children in it and the prevention of various diseases. As in any other camp, there is also a doctor here. The difference is that this health worker carefully examines him when taking the child, examines the extracts from the medical records and certificates from the local pediatrician or profile specialist if the child is registered with one (for example, a neurologist, otolaryngologist, etc.), and amounts to for each individual who enters the camp an individual rehabilitation program.
Training camps are also called summer schools. They are of three main types: for children who do not keep up with the usual school curriculum (for those who are lagging behind), specialized (psychological, linguistic, mathematical, historical, etc.) and preparatory (for high school students who are preparing to pass the exam and / or are determined with the choice of their future specialty and higher educational institution). Classes in training camps can take place in the form of a small number of lessons (usually no more than three) or, in general, in the form of games, quizzes and contests. In addition to the training itself, various cultural and entertainment programs are also provided here.
Sports camps are intended not so much for recreation and entertainment (although it cannot do without it), but for the physical development of children. There are two types of such camps - specialized (based on certain sections and sports schools) or general (based on ordinary schools with a general physical training program). In addition to the program with an emphasis on sporting events, such camps differ from ordinary ones in that children, when enrolled in them, are divided into groups not only by age, but also by level of physical fitness. Asset camps, which are formed on the basis of a specific registered children's organization, are considered by many to be remnants of the Soviet past. Although they are still found, they are much less common than sports camps. Often they are formed on the basis of a suburban camp and can be either fully functional or one camp shift.
In addition, among other types of camps, it is also worth mentioning the family camp, although it is not commercial in nature and cannot become the basis for your own business. Such a camp is usually organized by several families or communities according to their interests, territorial characteristics, age of children, etc. All the costs of organizing the recreation, food and entertainment of children are borne by their parents.
The weekend camp runs from Friday evening to Sunday evening. The main program begins, as a rule, from Saturday morning and continues until Sunday evening. The same entertainment and recreation program for children is supposed to be there as in a regular camp, but in an abridged version. Food and medical care is also no different from other camp options. Departures of weekend camps can be timed to some holidays, moreover, they do not always fall on the warm season (for example, they can be arranged for the New Year holidays). Such camps are quite rare.
Labor camps are designed for adolescents aged 12 to 17 years. As the name implies, staying in such a camp involves not only relaxation and entertainment, but also a certain work activity (usually in the morning and strictly no more than four hours a day). As a rule, children work before lunch (for example, pick berries, corn, gourds, apples, etc.), and after lunch they relax and have fun. As a result of their work, they receive a small salary (daily or at the end of the shift), which usually goes to partially cover the payment of a ticket to the camp. The camp itself concludes contracts with various organizations that need seasonal workers.
Profile camps are similar to educational and health at the same time. They have a certain focus and are created on the basis of various sections and leisure centers. Often, they do not even constitute autonomous camps, but exist in the form of separate groups that organize leisure trips. There are specialized camps for young technicians, ecologists, local historians, journalists, mathematicians, rescuers, sailors, volunteers. As a rule, they act as summer specialized schools for various types of children's creativity, etc.
In addition to this classification, children's camps are divided by time of activity (year-round and seasonal) and by the place of recreation (stationary, tent, outdoor).
Of course, the most popular are traditional camps on the coast. The only state camp where the problems of budgetary institutions, squabbles, scandals and the struggle for land were practically not affected were the legendary Artek. The rest either have already closed, or, according to experts, will soon share this sad fate. However, parents will not stop sending their children to the sea for a long time, so that they can relax away from the stuffy and dusty cities.
Therefore, experts have no doubt that the future lies in private children's camps of a sports and educational type, where children can not only relax, but also strengthen their health, develop existing ones and learn new skills. Demand for trips to children's camps from sports clubs and linguistic schools only increases every year.
Large travel agencies also begin to open their own health camps for children. One shift lasting 16 days brings the camp owners up to $ 620 thousand! However, the average income of such a camp is estimated at about $ 300 thousand, which is also not so bad.
Investments in the opening of a children's summer camp
However, here there are pitfalls. If you plan to open such a camp, you will have to find investors, since to organize your own business you will need from 500 thousand to 1 million dollars. This impressive amount includes the cost of land, and the costs of building buildings, and the wages of staff, and ensuring the safety of vacationers. At the same time, the profitability of this business in the early and mid-2000s was 7%, and now it has decreased to 4%. This is due to the fact that in the camps of the old type, the main attention was paid to control over children, and the new camps offer vacationers a relatively free regime.
It is not student counselors who work with children, but qualified teachers, psychologists, and even nutritionists (if we are talking about a health camp). If the camp belongs to a travel company, the profitability of this business will be significantly higher, since the travel agency can set its own mark-up for permits, which sometimes reaches 40%! If the camp has its own specialization (for example, linguistic), then the margin can reach up to 70%! Although, in most cases, it is more profitable for travel companies not to open their camp in Russia, but to cooperate with foreign camps. At the same mark-up, the cost of a vacation ticket in a foreign camp can be significantly lower than the cost of a similar permit for the same period in a camp in the Krasnodar Territory.
Most modern camps offer, like ordinary hotels, three types of accommodation - standard, improved and elite. The difference is in the buildings where vacationers live. In the first case, it is planned to place from six to eight people in large rooms. Toilets are usually shared on the floor, and the bath and laundry complex is located on the street. With improved placement, no more than five people live in the room with all the amenities on the floor, and with elite - 2-3 people in a room with all the amenities right there in the "room".
According to the norms, meals in the camp should be four times a day (including breakfast, lunch, afternoon snack, dinner). Sometimes a second supper is also suggested. Meals can be arranged in the form of a buffet or a portion table. The first option was adopted following the example of foreign hotels, the second option is considered traditional and more justified, as it allows you to provide a balanced menu and meets all standards.
Selection of counselors for children’s summer camp
Of particular note is the selection of counselors. In most cases, the camps conclude agreements with various pedagogical schools and accept student students for shifts, who count work in the camp as practice. Less often, members of student organizations at various universities work as counselors, for whom working with children in the camp is a hobby. In most cases, these are enthusiastic people who can get along with children. Such groups (which are called pedagogical teams) usually have their own sites through which the camp management contacts them, selecting counselors for the upcoming season.
Until recently, rare camps had a permanent staff. However, now as private camps spread, this form of work is becoming more common. Workers are selected as carefully as in any private development center. Counselors working in the camp take part in educational seminars and are professionals in their field.
In addition to other organizational issues, it is advisable at the very beginning of planning to consider what program your camp can offer vacationers. Conventionally, all programs are divided into conservative, conventional and innovative. Conservative programs are developed for many years to come, holidays and all events are held according to the same scenarios as half a century ago, with the only difference being that ideological aspects are removed from them. Conventional programs, in fact, are based on conservative ones, but counselors are allowed to modify them a little, which adds a bit of variety.
Finally, innovative programs involve constant change and refinement. What is not so interesting to the children from previous shifts is removed from them, and new games and entertainments are introduced. Thanks to this approach, rest in each shift of the same camp turns out to be different from the others. State camps and camps without their own staff of workers cannot afford the introduction of such programs, so they become a competitive advantage for commercial camps. The development of innovative programs can be handled not only by specialists, but also by counselors themselves (especially if they have experience in the field of event business, organizing children's parties and conducting social events).
For obvious reasons, the development of such programs and, most importantly, their implementation requires considerable resources, time and effort, but, on the other hand, their use increases the “value” of the camp in the eyes of parents. For example, scientific and adventure programs can be considered innovative (one of these is being implemented in a sanatorium-type recreation camp on the Black Sea coast). On the territory of such a camp there is a paintball field, an extreme amusement park, a climbing wall, shooting ranges for archery and crossbows, modern sports complexes, a tennis court and even an audience and laboratories for science and natural sciences.
Of course, not every entrepreneur can swipe to open a full-fledged children's camp on the seashore. His organization requires tremendous capital, connections, strength and time. With relatively low profitability and such high costs, the payback period of such a project is more than a dozen years. Therefore, the most common are specialized summer camps.
Features of the opening of a specialized children's camp
They do not buy or build their own recreation centers, but rent houses at existing bases and floors in boarding houses. At the same time, the location of such a camp can constantly change: for one year he collaborates with one base, and for the next he chooses another partner. Such camps are summer schools that use innovative innovative approaches to teaching children. They can be based on the basis of existing institutions, which determines their specifics: courses (for example, a foreign language), development studios (for example, preparing future first-graders for school) or even psychological centers (an extended version of trainings for children).
Sports camps can also be attributed to this, but, as practice shows, modern parents are more likely to pay for their child’s education in summer, and not for outdoor activities and physical development. With this format of work (on the basis of functioning institutions), the costs of organizing a camp will be small, and they can work not only in the summer, but also during school holidays, which will reduce the payback period.
Summer camps of this type are also called development sites. They recruit a small number of groups (for example, two - for preschoolers and primary school students). In groups for younger children, they prepare for school, and for children of school age programs are offered to teach foreign languages and “pull up” in basic school subjects. In addition to classes, walks, excursions and various games are also provided. Specialized camps can assume only the daytime stay of children (in the evening they are taken by parents) or, subject to conditions, round-the-clock on weekdays (children go home on weekends).
При расчете окупаемости такого лагеря учитывайте, что хотя бы 40 % от стоимости каждой путевки должно уходить в прибыль. Обычно выше этот показатель не бывает, иначе это идет в ущерб качеству отдыха или же снижает доступность стоимости путевки для родителей.
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