We are delighted to report on another fantastic week in Oundle, blessed with some beautiful weather (albeit with a slightly wet start!) for our Summer Holiday.

This year, we celebrated Our Planet as our theme and enjoyed a wide range of arts and crafts, as well as the usual round of singing and games and trips out to old favourites including Twin Lakes, Wicksteed Park and Barnwell Park.

New in the timetable for 2023 was a visit to Yorkshire Wildlife Park in Doncaster! We had a great day out seeing lots of animals, including lions, giraffes and polar bears as well as their soft play and adventure playground.

We will have a more detailed breakdown of the week in due course, but want to say a quick thank you to everyone involved in organising and delivering the Holiday this year, including our volunteers as well as the Holiday Makers and their families.

You can have a watch of our 2023 video, very kindly edited by Marcus Beard (check out his website here) by clicking this link.

Don’t forget to follow us on instagram for lots of lovely pictures and short videos from the week and to catch news and updates on fundraising plans throughout the year.

If you, or anyone you know would like to undertake any fundraising on behalf of OMH this year, please contact Tessa Stanley-Price, who will be delighted to hear from you!

We wanted to say a huge thank you to everyone who fundraised on behalf of Oundle Mencap in 2022. Your efforts truly make our holidays happen – read on to see what we mean.

In March, the pupils and parents of Sanderson House at Oundle School chose us as the charity for their annual fundraising dinner. During the evening, generous guests donated a total of £7,855.

Also in March, Burghley House at Laxton Junior School chose Oundle Mencap as their house charity. Through a bring and buy sale and a paralympic pontoon in the staff room, pupils, teachers and parents donated £527.

In April, an incredible team of 30 runners took on the London Landmarks Half Marathon. They were supported by a team of Oundle Mencap volunteers cheering them on in the streets. It worked! – our runners raised an astonishing £22,254.

In July, a close friend of OMH, the super Lyla, asked for donations to Oundle Mencap instead of birthday presents – and her friends and family donated £227. Thank you Lyla!

In October, Oundle Mencap volunteers let their hair down at a Anniversary Ball to celebrate reaching the milestone of 40 Oundle Mencap holidays. Through a raffle and an auction, the evening raised £5,839.

Over one weekend in November, a team of 11 intrepid Oundle School pupils set out on a continuous 24hr Swimming Challenge, raising a fantastic £2,910 in sponsorship.

Also during 2022, holiday-maker Ava-Jane and her family raised money through a sponsored giggle-a-thon. Ava-Jane’s giggles raised £1,336 which was enough for us to buy a specialist hoist to support our holiday-makers.

This means that during the year more than £40,000 was raised by people who care deeply about Oundle Mencap and who inspired others to donate. We are so grateful to each and every one of you for your efforts.

Does this inspire you to fundraise for Oundle Mencap Holidays? If so, please contact Tessa who will be happy to chat through ideas with you.

There’s plenty more coming up in 2023 – watch this space!

We were absolutely delighted to once again welcome forty Holiday Makers to Oundle last week to enjoy a fantastic week’s holiday.

Back up to full numbers for the first time since 2019, this year’s holiday was an opportunity to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Oundle Mencap.  The idea of Richard and Christine back in 1982, the Oundle Mencap Holiday has since gone on to welcome hundreds of Holiday Makers and Volunteers alike.

In 2022, we had a fabulous week, with lots of different events from a colour festival, to a Royal Variety performance along with trips to the swimming pool and indoor games.

A theme of summer 2022 has been the intense heat, and we were able to make sure to adapt our plans once it became apparent that it would get even hotter than predicted!  We were sad to miss our annual trip to Wicksteed Park, but still had a lovely friday around Oundle, enjoying the shade and an afternoon of games in the Oundle School Sports Centre.

Our thanks to everyone who contributed to the 2022 Summer Holiday, either as a volunteer, supporter or fundraiser and to our fantastic Holiday Makers and their families.

Keep your eyes peeled for the 2022 video, which will be released soon and for more information about exciting upcoming events!

Oundle Mencap 2020 – Update

23 May 2020

All of us at Oundle Mencap Holidays, like many of you, have been closely monitoring the ongoing situation regarding the COVID-19 pandemic.

With the uncertainty over when the necessary Government restrictions might be relaxed, the impact of social distancing measures put in place within educational and residential settings, and the ever-changing landscape beyond this, we have had to think very carefully about the viability of the Oundle School Mencap Holiday in August 2020, in its present format.

The health and safety of our holiday makers and volunteer staff are our primary concern and it is with great regret that we have had to make the very difficult decision to cancel this year’s holiday.

Whilst we have no doubt everyone will be hugely disappointed with this news; we have not made this decision lightly and do believe it is the right thing to do at this stage for all concerned.

We know that our holidays a highlight for many, providing much enjoyment for holidaymakers and volunteer staff. In these challenging times this would no doubt have been all the more valued which is why we are particularly disappointed at not being able to go ahead as we had hoped.

We will be in touch regarding future holidays for 2021 and in the meantime we very much hope you stay safe and well.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding this letter, please do not hesitate to get in contact.