Lincoln College

About

Lincoln College Vacation Project (VacProj)

Story

VacProj aims to help disadvantaged children aged 7-12 in Oxfordshire. All of the children selected for VacProj are involved with Social Services in Oxford, and usually around half of the children are also on the Child Protection Register. They come from a diverse range of backgrounds but all are disadvantaged in some way; some are young carers, victims of abuse, have been excluded from school, or have troubled home lives; others could just be in serious need of a fun week away!

VacProj has had an excellent year, with two highly memorable holidays in August 2013. 24 leaders from Lincoln College, Oxford, many of them VacProj first-timers, took 32 children from a range of backgrounds for a week they’ll hopefully never forget. While not primarily educational, VacProj aims to give the children the opportunity to experience new activities, while being away from their home lives – for many of them, for the very first time – and having a great deal of fun. Particular favourites this year were the Cotswold Wildlife Park, and for the first time in recent years, dragon boating!

This year VacProj enjoyed being based at a new venue, just half an hour from Oxford but a world away from some of the children’s home life. For many of the children it was the first time they had stayed in such an historic and elegant building: the library, artwork, and antique furniture prompted at least one child to ask ‘Is this a castle?’. Our holiday centre had wonderful grounds for the children to enjoy, even playing host to our very own VacProj Olympic Games. Feeding the chickens was an after-dinner highlight – even if we never quite managed to work out which was the rooster. The piano and ample performance space inside allowed endless practice for many budding stars (Justin Bieber proving a particular favourite), while the double stairway provided great potential for indoor games. Delicious food and wonderfully accommodating staff really made it the perfect VacProj host venue. Bring on VacProj’s 42nd year!

The continued success of VacProj since 1971 has only been possible due to the generosity of all our supporters, helping us raise over £22,000 to fund each year’s holiday. All our donors are highly appreciated – our sincerest thanks for your support!

Don't forget to take a look at our website (www.vacproj.co.uk) and our donation page (https://mydonate.bt.com/charities/lincolncollegevacationproject). If you'd like any more information, or would like to get involved, then feel free to send us an email!