Courses
Plus size people can face a lot of barriers when accessing training and skills in the outdoors, so we’ve put together some courses that are exclusively for plus size folk. So if you’re worried about being slow up hills, needing regular breaks or just feel out of place in outdoors groups, this could be a great opportunity to up-skill, increase your confidence and meet some other lovely larger outdoors lovers.
Course supporter
Thank you to Osprey, our Skills and Training partner, for supporting us to run these courses, and helping us to keep the courses accessible and affordable for our community.
About the courses
The courses are run by Every Body Outdoors, with teaching provided by Cat Forster from Latitude 534. Steph from Every Body Outdoors co-runs the course and has years of lived experience as a plus size person in the outdoors and is an avid walker. Cat is a qualified Mountain Leader who has a focus and passion on working with under-represented groups. We ran our first courses together in March 2022 and can’t wait to do some more!
Any available dates will be listed under the course info below. We are hoping to do more courses in the future so to be kept in the loop please email us to be added to the mailing list.
These courses are for plus size people of all genders to create a safe and inclusive space. We do not set a size restriction on this, but if you are smaller than a size 18/2XL we would ask you to consider if there might be other courses that you could attend.
Requirements for the courses:
While we want the course to be as inclusive as possible, there is a requirement to be able to do the following in order to complete the course:
- You need to be able to be on your feet and walking for around 6 hours a day. There will be plenty of opportunity for breaks and a slow pace both uphill and downhill on steep sections.
- You need to be comfortable with going off path, over rough ground at times in order to carry out some of the aspects of the course.
The courses
Intro to Hill Skills
Would you like to gain more confidence and skills in the hills and mountains? Not sure what you need to pack, what to wear or what to do in an emergency? Want to feel confident navigating using a map and compass when you’re out on the hills? Would you like to understand how to plan a route and work out how long it might take you? This is the course for you.
UPCOMING COURSES:
April 12 - 14th: Yorkshire Dales
Location: Course based in the Yorkshire Dales at Malham YHA
Timings: Evening session on Friday night starting at 7pm, then all day Saturday and all day Sunday, finishing around 5pm.
Cost: Course cost is £140 - this does not includes accommodation. There is accommodation available at the YHA and in various options around Malham. If you would like to book a shared room we can put you in touch with other attendees.
Bursaries: We are offering a limited number of bursary places that will reduce the cost to £80. There is no strict criteria for these places, they are available for anyone for whom the cost is prohibitive and you can book a bursary spot via the booking link below.
More info: Course information sheet here and packing list here.
April 26 - 28th: Peak District
Location: Course based in the Peak District at Castleton YHA
Timings: Evening session on Friday night starting at 7pm, then all day Saturday and all day Sunday, finishing around 5pm.
Cost: Course cost is £140 - this does not includes accommodation. There is accommodation available at the YHA and in various options around Castleton. If you would like to book a shared room we can put you in touch with other attendees.
Bursaries: We are offering a limited number of bursary places that will reduce the cost to £80. There is no strict criteria for these places, they are available for anyone for whom the cost is prohibitive and you can book a bursary spot via the booking link below.
More info: Course information sheet here and packing list here.
Advanced Mountain Adventure
Are you ready for more challenging and exposed routes? This course is for those with a head for heights and a sense of adventure, who are keen to walk off the regular footpaths, seeking out the wild mountainous terrain. It’s not to exclude people, but rather to provide a safe space for those ready to advance to the next step of mountaineering.
There are no currently scheduled courses. The next Advanced Mountain course will be in Autumn 2024 - join our mailing list for more information nearer the time.
Terms and conditions
A 50% refund is available if you cancel your place more than 3 weeks in advance.
If you have any Covid-19 symptoms, please do a test before attending. If you have to cancel your place due to a positive Covid-19 test within 10 days of the course, we will provide a 50% refund of the course cost.
Got any questions? Email us!