Considering a career move? Did you know there’s a charity on your doorstep that delivers accessible outdoor adventure for all?
Introducing The Lake District Calvert Trust.
From Calvert Lakes, our residential centre above Bassenthwaite and Calvert Stables, just outside Keswick – we believe the Lakes should be accessible to everyone.
Our residential breaks help people with a range of disabilities experience the Lake District in a safe and supportive way. Delivering a fun and fulfilling experience that makes a positive difference in their lives.
Each year we welcome over 3,000 people living with disabilities from all over the UK and beyond to find out just what they ‘can do’ in the great outdoors.
We are one of only a handful of residential outdoor adventure centres in the UK who are fully accessible to people living with even the most profound learning and physical disabilities.
Our all-inclusive breaks are often the first or only time, people can spend meaningful time together engaging in activities accessible to each and every one of them.
Every single day, our dedicated and passionate instructors at Calvert Lakes and Calvert Stables find creative ways to make the outdoors accessible: from power chair users reaching the summit of Latrigg for spectacular views over Keswick to visually impaired guests conquering high ropes courses and zip lines suspended 20 metres above the ground to child brain injury survivors discovering the joy of canoeing with their families and much, much more.
In total we offer over 20 accessible activities, because at Calvert, it’s what you ‘can do’ that counts.
But we need more than instructors to make the magic happen. We employ over 40 staff with a range of different skillsets including fundraising, sales, catering, housekeeping, maintenance and more.
View all our current vacancies here
We caught up with some of the current team members to find out why working for Calvert is more than just a job…
Heidi Stafford, Business Development Executive
Why did you want to work at Calvert?
I have been a teacher for most of my career – a role that had a valuable and tangible impact on a large number of people.
When looking to move beyond the classroom, it was important for me to find a role that felt worthy, a role that would make a positive impact on a community of people.
What’s the most rewarding part of the job?
Nurturing relationships with people who really need the opportunity to have a break from the challenges of their day-to-day lives.
Listening to their needs and assuring them that at Calvert Lakes disability is not a barrier to anything and they will meet others with similar life challenges.
Knowing that a Calvert Lakes experience can literally be life-changing and witnessing that every week.
When I know I have worked hard to support someone to come to Calvert and, when they come, they cannot believe what they can achieve and how many friends they have made – that is true job-satisfaction.
Tell us about an outstanding memory/experience you’ve had with the charity?
Too many to count – but here’s a particular favourite. My colleague and I spent a morning making space on a course and in our accommodation to allow a single mum with a lovely son with a plethora of challenges to come for a whole week and join a course, which already had a similar family booked.
It took four instructors to support the young man to do the swing in the sports hall.
At the end of the week, they booked to come back next year with the same family, now they had made a valuable connection and some true friends. The stuff of tears.
See Business Development job opportunities here
Lindy Powell, Property and Maintenance
Why did you want to work at Calvert?
To be a part of a something that has such positive impact on people’s lives.
What’s the most rewarding part of the job?
I love seeing the excited anticipation on the faces of guests as they get ready for an adventure or return from being out on one. There is always a positive energy about the place.
Tell us about an outstanding memory/experience you’ve had with the charity?
Being a part of the camaraderie during our annual Big Give week in November.
I love taking part in activities that I would never normally do in the middle of the night with all the other amazing staff who work at the Calvert Trust – it’s totally exhilarating.
