Frequently Asked Questions

When meeting at Burnage Rugby Club we have use of the toilets and facilities. At the end of the Northenden river trips there are no facilities BUT NEW FOR 2024 we will have changing rooms available at Jackson's Boat, please be aware that this may mean you will need to get changed in the outdoors. This may mean in the back of our van, your car, behind a bush or in private behind a towel.

No experience is needed for any of these trips. The river is grade 1 with a few easy Grade 1-2 rapids. We regularly accept adults and children who have never been in a boat and who may not be able to swim. Capsizing is rare and the river is shallow and usually slow flowing. Everyone wears a buoyancy aid and helmets for kayaking or unrafted canoes.

Groups are given a safety brief before they launch whether guided or self guided and after the first few hundred meters pretty much everyone has got the hang of it. For large groups or nervous groups we can raft the canoes together to make them impossible to capsize and easier to steer.

It is essential that you let us know about any medical condition, disability or injury when booking and that you also let your leader know on the starting day of your day. This information will remain completely confidential but is essential to ensure your safety and the safety of other group members.

We do not provide transport to get you from the 'get off' point back to the start. If leaving a car it is best to leave it at the get off point before coming to the start. ( therefore when you finish the car is ready to go straight home) How this works: Everyone in your group meets at the get off point, gets changed and leaves their change of clothes in some cars at that car park. They all car-share to the get on point (normally our centre in Heaton Mersey). Remember to bring the car keys for the cars left at the get off. Also bring your waterproof coat and trousers, even on a sunny day) Alternatives:

• Book a taxi/minibus taxi to meet you at the end point - remember to bring towels and bin bags to sit on as they may refuse to take you if you are wet. We can bring your change of clothes to the get off point.
• Book our ‘Metrolink Paddle’ to Jackson’s Boat Pub as this has Metrolink stations at both the start (East Didsbury Station) and end (Sale Waterpark). - NEW FOR 2024 Book our ‘Metrolink Paddle’ and then hire bikes from US and cycle back to our base. Please check that both bikes and trip is available beforehand.
• Come on your own bike and we bring your bike to the Get Off point on our canoe trailer. You must bring a lock and the bike remains your responsibility whilst locked to our canoe trailer.

We run open trips on specific dates and times - there is no minimum number of bookings, so you can come by yourself. Guided trips need a minimum of 4 people booked to run. If there are not enough places left on the trip for your group then get in touch and we may be able to increase the slots.

Yes! All water sport participants wear buoyancy aids. If anyone has difficulty with swimming 50m unaided, we do ask to be told this in advance so we can suggest the most suitable options.

We don't run trips 'all day, any day'. As we need a minimum number of people to make it economical to set the trip off and then collect the boats afterwards. So we have set times on set days.
However if a large group we may be able to organise a river or canal trip for your group on a specific day. Please get in touch to discuss

Under 18s are welcome as long as they are accompanied for the duration of the trip by a parent or legal guardian. We can easily arrange family days with children as young as 5 years.

The price includes hire of canoe or kayak, paddles and buoyancy aid, and waterproof barrel for your group. If it is a ‘led trip’ then the leader is included. We collect the boats and equipment at the end of the trip do BUT not provide transport for participants.

We offer a variety of watercraft options... Canoe: 3 Seats for two adults and small child or for 3 children (U-13) Note: Canoes cannot be hired out on the river due to problems rescuing these if they capsize.

Rafted Canoes: 2 canoes secured together with wooden spar.Impossible to capsize. Team craft for up to 6 adults. Perfect for non-swimmers or nervous participants.

Sit-on-Top kayak (SOT kayak): Wide, stable craft which is difficult to capsize and easy to rescue. No possibility of entrapment.

Double SOT kayak: Two person craft for up to 2 medium size adults. Faster and straight running. Easier for going longer distances

We recommend you wear old trainers or wet shoes and a lightweight waterproof jacket, with a fleece top or thermal underneath. Please do not wear jeans, flipflops or crocs. We give you a buoyancy aid and a helmet which must be worn when on or next to the river. We also have some salopettes that can be hired for £2 cash on the day. Make sure you bring a change of clothes in case you get wet!

Our main operation is on the River Mersey from our Centre in Heaton Mersey. We do also run trips down the River Tame and can offer canal trips from Marple or Poynton.

That depends – if the damage or loss was accidental. We reserve the right to make a charge if we believe that the damage or loss was caused wilfully or by misuse or negligence.

Yes. All staff have clearance from the Disclosure and Barring Service and these are updated at regular intervals.

Schools & Groups - Send us a brief message via 'Contact us' with all your details and requirements – group size, activities you would like and some date options, we will send through a quote and availability. If you would like to go ahead, we need you to confirm via email and then we will email a booking confirmation with T&Cs, a medical form, kit list, participation statement and an invoice.

Birthday Parties - please fill out this Google Form here with the what you are hoping to do and the numbers and ages of participants and we will be in touch.

Holiday Club, Self Guided Canoe and Kayak trips and Family Archery– You can book all these here

Groups - We ask for a 25% non-refundable deposit within 14 days of the date to secure the booking except when a purchase order from an approved buying authority is issued. You can pay by BACS or cheque.

Individuals - you book and pay for the activity on our booking portal in advance. Please visit the activity page to see the link to the booking site. You can pay by credit or debit card.

Instructor led activities -we work with a ratio of 1 instructor to 10 to 12 participants (depending on the activity).

Education Days - we can offer activities for up to 90+ people on a multi activity day.

Self guided river trips - we have 22 single and 15 double kayaks and up to 7 rafted canoes

That depends – if the damage or loss was accidental. We reserve the right to make a charge if we believe that the damage or loss was caused wilfully or by misuse or negligence.

We are a British Canoeing Delivery Partner and we hold a licence with the Adventurous Activities Licencing Authority (Reg no: L90695/R1942). Licence details can be confirmed by telephoning the Health & Safety Executive or visiting their website. This licence requires us to be inspected regularly and have risk assessments, operating policies and procedures in place . It also requires that we use only qualified and/or experienced staff who hold current first aid qualifications.

All staff working with U-18s hold recent DBS checks. We have full Public Liability Insurance.

Yes. All staff have clearance from the Disclosure and Barring Service and these are updated at regular intervals.

We are a British Canoeing Delivery Partner and we hold a licence with the Adventurous Activities Licencing Authority (Reg no: L90695/R1942). Licence details can be confirmed by telephoning the Health & Safety Executive or visiting their website. This licence requires us to be inspected regularly and have risk assessments, operating policies and procedures in place . It also requires that we use only qualified and/or experienced staff who hold current first aid qualifications.

All staff working with U-18s hold recent DBS checks. We have full Public Liability Insurance.

No, sorry,to accept vouchers we would have to be registered with Ofsted and because we don't have our own building and grounds that allow us to control entry and exit of the public, and check their identity we cannot register. JUST BECAUSE WE CANNOT REGISTER DOESN'T MEAN THAT WE ARE NOT DILIGENT IN ALL AREAS OF SAFETY. CHILDREN ARE ALWAYS FULLY SUPERVISED AND STAFF HAVE DBS CHECKS AND REFERENCES AND FIRST AID QUALIFICATIONS

It is essential that you let us know about any medical condition, disability or injury when booking and that you also let your leader know on the starting day of your day. This information will remain completely confidential but is essential to ensure your safety and the safety of other group members.

Depending on the day, we run a mix of land and water activities, these could include: Biking, Canoeing, Archery, Team Game, handicrafts and bushcraft. There is a provisional timetable but we often change it due to weather.

MAIN CLUB

Easter Holidays - we generally like children to be in Year 4 upwards as we are outside most of the time and it is still early in the year and weather can be less warm

May Half Term & Summer Holidays - Year 3-7 (Currently in those year groups)

SKILLS CLUB

Starting in 2024 and due to demand from parents we are going to offer some weeks for older children ( Years 8 to 11) to return. These will be focused on 2 activities each day and be much more coaching focused sessions. ( 1st week of Easter / May half term / Summer w/b 29th July & w/b 5th Aug)

Their lunch and water bottle. Sport clothes that they are happy to get wet and muddy.
Waterproof coat and over-trousers. We provide a full kit list at the time of booking.

It is an outdoor activity centre, with no indoor space BUT some sheltered activity areas (archery, bouldering, lunch area) and of course on bush craft day they can make their own shelters.

Sadly, we do not have control of the weather, but we always suggest appropriate activities for the season when you are booking. Follow our advice on what to wear to make sure everyone can take part in their outdoor experience, regardless of the conditions.

Sometimes we have to change the program around to suit the weather..that is why we encourage parents to look at sendign children for the whole week as sometime we do vary the program but aim to get all the activities in during the week.

All our group leaders are very experienced in working with young people and are very good at what they do. All staff have clearance from the Disclosure and Barring Service and these are updated at regular intervals. They will hold the qualifications and/or experience required for them to lead the activities we provide and they will have worked extensively with this age group before. many of our staff have worked with us for years.

Birthday Parties - please fill out this Google Form here with the what you are hoping to do and the numbers and ages of participants and we will be in touch.

Our price list can be found here

For our U-18 Birthday Parties we work on max 12 children per instructor. We find that children enjoy and spend time with their friends when a smaller group. We can extend these numbers a little for the Fun Splash canoe session up to 15. ( if you want to bring more than that then you have to book and pay for two instructors and they can be together for archery and canoeing but all other activities they would need to split into two groups and this means they don't spend time together which for me is the reason for a party).

We can also run events for Family & Friends Occasions where we lead you on a variety of our different activities. Please contact us if this is something of interest

Outdoor Activity Birthday parties are for the young and for the youthful! We have run birthday parties for children from 6 years old up to 70 years! Some of the very young children won't engage with all activities but they can still have fun...especially our new cave!

We offer all our usual land and water-based activities as party packages. These last between 2 and 5 hours. Have a look at the party page for some inspiration here

It is essential that you let us know about any medical condition, disability or injury when booking and that you also let your leader know on the starting day of your day. This information will remain completely confidential but is essential to ensure your safety and the safety of other group members.

Yes, risk assessments and insurance documents are available for all activities. These are available for download from our Resources downloads page here

We run school activity day programs for Years 3 to Year 11. We will suggest activities to suit the age and outcomes of the day. Take a look at some of our suggested programs in our brochure

Their lunch and water bottle. Sport clothes that they are happy to get wet and muddy.
Waterproof coat and over-trousers. We provide a full kit list at the time of booking.

We will supply a full kit list for the activities you have chosen but generally clothes that you don’t mind getting muddy or wet, old trainers or boots BUT no Jeans or your best new shoes. For water activities a full change of clothes is needed – just in case!

We have always been available to come to your school where appropriate but with our new for 2024 MOBILE CLIMBING wall our offer has become much better.

We can bring our Mobile climbing wall / archery / bikes / team building activities. We will need to come and do a brief site visit to check your grounds are suitable.