Holiday camp closes its doors after a century

A SUMMER camp which had provided free holidays for underprivileged children for 100 years has had to close its doors due to a poor take-up of places.

The Jewish Children’s Holiday Fund ran annual two-week holidays for eight to 11-year-olds, but this year, it had to cancel after fewer than 20 children signed up for the summer.

Charity chairman Ian Donoff said: “It wasn’t worth it to run our own camp. We decided it is more logical that we subsidise children in other camps.”

Usually the camp would take around 40 children. Last year, 35 children attended, costing JCHF £65,000.

Mr Donoff attributed the decline in interest to children wanting to go to the same camps as their friends.

“When I joined JCHF the then-chairmangavesomethinglike£5,000-£7,000 in subsidies for kids to go to other camps. Last year we gave over £100,000. And we find we reach more kids by doing that,” said Mr Donoff, who has been chairman for more than 10 years.

Mr Donoff estimated that the charity helped fund places for 500 children last year, and added that those who had signed up for this summer’s JCHF camp would be placed elsewhere.

JCHF began as a Jewish branch of the Children’s Country Holidays Fund before splintering off into a separate organisation. For around 40 years it owned a property in Seaford on the south coast where, in the 1970s and 80s, it ran three two-week holidays every summer with kosher catering, and activities for more than 100 children. When the Seaford house fell into disrepair it was sold and for the past few years Skeet Hill House has been rented for two weeks in the summer.

Andrew Essex, a camp leader and JCHF volunteer for 33 years said: “I’m upset. It was a big part of my life, but it wasn’t financially viable.”

Mr Essex added said he had been inundated with messages on social media from former attendees and parents of camp children who were saddened by the news.