Some of the most disadvantaged children in Europe - the Roma children of Cold Valley village in Transylvania - had the opportunity to attend summer camp this year.
The charitable trust Aid for Romanian Children (ARC) organised three camps staffed by volunteers from the UK. They worked with local villagers to provide a memorable experience for more than 150 children.
The UK volunteers are mainly students and ex-students from Leeds Metropolitan University who each raise around 500 to cover their personal costs and those of five children. This included providing each child with two complete changes of clothing, towel, toothbrush, toothpaste, soap, shampoo and a pair of shoes.
The campsite is well equipped, even by UK standards. It has a children's play area, with a good range of equipment, a football pitch and badminton net. There is a dining room, two toilet and shower blocks, and wooden cabins to sleep in. The site is also home to an orphanage operated by a foundation which relies on income from the site to keep afloat. So, the fees from the ARC camps not only give a holiday to 150 Roma children, but also help provide a secure home for 12 orphans.
Pure playwork
The camps provide the sort of pure playwork experience seen less often in the UK nowadays. The volunteers' role is that of facilitator or enabler, rather than leader or coach. There is a loose daily programme of games and activities, but no coercion to join in. Some children only appear for meals, preferring to spend their time decorating cabins or washing their new clothes.
Sometimes the planned activities take off in a completely unexpected direction. For example, a very successful puppet-making activity turned into an improvised music and dance session when children decided to use the scrap materials to make percussion instruments instead of puppets.
Roma dancing is quite unique, with elements of tap, flamenco and traditional Indian dance. The moves are complex, but even very young children seem to master them easily. One of the volunteers, who had also been to Camp America, said she was struck by the inventiveness and self-reliance of these children when compared to their American counterparts.
Another striking difference is the energy with which everything is done.
The children are not bothered by physical knocks and seem to enjoy arguments. A version of 'oranges and lemons' caused lots of disagreement about the rules. A game of hangman created a huge argument when participants couldn't decide how a particular word should be spelled.
Their version of dodgeball involves trying to hit the legs of a few children in the centre of the circle. If you manage to hit someone, you swap places with them. I can think of few children in the UK who would be enthusiastic about a game whose outcome was to go into the centre of a circle so people could throw a ball at you. These children loved it.
Yet the children tended to settle disputes through negotiation, rather than violence. One of the Roma volunteers told me it is very different in the village. He said everyone is much more relaxed at the camp. At home, some of the children have to go begging; others get beaten for the slightest thing, so there is always tension. At the camp, they tease each other all the time, but rarely react violently.
Poor conditions
For several years, ARC has sponsored a full-time worker in the village, providing food, shelter and medicines for the children. But a dispute between the pharmaceutical industry and the Romanian health service has resulted in a chronic shortage of drugs in the hospitals. Roma children suffer more than most. Their appalling living conditions make it more likely that they suffer illness, overcrowding, poor diet and lack of fresh water. Life for these children is a constant struggle.
The camp offers positive moments in an otherwise bleak existence - powerful reference points in a child's life. It couldn't happen without the work of a dedicated group of volunteers. NW
Further information
* Fraser Brown is teaching fellow and senior lecturer on the BA (Hons) Playwork degree at Leeds Metropolitan University. He is chairperson of Aid for Romanian Children
* Aid for Romanian Children, www. arccharity.org
