A group camp is a different job from a family weekend. The fun part is the same, but someone has to hold the bookings, the permissions, the medical information, the money and a plan for when things go wrong. This guide is for anyone organising one: a school teacher, a Scout or Guide leader, a sports club, a church or community group, or a few families camping together.
It deals with general principles. Schools, Scouts Australia, Girl Guides Australia and most clubs have their own policies on supervision, risk assessment and approvals. Those policies always take priority over anything here.
Pick the right kind of venue
Groups have more options than individual campers, and the choice shapes everything else.
Dedicated group campgrounds in national parks. Several states have group sites designed for larger numbers, often bookable as a whole area. They give you a bush setting but usually only basic facilities. Queensland offers an educational excursion rate of $4.25 per person per night for students and accompanying adults on approved excursions, compared with the standard $7.75. Parks Victoria has school camping fees for primary and secondary school bookings, with full payment required at booking if you book less than 30 days out.
Scout and Guide campsites. Scouts and Guides in every state own campsites and activity centres, from bush blocks with a toilet block and a fire circle to full centres with dormitories, kitchens, ropes courses and staff-run programs. Many are available to non-members. In NSW, for example, Scouts NSW lists its activity centres and Scout camps, notes that some can be booked by outside groups such as schools, and points you to the relevant camp or region to book. Large centres such as Cataract in NSW run school programs and handle bookings through their own team. Our Scout and Guide venues page lists the ones we know about.
Private and church camps, outdoor education centres. These usually come with catering, cabins and staffed activities. They cost more, but reduce the load on volunteers, and the operator often holds accreditation for the activities it runs.
Caravan parks. Useful for mixed-age groups and families. Talk to the park about group bookings before you book individual sites; many have rules for groups and some do not take them in peak periods.
What hiring a Scout or Guide site involves
Hire terms vary between states and between sites, but the Scouts NSW one-off hire form is a fair example of what to expect:
- A certificate of currency for public liability insurance, with a minimum of $10 million cover, submitted with the booking. The hirer is responsible for its own insurance; the venue’s insurance does not cover your group.
- An indemnity. The hirer indemnifies the organisation for injury, damage and related claims arising from the hire.
- Payment before arrival. On that form, fees and deposit are due at least seven days before the hire.
- Site rules on numbers, vehicles, fires, noise, cleaning and what happens to the bond if the site is left in poor condition.
If your group does not hold public liability cover, sort that out first. Schools are usually covered through their education department or system. Community groups often get cover through a peak body or a broker that handles not-for-profits. Ask for the certificate early, because it can take a week or more.
Insurance, permissions and paperwork
Every group camp needs a paper trail, and it needs to exist before you leave.
- Approvals. Schools need principal and often system-level approval for overnight excursions. Scout and Guide units follow their association’s activity approval process. Clubs should have committee sign-off.
- Consent forms. One per participant under 18, covering the dates, location, activities, transport, and consent for first aid and emergency treatment.
- Medical and dietary information. Allergies, asthma, diabetes, epilepsy, anaphylaxis action plans and medication. Keep a copy with the first aid kit and another with a second leader.
- Emergency contacts. At least two per participant, plus a home contact who is not on the camp and who holds the full list.
- Working with children checks. Every adult with a role on the camp needs a current check for the state you are in, under that state’s scheme.
- Land manager permits. Some parks need a group permit or a separate commercial or event permit for larger groups, organised activities or anything run by a paid operator. Check with the park office.
Supervision at a general level
There is no single national ratio for camps. Required ratios depend on the age of the participants, the activity and the organisation’s own policy, and they are usually higher for water activities, abseiling and remote areas. Use your organisation’s figure as the minimum, then ask what the camp actually needs:
- Two adults minimum, always. If one adult has to leave with an injured child, someone must stay with the rest.
- Gender balance that matches the group, especially for sleeping and bathroom supervision.
- Qualified leaders for adventurous activities. Swimming, paddling, climbing and bushwalking off formed tracks usually need a leader who holds the relevant qualification or is accredited by the organisation.
- A first aider with current certification on every activity and in camp.
- Night arrangements. Decide who sleeps where, who is on call, and how a child reaches an adult at 2am without wandering the campground.
Run a proper risk assessment
A risk assessment is a planning tool, not a form to file. Walk through the camp day by day and write down what could go wrong, how likely and how bad it would be, and what you will do to reduce it. Then share it with every leader. Common entries for Australian camps include heat illness, bushfire and Total Fire Ban days, flooding, falling limbs, water safety, snake bite, allergic reactions, lost participants, vehicle incidents and food poisoning.
Two decisions deserve to be written in advance. First, your trigger to cancel or move: for example, a forecast of Extreme or Catastrophic fire danger, a severe weather warning or a heatwave warning for the district. Second, your emergency plan: where the nearest hospital is, where there is phone coverage, the site’s address or GPS coordinates for 000, and who drives.
On a Total Fire Ban day, no open fires are allowed, including campfires. Plan meals that work on gas, or on no heat at all.
Food and water for a crowd
- Plan menus by day and meal, with quantities per person. Scale up by 10 per cent for hungry teenagers.
- Keep raw meat cold and separate, and cook it through. Two eskies, one for drinks and one for food, stop the food esky being opened every few minutes.
- Assign cooking and washing up on a roster. It teaches skills and stops the same three adults doing everything.
- Confirm whether the venue has drinking water. If it is tank or untreated water, boil or treat it, or bring water in.
- Have a clear plan for food allergies, including separate utensils and a label system.
Look after the site
Groups leave a bigger mark than families. Brief everyone on the Leave No Trace principles before you arrive: plan ahead, camp on durable surfaces, dispose of waste properly, leave what you find, minimise campfire impacts, respect wildlife and be considerate of other visitors. In practice, that means staying on tracks, setting up only where the site allows, carrying out all rubbish, and keeping noise down after dark when other campers are nearby.
Organiser’s checklist
Eight weeks or more before
- Choose venue and dates; confirm group size limits
- Book the venue, pay the deposit, read the hire terms
- Confirm insurance and get the certificate of currency
- Start organisational approvals
Four weeks before
- Send consent and medical forms
- Confirm leaders, qualifications and working with children checks
- Draft the program, menu and risk assessment
- Arrange transport
One week before
- Chase missing forms; no form, no camp
- Finalise the shopping list and gear list
- Brief leaders on the program, risk assessment and emergency plan
- Send families a packing list, pick-up times and an emergency contact number
The day before and morning of
- Check the fire danger rating, Total Fire Ban status, weather warnings and park alerts
- Pack the first aid kit, medications and the medical folder
- Leave the participant list and itinerary with the home contact
After the camp
- Report any incidents through your organisation’s process
- Settle the bond and money
- Write down what worked, what didn’t and what to change next time
Looking for a venue? Start with our Scout and Guide venues page or browse all campsites.
Sources
Checked 31 October 2026. Fees and rules change, so confirm with the land manager before you go.
- Scouts NSW, Activity centres and Scout camps
- Scouts NSW, Hire of Scout premises one-off use form (PDF)
- Scouts NSW, Insurance information
- Cataract Scout Activity Centre, Schools
- Queensland Parks, Camping bookings and fees (educational excursion rate)
- Parks Victoria, Fees and charges schedule (school bookings) (PDF)
- NSW Rural Fire Service, Total Fire Ban rules
- Leave No Trace Australia, 7 principles
- Outdoor Council of Australia, Leave No Trace