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Individual Projects In More Detail
What It Costs
To undertake an independent AidCamp we ask you for a registration fee and a minimum donation. The registration fee is payable when we start the process of arranging a placement for you. You can fundraise the minimum donation or pay for it yourself – we don’t mind!
Registration fee
We require a registration fee of £100 for organising an independent AidCamp for you.
If we cannot offer you a placement fitting your stated requirements, or if you feel that the alternatives we suggest are unsuitable, then we’ll be happy to give you a full refund. Once you have accepted a placement the registration fee becomes non-refundable.
Minimum donation
Our primary purpose as a charity is to provide support to our partners and their communities, and so we specify a donation amount that will be used to help to support your project.
As part of your placement you will be told of the most pressing local needs and the cost of fulfilling each of them, and have the opportunity to decide which of those needs you’d like to fund (in consultation with our partner NGO).
For example, let’s say it’s agreed that you will teach English in a rural primary school. The school might be short of teaching materials and books, the children may be in need of school uniforms, while the lack of a clean water supply in the village is resulting in children often being off school sick.
Not only do you get to choose which of these you want to provide but, where possible, you’ll also get involved in the purchasing and delivery of your support – a real and direct opportunity to make the most of your donation.
The minimum donation varies with how long you want to stay. The first £200 is split between the local partner NGO you will be working with and AidCamps as a charitable donation to help fund both organisations’ work. 100% of the rest goes directly to the objectives agreed with you.
The minimum donation for a project of 2-5 weeks is £500. For any placement over 5 weeks, we ask for an additional £50 per week.
The first £200 of the minimum donation is due three months in advance of the start of your placement. The remainder is normally due three weeks before you go, but may be required earlier, depending on activities to be funded. Should you fail to provide the minimum donation by the agreed due date, your independent AidCamp will be cancelled.
All donations are non-refundable; however, we do commit that if for any reason you are unable to take part in your independent AidCamp, any donations already made will be applied as initially agreed.
Your costs
You cover all your own costs while in-country, in the local currency, as well as your pre-departure costs such as flights, visas, travel insurance, etc. Travel health insurance, covering emergency repatriation costs and including an international emergency help line, is mandatory to attend any AidCamp.
We’ll help you in planning and budgeting your stay, so you know how much to take with you and what certain items may cost, for example, an airport collection or the cost of a homestay.
In addition to your personal costs, we also ask you to cover any created costs – those that others incur solely due to your presence. Our philosophy is that you being there shouldn’t cost either our partners or the local communities anything. You are, after all, there to give, not to take. For example, if our partner organisation agrees to take you to see some local scenic spot you have read about in your guidebook, please cover their fuel costs. Or if you want to go off sightseeing one weekend and ask someone in the community to be your guide, pay their travel, food, and accommodation costs, and give them something for themselves.
The volunteer work you choose may also create costs, for example, if your choice requires you to have a full-time translator or assistant. People costs in our project countries are very cheap by western standards, typically less than £2 per day, and these will be discussed with you when arranging your placement.
Making Your Application
Before applying for an independent AidCamp, please get in touch with us, either by email to info@aidcamps.org or using the enquiry form on the Individual and Family Projects page, to see if we think we will be able to accommodate your requirements.
You cannot apply through our website but once you have made your initial enquiry, we will send you an application form and details of how to pay the registration fee.
Once we get your application, we will contact you again to discuss your wishes, examine options, and suggest possibilities. Having reached an understanding with you on your requirements we will then negotiate with our partner organisations to agree a placement suitable for you.
Practicalities
You will be expected to behave in a manner consistent with the laws and customs of the host country throughout your placement.
Local living
As you’ll be covering your own living costs in-country you have the freedom to make your own choices as to the style of your stay, subject, of course, to availability, practicality, and your budget.
Possible options range from “homestays”, where you live in the community with a local family, to the partner organisation’s guesthouse and local hostels, to western style hotels.
It’s up to you. Not all choices are available everywhere, or practical for every assignment, but if you look at the descriptions of our AidCamp countries and let us know your preferences, we’ll see what can be arranged.
Typical “no frills” living costs, associated with staying in a homestay or the partner organisation’s guesthouse, food included, are around £70 per week.
Local class hotels, simple but of a reasonable standard, with (usually) private shower and toilet, are typically around £15-£20 a night for the room. Western class hotels, where available, are, of course, more expensive.
Food
You’ll need be flexible about your food, as, even if you eat out all the time, you’ll find the choices limited. Local diets in our Asian project countries tend to be mostly vegetarian and spicy, while the African diet can be heavily meat-based. If you have any special dietary requirements, it’s best that you talk to us before you sign up.
Arrival and departure
All of our partners offer an arrival and departure service to get you from the airport to your placement, with an introduction to our partner on the way, and then back to the airport at the end.
Exactly what this consists of, and, therefore, the cost, varies depending on local factors, such as how close the partner’s base is to the international airport, what times of day you arrive and leave, and where your placement will be. This typically ranges from £15-£45 each way.
On arrival you’ll be picked up from the airport and taken to our partner’s base (which may involve a hotel stay on the way), where you’ll spend a day or two meeting our partner, getting to know their work, and preparing for your assignment. You’ll then be taken to the location of your placement and introduced, and settled in ready to start the next day.
On departure it’s basically the reverse, finishing off with being taken to the airport for your flight home, or to a bus or train station if you want to go off travelling.
Language
Depending upon the assignment you choose you might need to communicate in the local language, either at work or with your hosts. You can deal with this either by hiring a local translator or by learning the language yourself, or a combination.
Our partner organisations can arrange language lessons for you at very reasonable cost. A full-time intensive course for a couple of weeks is particularly suitable if you’re planning on staying for a longer period.
Family Projects
Family projects are similar to individual projects There are no special procedures or conditions for over 18s in the family. However, the application and procedure for under 18s are a little different.
Before you apply
Please do your research. There are many risks, in particular from diseases, in tropical developing countries that are much more serious for children than for adults and that children are more susceptible to. We strongly recommend you take independent professional medical advice before application on the risks of taking your children on a volunteering placement.
Procedures and conditions for under 18s
The family placement must include at least one parent or legal guardian of the child(ren). A parental consent and responsibility form must be completed for each child and all normal terms and conditions apply for all children, except as noted below.
16-17 year olds:
We regard 16-17 year olds as young adults, fully capable of undertaking a useful placement, and of fundraising for local development aid. As such, 16-17 year olds use the same application procedure and are subject to the same terms and conditions as adults. However, the registration fee is reduced to £50.
12-15 year olds:
We feel that 12-15 year olds can both provide a benefit and benefit themselves from active involvement in a placement and can also undertake some fundraising. As such, 12-15 year olds use the same application procedure and are subject to the same terms and conditions as adults, except we don’t charge a registration fee and a criminal records check is not needed. The minimum donation is reduced to £100, irrespective of length of stay, the whole of which will be applied to the objectives agreed for your project.
Under 12 year olds:
We consider under 12 year olds as ‘carry-along kids’ who will not be undertaking a voluntary position or be expected to fundraise. As such, other than us knowing some necessary details, no application procedure, registration fee, or minimum donation is required, and the criminal record check and references requirements are dropped. A health certification will still be needed.
