The main problem for organizers in selecting the best dates for any event is the availability of sites, most of which will not normally be Naturist ones. They are restricted to those dates where the management is happy to lose all the alternative revenue they may otherwise earn. That would often rule out school summer holidays. NKD, I note, has been arranged to coincide with a half-term (one week) holiday, but, being a weekend event (Friday-Tuesday), had they opted for the following weekend, two school days would have been involved. Where it is, only one day is involved. Why not make it a day later?,Well, my guess is the consideration there was that that would have entailed many adult attendees having more difficulty booking the time off work. Often nothing much gets done on Friday, especially in the afternoon, whereas absence on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of a working week might well present more problems. Also bear in mind that not all schools observe the same holiday dates: independent, voluntary aided, foundation, and academy schools are all able to set their own holiday dates, and each education authority may do so too. There is no precise national co-ordination of these dates. The organizers also probably reckon that the vast majority of parents would be perfectly willing to ring in and subsequently write a sick note to cover the absence of their children from school for one day. I think that they are right in that. 

I am not sure what “new improved” event RnR is referring to, surely not NKD? It is £25 per child 6-17.

Allen - I see where you are coming from but I cannot agree.

I think placing adults booking a Friday over a Wednesday off work is much easier than asking parents to lie to schools (and encourage their children to lie) for a day away from school - particularly as this is supposed to be a family event. Morally I just cannot do that - naturism is about being open and honest and there is no way that I am going to lie in support of it. If I did how could anyone trust anything I ever wrote on behalf of naturism again? Our boys were so looking forward to NKD again this year and we have had to explain to them that we will noy be going again. It is ironic as we wrote article for the BN magazine, for H&E and for ANW all encouraging people (especially families) to go to this most important of family opportunities in the naturist calendar in the UK. Absences from school today are very much logged and go on permanent records -is it very likely that both my sons would be ill on the same day - and possibly again next year? Adults have a right to book holidays in advance with work and no employers/employees are going to be comfortable suggesting Friday's are better to have off because no work gets done anyway. That would be a dangerous attitude to strike as it suggests that both are comfortable with a lazy and non-committed attitude towards the fifth day of the working week. 

The argument that it is hard to book places with non-naturist locations at peak times would make sense if the BN still wasn't booking that August slot for a naturist event. Just one where children are not invited during the school summer holidays! So the BN are having no problem holding onto this time slot - just choosing to not have families and children - why not do the adult weekend out of season instead?  

The BN does do a great job in many ways but on this occasion they have sadly let families down. Replacing a great weekend in August with an adult only event and then moving the children friendly event to over lap with school terms. Yes - school holidays do vary across the country - which is all the more reason for them to place a family friendly event in the middle of the summer holidays so all families stand a chance of going. The lack of thought in the NKD timing is staggeringly wrong and it has left me very saddened in deed.

On another note - why does any naturist federation wish to create adult only events anyway? Naturism should be for all - we are seeing too many naturist locations and too many naturist individuals on the internet treating naturism as a sexualised lifestyle - ALL federations should be clarifying that this is not the case by ensuring families are always welcome and encouraged. Otherwise the attitudes slipping in to our lifestyle will be seen to be quietly endorsed by the federations. This is not an attack on the BN this is a plea for naturism all over the globe. We have to fight back against the misuse and misunderstanding of naturism that is growing around the globe and the best way to do that is through ensuring it is family friendly and not by promoting an adult only party atmosphere of alcohol and late night dancing. Sure that can be part of naturism but  not the centre of it. We have to remember that those looking in do not understand and will jump to conclusion. Alcohol and discos are already well known for dating, one night stands and bad behaviour - the average person will not consider the idea of when you add nudity to the mix it will not be some sort of orgy. We as naturists get it - but non-naturists will simply not get it and will stay away in their thousands. To increase the number of naturists out there (and the number of people willing to join federations) we have to ensure that the average person feels comfortable with naturism - it is hard enough to get people to imagine taking their clothes off in public - without putting doubts in their head about what type of behaviour they may witness when doing so. 

Ensuring a family friendly atmosphere in naturism (for everyone - old, young, childless, single etc) is the only way of promoting naturism as universally safe and suitable for all.

The hardest aspect of all this, is being able to voice these things, without appearing to bash our national organisations. Our national organisation BN is in focus here, not because we are against it, but because we feel there is a lack of forethought on their side. The mistake they have made, has implications for family naturism, which is currently struggling in the current political and social climate, which is why we feel our national bodies need to take a more active role in promoting family interests, not simply because social media and the general public is misinformed, but also because as wonderful as it to see our 18+ young adults getting a much needed oportunity, but also because they at some point, may become parents.

The families of naturism include a wider dynamic of people and age ranges that span all of the age ranges, and as much as our 18 to 30yr olds have a wonderful experience, they may find when they have families, like many of us, they find the current thinking on naturism will also exclude them, and the problem in the future will increase. If we are serious about the future goals of what we want naturism to look like, now is the time to look to our youngest members of this community, for they truly are the future, and to ignore their needs and sweep them under the table for the sake of profit,reputation, or convenience, could spell disaster for every country in future days, leading to naturism dying out as populations age. It is indeed a very slippery slope, but one we must master in order to continue the legacy of naturism into the future.

My guess as to what has happened in this case is that YBN wanted the slot in Summer for an event of their own. I know nothing about it, because I can't get into the YBN section of the web site, being far too ancient, and the event is not mentioned in the main Events sections. The powers-that-be in BN management are, at present, particularly concerned to promote membership of BN in the 18-30 age group (younger than that, you can't actually join), and are inclined to support anything that is aimed at young adults specifically, especially if there is someone willing to organize it in that age group. Regrettably, one of the things that puts off many of these is the presence of oldies and children in large numbers, unless they are dependents of theirs in both cases. There won't be that many potential members in the 18-30 age group who have children that can't be gratefully palmed off on to parents or grandparents, anyway, so they can have a brief respite from looking after them, and let their own hair down, so to speak.

We also have to bear in mind that NKD 2019 and before was arranged around the Late Spring Bank Holiday, and that it was only moved to the summer slot it has occupied for two years as the result of all events being thrown out of synch by the COVID regulations. This meant that it clashed with term time in Scotland, which raised complaints, and it also clashed with some school term dates in England and Wales, as well as events of a similar nature arranged by some landed clubs. NKD is actually being put back to where it originally was. In this light, I don't think too much blame can be laid at the door of BN.

I am not seeking to justify BN management, merely trying to see the problem from their point of view. Personally, I agree with you about the timing. Ideally, I would place it in early August, to include the Scottish August Bank Holiday on 7th this year. Mind you, that would incur large numbers of complaints from people in England & Wales who would have to give up an extra holiday day to go, and many others who customarily take their annual holiday at that time.

These are all fair points Allen - I guess the main problem is that pacing a family driven event at peak time just isn't considered important or viable enough - maybe the main question should be why? Why are there so few of the majority group of the UK involved in naturism? Is it a chicken and egg situation that is developing here and how can we change that? It is great that they wish to encourage 18-30's and there have always been the "oldies" but where are those middle people, those middle aged. middle of the road families with children? If more families were taking part then maybe the push for 18-30's would be easier as there would be more children growing up in naturist families ready to sign up when they come of age. I was very surprised when we joined the BN that they made no request about our boys on the sign up form - it didn't even ask us if we had children or how many. We kept looking for a family membership to fill to register our children as travelling with us and fellow naturists.

Why not give children under 18 membership cards for free when their parent join - and encourage them to be part of the the BN? Why not have people you were "BN-kids" for want of a better name moving on to YBN and then to BN? Encourage a younger connection to the lifestyle that maybe continues throughout their lives. Many other groups/bodies do similar things.  

If I ran the BN I would have a childrens magazine produced that got sent out with the adult one to registered families. Letting children know about what is happening that may interest them, a few quizzes, games etc, child friendly interviews and news. I bet it wouldn't take much to get a few volunteers to knock up enough material. Add some interesting things about the environment, show some of the skills some YBN have like fire juggling.  Just simple things like that to inspire interaction in the lifestyle at an early age.