Peak cavern access
- Thread starter Oscar D
- Start date
ANN
New member
Yes - under 18s can and do go into Peak Cavern beyond the tourist cave. There is a different indemnity to complete, and they must be under the supervision of an adult. It is preferable if the child has their own BCA insurance however not compulsory if they are accompanied by a parent who has BCA insurance.
Kind regards.
Ann
On behalf of Peak Keyholders
Kind regards.
Ann
On behalf of Peak Keyholders
Oscar D
Active member
Ian Ball said:ObviousSpectre said:Damn. Looks like I'll have to wait a while.
Why is that? Because you are under 18 and don't know any BCA members over 18 willing to take you with them?
Would you consider joining a caving club?
Joining a club is very difficult if you are under 18 because in pretty much every case you need someone over the age of 18 willing to join the club as well or in many cases, under 18 members are not allowed at all. In the case of the former, I know no such as person therefore, despite my best efforts, I have been repeatedly unsuccessful joining any clubs.
2xw
Active member
They can take you underground if your parents sign a form to say one of them is en loco parentis. You might struggle being able to stay overnight but otherwise this wouldn't be very difficult to get involved. This is on the club's to change the way they do things however - but the BCA is working on guidance regarding this which should be out soon.
The TSG do take U18 members I believe and so to the Orpheus.
The TSG do take U18 members I believe and so to the Orpheus.
Oscar D
Active member
2xw said:
I tried the TSG a while ago and if I remember correctly, they wanted someone over the age of 18 to go on the trips also. In the end I gave up on clubs and have been doing quite fine the past years caving with my caving partner. The problem only arises with systems such as Aggy and Peak cavern along with a few others that have age restrictions in their access agreements. Personally I don't see why these restrictions are in place. Of course you can't have toddlers roaming around inside but surely suitably experienced and equipped young persons should be considered? More complex and risky caves such as Porth yr Ogof and OFD don't seem to use the same guidelines.
2xw
Active member
ObviousSpectre said:
I totally agree with you. I haven't been able to find a legal reason why U18s even need an adult with them when caving (BCA insurance applies to all BCA members).
Most of the time it boils down to landowners thinking that they have liability in case a young person is injured (even if the reality is that they are equally liable).
There are people in the caving community who work about landowner liability leading to landowners closing caves.
There is only one or two management bodies that currently ban young people completely, the rest of them normally require an over 18 being present (either parent or someone en loco parentis)
