A real helicopter parent! Dad flies in to rescue kids from 'lawless' FZY camp - The Jewish Chronicle

A concerned Jewish father flew 360 miles by helicopter to collect his daughter and her friend from a FZY summer camp after complaints of “filthy conditions”, “lawless behavior” and “safety concerns”.

He responded after his daughter called him from the camp in Norfolk “in tears”, complaining of “mean Madrichim (leaders) locking children in rooms”, the JC has learnt.
He said his teenage daughter had shown him videos of shower rooms littered with condoms. One parent described it as “Lord of the Flies”.

The teenager arrived at camp last Wednesday, and by Friday, he and other parents were receiving panicked calls.

Helicopter parent

The scenes at a bathroom of an FZY camp and right and a parent who evacuated his two daughters from the FZY Norfolk camp (Photo: Handout)

“We were hearing the behaviour was out of control. One of her friends was called a ‘slut’ by a camp leader,” he said. “She said it was disgusting and that there was sick and faeces all over the bathroom.”

The dad, who has a helicopter licence and asked not to be named, was staying on the South Coast when he made an “emergency call” to a friend who lent him a helicopter to collect his daughter and a friend.

Landing in a field, he said when he picked up the children they were “exhausted and just wanted a shower. They hadn’t slept at all and were very happy to see me”. He added: “It was out of control. It was clear the children did not feel safe.”

The JC has spoken to a number of other parents who said they had received calls from their children crying and complaining of “prison-like” conditions, with few activities.
Videos and pictures shared online of FZY’s Ofek Camp showed corridors covered with food. Some toilets had been trashed by children “with nothing to do”, said one parent.

It is understood that out of 51 boys attending the Year 7 camp, only seven did not leave. FZY would not confirm how many of the 460 children on camp in Years 7 to 10 had come home early.

8cea6112-1e6a-4642-a75f-3250eb5dc9a2

The bathrooms at the camp (Photo: Handout)

But Joel Jacobs, FZY executive director, said that he was “fully aware that one of our camps this summer has encountered a number of issues”.

But he insisted: “Our leaders and staff have worked tirelessly to address them.”

He added: “Unfortunately, a number of participants vandalised some of the facilities and left them in an unacceptable state. As a result, we removed a number of children from the camp.”

FZY said it had drafted in additional cleaning staff.

Speaking to the JC after collecting her son from a Year 7 camp, one mother said: “My biggest concern was safeguarding. When we went to drop our children off, it was chaos. There was no one registering children.”

Jacobs said: “FZY staff were on-site at the drop-off and all participants were registered before the coaches departed.”

a16f80fa-02c7-43c5-a72e-358a01b546cd

The dirty state of the bathrooms at an FZY camp (Photo: Handout)

Children attending the UK’s oldest and largest Zionist youth movement camps had their phones taken away, said a source, but parents were given an emergency number.
However, according to parents, the camp leaders were “uncontactable,” and the emergency number was “ignored.”

Jacobs told the JC: “Unfortunately, there was a technical issue with the emergency number. This glitch was resolved within a short space of time.”

He said they were “sorry” about the communication delays and had drafted in additional people to help.

Meanwhile, parents of children in the FZY Kesher camp for Years 9 and 10 said they had been told children would be staying in dormitories but arrived to find they were staying in tents.

One parent told the JC: “If we had known they were going to be camping, we would have packed appropriate clothes.”

ab19f4bf-94cc-4b16-8fc9-ceff105987d6

Photos seen by the JC show mess at an FZY camp (Photo: Handout)

He said his children had been promised activities such as climbing and high rope but that nothing had been delivered. “The communication was terrible, and it felt like we are being lied to.”

FZY said the misunderstanding over accommodation was due to a “communication error” and “unreservedly” apologised.

Jacobs said that the glamping pods were “wood and canvas structures with permanent hard flooring, beds and proper lighting. They are designed to provide warm and safe accommodation for participants.”

According to the father, site staff at the Ashford camp had requested a list of children staying with them from FZY leaders at the start of the trip, but it had not been received by day five.

He said: “If there had been a fire, the centre wouldn’t have had a list to check if anyone was missing."

He said he had paid £1,600 to FZY for the camp and wanted to know: “Where has all my money gone?”

An FZY spokesperson told the JC: “At no point were any children placed in any dangerous position. FZY staff are fully aware of who is staying in which room or glamping pod.
“Such lists were shared with the relevant staff at the sites.”

He added: “Safety and welfare are always our top priority. Each camp includes on-site medics and welfare representatives.”

However not all parents were dissatisfied. Richard Stone told the JC his son was “having a great time” on the Year 9 camp. “It wasn’t an ideal start,” said Mr Stone. “But he is having a great time and doing a lot of activities.”

Topics:

FZY

Summer camp