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Cave rescue challenge

Work as a rescue team to solve clues, make decisions, and plan a successful cave rescue.

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You’ll need

  • Pens or pencils
  • A4 paper
  • Rescue scenario cards
  • Clue cards
  • Equipment information cards
  • Maps
  • Caving equipment (either actual equipment or photos)

Before you begin

  • Use the safety checklist to help you plan and risk assess your activity. There's also more guidance to help you carry out your risk assessment, including examples.
  • Make sure all young people and adults involved in the activity know how to take part safely.
  • Make sure you’ll have enough adult helpers. You may need some parents and carers to help. 

Planning and setting up the activity

  • Create rescue scenarios for the group. You could talk to cave rescue groups for ideas and support. Create rescue scenario cards, clue cards and equipment information cards for the group to use. 
  • Gather any equipment that a group might carry while caving.  

Running the activity  

  1. Gather everyone together and explain that cave rescue teams need to work together to solve problems, communicate clearly, and make decisions under pressure. 
  2. Present the rescue scenario. Explain what has happened and what information is available. 
  3. Give each team a rescue briefing card with the details they need to begin. 
  4. Challenge teams to create a rescue plan. They should think about what information they need, what equipment they might use, and what risks they should consider. 
  5. Teams should visit different challenge stations to collect clues and complete tasks. 
  6. At each station, teams might need to solve a puzzle, interpret a map, identify equipment, or make a decision based on new information. 
  7. Encourage teams to adapt their plans as they receive updates about the scenario. 
  8. Once all the tasks have been completed, ask each team to present their final rescue plan. 
  9. Compare the different approaches and discuss how teams made their decisions.  

Reflection

Rescue teams often need to make decisions with limited information. Ask everyone to think about how their team approached the challenge. What helped them work effectively together? How did they respond when new information changed the situation? What skills would be most important during a real rescue operation? 

Safety

All activities must be safely managed. You must complete a thorough risk assessment and take appropriate steps to reduce risk. Use the safety checklist to help you plan and risk assess your activity. Always get approval for the activity, and have suitable supervision and an InTouch process.

You must run your activities in line with the Safeguarding Code of Conduct for Adults (Yellow Card) and report any concerns to the UK HQ Safeguarding Team.

Outdoor activities

You must have permission to use the location. Always check the weather forecast, and inform parents and carers of any change in venue.

  • To make it easier, provide guidance cards for each station, or additional hints.  
  • To make it harder, introduce unexpected updates, such as changing weather conditions, limited equipment, or additional casualties that require teams to rethink their plans. 

Make it accessible

All Scout activities should be inclusive and accessible.

Explorers Caving Activity Badge