The Young Explorers’ Trust (YET) was formed in 1972, when it undertook to provide services to youth overseas expeditions. Prime amongst these was the Approval Scheme for youth expeditions overseas, together with Grant Aid for some expeditions.

The YET Approval and Grant Aid Scheme has been in operation now for over 35 years, during which time almost 1500 overseas youth expeditions, and many corporate and charitable organisations have had their plans screened by the Trust.

YET champions and promotes the use of good practice in adventurous activities so that young people can experience the pleasures and values of expeditions without undue risk to their safety and general wellbeing.  To this end, it is keen to see that all adventurous activities of this nature follow the highest standards of conduct and are undertaken safely and responsibly.

YET views the evaluation process, not as a further restriction on risk and the development of young people, but as an enabling action that raises the standard of operation across the industry, promotes participant (and parental) confidence and brings greater opportunity to enable the benefits of the expedition experience to reach a wider audience of young people.

YET does not organise expeditions, but offers its skilled services to voluntary youth groups, to schools, to all Venture Providers (voluntary and commercial) of ventures outside the UK, to Scouts / Guides / cadets and other uniformed groups, and to all other groups involved in providing challenging and adventurous ventures outside the UK for young people.

In 2007 with the publication of the British Standard BS 8848 – a specification for the provision of visits, fieldwork, expeditions and adventurous activities outside the UK – YET re-structured its approval in line with this standard to enable providers of such ventures to demonstrate conformity to BS 8848 through the YET approval scheme.

In 2009, the British Standard was revised and YET adjusted its procedures to enable either the evaluation of individual ventures, or the assessment of providers on a corporate basis, for Approval with Conformity to BS8848. Under the latter, any Venture Provider has to ‘self assess’ all ventures it provides and declare that they do so conform to BS 8848.

Details of how to proceed to seek Approval with Conformity to BS 8848 as an individual venture, or corporately, are described in separate documents via the links given below. Please also see the link "Frequently asked questions" for further information about the Standard and the YET Evaluation process.

Recently, the British Standards Institute published "A Parents' Guide to Adventurous Activities Abroad for Young People" which offers information and advice on what is covered by BS8848 and the reason for its existence.

The Evaluation Scheme is operated nationally. YET Approval indicates that a specific individual venture conforms to the requirements of BS 8848 (see "Evaluation of Individual Venture Plans - Introduction") or that a organisation, corporately, is operating all its activities in line with the standard and that ventures organised by it also meet the requirements of BS 8848.

In accordance with the requirements of BS 8848, YET Approval means that all related venture plans include full details of:

1. the aims and objectives of the venture,
2. pre booking information,
3. the selection of participants,
4. the competence and experience of the leadership team,
5. third party provision
6. the risk management system,
7. crisis and incident management planning,
8. insurance and finance arrangements,
9. environmental concerns,
10. the quality of the venture in terms of personal development opportunities that may be achieved through proposed adventure and projects.

The downloadable link (Evaluation of Individual Venture Plans - Procedure) provides information on the procedure to follow to apply for Evaluation of a single venture. Approval relates solely to that venture, lasting for the period of its existence. Such Approval is appropriate for individual peer-led ventures or schools, charitable and non-profit organisations running two or less expeditions in any year.

A flow chart of the key stages and actions in the Individual Venture Evaluation process is given below.  All details relating to the process are provided in the documents described in, and downloadable from, the “How to Apply” section below.

The downloadable link "Corporate Evaluation Procedure" explains the Evaluation process as applied to an organisation running a number of expeditions annually. Approval is valid for 36 months; however, annual reviews are conducted to validate conformity during this time.

Any organisation, seeking to claim Corporate Conformity with BS 8848 for the ventures it provides (i.e. the Venture Provider) is responsible for all aspects, including safety, of ventures provided either on a voluntary basis or in return for payment. Responsibility for providing constituent elements may be delegated, i.e. third party provision, but accountability for ensuring conformance with BS 8848 remains with the Venture Provider.  Furthermore, the Venture Provider will be required by YET to self assess all ventures it organises and declare their conformance to BS 8848.

No additional information is required to start the process. YET can offer mentor support throughout the process to enable all applicants to reach the necessary level to be called for interview and assessed by an Evaluation Panel.

Full procedural details and relevant application forms can be downloaded from the “How to Apply” section below.

Any Individual or Corporate Venture Provider may apply for YET Evaluation of conformity with BS 8848. However, although YET is prepared to advise any Venture Provider that seeks its help, it cannot give its Approval to every type of youth venture outside of the UK.
 
Planned ventures must meet the criteria as specified in the YET Evaluation procedure documents (see later) which require that:

• the Venture must take place outside the UK,
• the overall aim of a Venture shall be to provide personal development opportunities for the participants,
• the majority of the participants (excluding the leadership team) must be within the age range 14 to 25.

Note however, university student Ventures, whose sole aim is fieldwork, should apply direct to the Royal Geographical Society [with IBG] (RGS) and not YET. Ventures that have applied to the RGS must not also apply to YET. Others may apply to YET, providing they meet the criteria.

YET has considerable experience in assessing the plans for the provision of ventures for people aged 14 to 25 but it will also evaluate conformity to BS 8848 for providers who operate with a wider age range.  Such providers include, but not exclusively, “adventure tourism”. Ventures must have one or more specific objectives drawn from scientific fieldwork, physical challenge and adventure or, a community or environmental project.

1) Register
Contact the Evaluations Co-ordinator [evaluations@theyet.org] by email to register your intent to apply with name, venture destination and dates, and preferred date and location for interview. (Request mentor support if required).

2) Apply
If you are an Individual Venture seeking evaluation:

• Download and study the guidance "Evaluation of Individual Venture Plans - Procedure"
• Download the application form “Individual Venture Evaluation Application Form” (in Word format).

If you are an organisation seeking Corporate Conformity:

• Download and study the guidance “Corporate Evaluation procedure”.
• Download the application forms “Corporate Conformity Workbook” (in Word format) and “Sample Venture data form” (Word format).

In both cases:

• Complete all sections of the application form, inserting or attaching any supporting documents.
• E-mail complete application to the Evaluations Co-ordinator [evaluations@theyet.org].

NOTE:  It is appreciated that all details may not be in place at the time of application as planning may still be in progress. The application may be up dated, by e-mail, at any time between the application and the interview, or even in extremis, brought to the interview.

If any aspects of the above procedure present problems, the Evaluations Coordinator may be emailed for advice.

• Initial registration
• Please register your intent to submit an application as early as possible.

This will assist in arranging the schedule of interviews. YET fully acknowledges that it takes time to complete the application and to assemble the required documentation.

• Submission of Application
• Applications shall be made at least three weeks before any proposed interview date.

Although it is possible for YET to accept later applications, this remains at the discretion of the Evaluations Co-ordinator in consultation with the Evaluations Liaison Trustee.

This is the essential information to enable a provider to understand the YET Evaluation procedure and to begin the relevant process of application. There is however additional information in other sections of the YET website that may be worthy of consideration and of use for those engaging in this process and attention is drawn specifically to the publications, training and events headings as well as to grants.

The present structure of fees for both Individual Venture and Corporate Conformity Evaluations can be downloaded from the link "Schedule of fees for Evaluations".

The current fees may be revised by YET at any time at their absolute discretion. Revisions will be shown on the YET web-site but please confirm with the Evaluations Co-ordinator the exact level of the fee applicable at the time of applying.

If you have any questions or need further clarification on any aspect of the Evaluation process check out our FAQ's sheet here. If that does not provide the answer then you may wish to contact the Evaluations Co-ordinator by e-mail at [evaluations@theyet.org].

January 2012