Hands up who wants to go to school in the summer holidays? The idea is not as daft as it sounds once you realise that the school in question is a rather nice, independent one that’s giving up one of its playing fields for use as a pop-up campsite. The man behind the plan is entrepreneurial events organiser, Scott Doane. He realised that an unused field coupled with some unused school sports-hall facilities on a peaceful peninsula in Suffolk was the perfect place for his next pop up.
Popcorn Camping will open at Woolverstone Hall as soon as the last pupils have cleared out of the Grade I Palladian mansion they call home during term time. Extra toilets are brought in, pitches are marked out and soon enough the campers will begin to arrive. The camping field is actually a short walk away from the school buildings and all the better for it. It’s peaceful location is edged by trees and next to St Michael’s Church, just a half-mile walk from the banks of the River Orwell.
As you’d expect for a pop-up campsite, things are kept pretty simple but it’s all been carefully thought through. You can park at your pitch for easy unloading and the super-spacious size (10m by 15m) means there’s plenty of room. During set hours campers can access the school sports hall (the rest of the grounds are out of bounds). Where there are hot showers and flushing toilets, with extra loos in the camping field. Campfires are allowed in off-ground fire pits, which you can hire on site, and logs are for sale too. It all makes for an easy but fuss-free classic camping experience in a location that’s new to the camping scene.
This is the Shotley Peninsula; separated from the rest of Suffolk, to the north, by the River Orwell and from Essex, to the south, by the River Stour. It’s a flat and mostly rural location where you can never get too far from the water. Riverside walks, boat trips, cycling and pub lunches on the water’s edge are all pleasant ways to idle away time. The foot passenger ferry offers a fun way to get to the industrial side of Felixstowe or you can drive round to explore the town and beach. Families, who this site will suit well, will, no doubt, be seduced by Jimmy’s Farm and Wildlife Park, which offers a full day out just a few miles from site. Now, let’s try this again: hands up who wants to go to school in the summer holidays?
Woolverstone Hall is within the Suffolk Coast & Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty on the Shotley Peninsula, a beautiful part of Suffolk surrounded by water with the River Orwell to the north and the River Stour to the south. You can walk straight from site down to the water's edge at Woolverstone Marina. There are plenty of riverside walking, sailing and boating opportunities and there are watersports opportunities at Alton Reservoir (five miles from Woolcerstone Hall). Hill Farm Equestrian Centre (01473 780406) is two miles from the campsite at Chelmondiston. It's not much further to the Pin Mill Studio (01473 780130) from where there are walking and photography workshops with photographer Anthony Cullen. On the other side of the peninsula, on the banks of the River Stour, sandy Harkstead Beach is a popular place to swim. Jimmy's Farm & Wildlife Park (01473 604206) is five miles away and offers a family-friendly day out. From the tip of the Shotley Peninsula, Shotley Gate (five miles from the campsite), you can take a seven-minute foot ferry (bicycles allowed) to Harwich, where there's a maritime museum (01255 502872), or to Felixstowe for the Languard Fort and Museum (01394 675900). By road Felixstowe is a 16-mile drive, with well-known coastal town of Aldeburgh a little further (32 miles away) but still worth the drive. Inland, Ipswich is just five miles from Woolverstone Hall.
The closest place to eat out is about half-a-mile down the peaceful road that leads to Woolverstone Marina, The Loch and Quay (01473 780909) or, for a longer walk, head from there south along the river for a couple of miles to reach the waterfront Butt & Oyster pub (01473 780764) at Pinmill. Suffolk Food Hall (01473 786610) is an award-winning farm shop, a short drive away, that's perfect for stocking up on local supplies for the campsite. It's also home to a café and The Cookhouse Restaurant – as well as a giant inflatable pillow that'll keep the kids amused. The restaurant and pizzeria at Jimmy's Farm (01473 604206) (owned by Jimmy Dougherty, Jamie Oliver's friend from Channel 4) is another recommended option, about five miles from the campsite.
