Information

What is social camping?

Social Camping is a term The Camping and Caravanning Club uses to describe the Meets and Temporary Holiday Sites organised and managed by our District Associations, Regions or Special Interest Sections.

The term was chosen because it explains what this style of camping is all about – camping events run by passionate members, for members who share the same interests. Social Camping offers some of the most inexpensive camping available, and you’ll always be guaranteed a warm, friendly welcome.

Stewards needed

We require stewards for our meets on both weekends and longer breaks.

Fancy a go?

If you have never stewarded a meet before, and are interested in doing so, then please talk to the stewards at a meet that you are attending who will be more than happy to explain the procedures. Alternatively, contact a member of the committee. This is very rewarding and a way to meet lots of different people.

If you steward a weekend you get free camping for the weekend.

For temporary holiday sites there will be two sets of stewards. Both sets of stewards get free camping during the THS and normally agree to steward alternate days. We also pay the mileage one way to the THS site at a rate of 45p per mile from your home location.

If you have any questions, then please contact our secretary for more information on the requirements to steward for us.

Become a steward

If you are interested in stewarding a rally meet or temporary holiday site (THS) and planning to attend one anyway, why don’t you volunteer to steward and get your site’s fees paid by the DDA? The whole process of stewarding is very rewarding for those that do take part.

It’s not a huge ask, the committee has done the hard work planning and leading activities, booking the meet and making sure everything is in place. We need your help to book units on arrival, direct them to the facilities and show people where to pitch.

If you have any questions, or can volunteer, please contact the committee by emailing secretary.dda@outlook.com

Weekend Rally - 2 Nights

Organised and run by the Club’s Regions, DAs and Special Interest Sections, Meets offers thousands of opportunities each year for members to enjoy idyllic surrounds locally or further afield.

Offering minimum facilities, a DDA Meet will normally take place over a weekend, but can last for up to five days. Members can stay for a night or the entire duration, and all fees paid go back into the DDA to ensure that we can continue to offer future events for members.

Many offer entertainment or are organised with a particular theme, however some Meets sole purpose is to enjoy the peace and quiet in a warm and friendly atmosphere.

Club Meets are only available to our members, so you can guarantee a ‘Friendly Club’ welcome, while being surrounded by like-minded campers who take the same pleasures from camping and caravanning that you do.

Promotional poster for Little Dunstall Farm featuring a landscape with green fields and a cloudy sky, and details about the farm's opening dates and amenities.
A camping site with numerous caravans set up on rolling green hills near Porth Beach, under a blue sky with scattered clouds.

Big Events - Bonfire

These are larger event gatherings that take place throughout the year with the aim of entertaining and catering to our cherished members. We carefully plan to include a diverse array of musical entertainment, along with plenty of family fun activities, during these special weekends.

Temporary holiday sites (THS) - Longer breaks over 2 nights

Situated in popular holiday destinations, seaside resorts and countryside retreats, Temporary Holiday Sites offer members the chance to camp affordably throughout the UK.

Organised and run by the Club’s Regions, DAs and Special Interest Sections, Temporary Holiday Sites offer alternative pitches to commercial sites by utilising land exclusively available to the Club. Stewarded by experienced members who are always at hand to help with the friendly approach our Club is famous for.

While the majority of sites have basic facilities of fresh water and somewhere for waste disposal, others will have additional facilities such as toilets, showers and electrical hook ups.

You can stay for a night or the entire duration and all fees paid go back into the DDA to ensure that we can continue to offer future events for members.

You are also welcome to bring non-members along who can stay in your unit for a small fee. Or they can join on site, enabling them to also experience life in the Friendly Club.

With over 350 to choose from, there is a perfect THS for every member, no matter where or how they camp.

RULES & GUIDELINES

We have a few rules that we ask all members and visitors to follow. These are in place for the benefit of everyone.

Please note that these rules are just a subset of the Caravanning and Camping Club rules that every member agrees to when they join the club.

For more information please see your Big Sites Book or the Club Handbook.


SITES OPENING AND CLOSING TIMES

Please do not arrive at any site before 12:00pm, unless prior arrangement has been made with the steward.

The steward MUST be the first person on site to comply with the Camping Exemptions Certificate.

Departure times 3.00 pm

No vehicle movement on site between 23.00 - 07.00

Some sites may have the entrance gates locked overnight - usually with either the site lock or our DDA lock. Combination numbers will be available from the steward.

SITES FEES

The Sum up card contact payments and cash are both acceptable if required. Please check Facebook for further details.

SPEED LIMITS

While on site respect a 5 MPH speed limit. This is to protect the field, our children, and our pets. No learners or underage drivers are permitted to operate vehicles whilst on site.

NOISE

All quiet on site after 23.00.

No excessive levels of noise or music are allowed. Your steward will ask you to moderate the noise if required for the benefit of all campers.

BALL GAMES / FRISBEE / DRONES

If there is a space on site, please keep away from all units in a recreation space. Please refer to the steward to clarify on a site-by-site basis. Some sites are just too small for ball games.

Drones are not allowed on a rally site. If you do use a drone off-site, we would ask you to please not take off or land on the DDA rally site.

REFUSE

Unless otherwise specified, all waste must be taken home and disposed of via your home refuse system.

Temporary Holiday Sites will provide refuse disposal for those onsite.

PETS

Pets are welcome at all our meets, provided:-

  • All Pets (Cats and Dogs) must be on leads at all times (unless constrained within your own unit!)

  • Dog waste is to be picked up immediately and disposed of appropriately.

  • Dogs should be kept 2 metres clear of drinking water taps and away from children’s play areas.

  • Keep your pet away from other units and do not allow them to foul other members’ units.

  • Please keep your pet away from farm animals and around horses.

  • NO PETS ALLOWED IN THE HALL / MARQUEE AT EVENTS

GENERATORS

Please remember that we are all members of the ‘friendly club’ and to be both courteous and considerate to fellow campers when using generators on all rallies.

Generators should always be located adjacent to your own unit, and not in an area where they could cause any inconvenience or danger to other members and MUST NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES be left running unattended.

Derby DA rules are that generators may be used between 10:00hrs and 12:00hrs, for a maximum of 1 hour, unless prior arrangements have been made with the steward due to health reasons. This will vary with other DA’s.

Please remember that the steward of the meeting has the right to ask you to silence your generator if it is causing a noise nuisance to your neighbours. Some sites have additional restrictions on the use of generators, please check with the Steward on site.

WATER AND CHEMICAL TOILET WASTE

Drinking Water and Elsan (toilet cleaning/emptying) points will always be clearly labelled. Please ask the steward of the location.

Avoid contamination and under no circumstances take any part of your toilet to the drinking water taps to wash off. Use an alternative water source or tap at the Elsan point.

AQUA ROLLS

Do not tow your Aqua Roll behind your vehicle. Use the manufacturer’s pull handle as appropriate.

FIRE REGULATIONS

It is recommended that you have a filled fire bucket with water outside your unit. Fire extinguishers are encouraged for all DDA campers.

Units will be spaced at minimum of 6 metres and sited so that they do not restrict access to, or exit from , any unit or the area in case of emergencies. Keep the front hitch free of obstructions at all times. This allows all units to be pulled/towed forward and away from other units in the case of an emergancy.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION REGARDING GAS CYLINDERS

Safety legislation on the use of external gas cylinders - refer to your supplier’s safety regulations for use.


Instructions issued on Green paper 3.1(version 2) issued June 2008 which requires that no cylinders with a capacity greater than 15kg will be allowed at any club event of any kind to supply touring caravans, motorhomes, tents or BBQ’s. The use of more than 15kg cylinder to supply gas via a gas BBQ point is not permitted.

Any cylinder placed external to the unit is to be staked or attached to the unit securely to prevent tilting or falling over.

Your steward will ask you to keep the site safe during your stay with us.

THE 6 METRE RULE

The 6 metre spacing of units rule replaced the 20-foot rule which was the imperial version of it. Keep the spaces between units clear of all obstructions/gazebos etc for your safety.

The minimum space between all units on Camping and Caravanning Club sites is to be observed at all times. Failure to respect these rules may result in you being asked to leave the site.

Please don’t forget the stewards are all volunteers and expect polite dialogue at all times.

Help us make the DDA camping experience a good one.

THANK YOU.

All DA meets are organised in accordance with the Code of Conduct for the Organisation of Meets which is printed in full in the Club Handbook.

A shield divided into three sections with a red dragon in the top left, white flowers in the top right, and yellow daffodils at the bottom, with a red banner reading 'North Wales D.A.' at the bottom.

Our North Central Regions

North Central Region Camping and Caravanning Club badge with icons of a tent, canoe, mountain, fish, and binoculars.
A shield-shaped logo for North Staffs DA featuring a beer bottle, a windmill, and a red and white rope knot, with the text 'North Staffs DA since 1972'.
Drawing of a church steeple with a tall, pointed roof, set against a red background, with greenery at the base.
Shropshire badge with a castle and two trees at the top, and two lion crests at the bottom, one white and one gold, on a blue background.
Derbyshire Deer D emblem logo with a standing deer on a white background and yellow banner.
  • https://www.northwalesda.uk/

    Committee members. Roy Edge, Dave Halliwell, Mel Gowing, Merl Knobbs, Joyce Halliwell, and Dave Bidwell, Betty Roberts,  Glyn Roberts,

  • https://chesterfieldda.co.uk/contact/

    Committee members - Martin Henman Vice ChairTim BuxtonSecretaryAngela DringTreasurerJenny HenmanSites SecretaryAlison BellWebmaster, PR OfficerSteve BellCommitteeJune Buxton

  • Committee members -

    Chair - Kenny Harding

    Vice Chair - Katie Beardsley

    Chief Camp Steward - David Black

    Deputy Stewards - Babs Roffey

    Entertainment Officer - Katie Beardsley

    Bookings / Sites Officer - Lesley Lloyd Anderson + Deputy - Carole Jacques

    Public Relations Officer - Nicky Harding

    Web Editor - Steve Roffey

    Catering Officer - Nicky Harding / Katie Beardsley

    General Committee Members (no specific task) - Ant Warrington, Ann Cottam

    Representative to Region CC Councillor - Patrick JacksonDeputy Representative to Regional Council - Bev HewittDDA Auditor - Brett Sisson, Glenys Day Secretary - Babs RoffeyTreasurer - Steve Roffey

A woman standing inside a camper van, holding a mug, with a scenic ocean view and rocky shoreline outside.

About our regions

The Club’s District Associations are grouped into 13 Regions, each covering Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

Each Region organises a whole host of camping opportunities including Meets and Temporary Holiday Sites.

An elected representative from each Region, District Association and Special Interest Section sits on the Club’s National Council, the Club’s governing body of elected members who make the Club’s policy decisions on behalf of members.