More than 60 teenagers had a blast at an annually held summer youth camp.

The young adults, aged 12 to 17, enjoyed four days of fun during the Firestarter Festival which celebrated its 21st ’birthday’ this year.

As part of the festival, the teenagers camped out at the Ardwhallan Outdoor Education Centre in West Baldwin, which hosted a range of outdoor activities such as canoeing and stand-up paddleboarding.

A group of volunteers kept the teenagers entertained by providing inclusive games such as ’human battleships’, a forest capture the flag and touch rugby.

Evening entertainment consisted of a Firestarter talent show with revellers and crew members taking to the stage to showcase their skills in singing, magic and dancing.

A night hike with an ambush waterfight attack was also held.

Sylvia Harrison of the administration team said: ’We had an outstanding team of young and fun-loving volunteers who were dedicated to making the festival enjoyable for the revellers 24/7.

’We would like to give a special mention to the team at Ardwhallan who provided an excellent range of outdoor activities in a safe and fun environment. One quote I heard was a young person saying "this is the best fun I have ever had" after one of the games.’

Toni Wheatley, a member of the cafe team, said: ’Every year it gets better and better.

’There is always a unique and diverse group of revellers and crew members and being able to get to know them while having fun is an amazing opportunity.’

Josiah Hogg, who joined the games team for his first ever year at Firestarter, said: ’From my perspective it was an amazing opportunity to come out of my shell in a safe and comfortable environment.

’The amazing people made it feel possible to be more positive and outgoing.’

Revellers

Over the years the festival has provided opportunities for those looking to complete their residential section in their Duke of Edinburgh awards.

Along with three meals per day, including a barbecue, the revellers had the chance to buy hot chocolates and other hot food in the evenings, or snacks at a 24-hour cafe in a Viking-styled longhouse.

Cake was also cut to celebrate the 21 years that the festival has been running.

A ’Grill a Christian’ panel was also held with members from different churches across the island being asked questions about their faith.

On the last day Markys Hogg, another volunteer, gave a stirring impersonation of William Wallace by reinacting the speech used in the film ’Braveheart’ to initiate a large waterwar with around 5,000 water balloons.

The winning team depended on which had picked up the most rubbish afterwards.

Unused goods were donated to Graih - a charity that helps the homeless and those in insecure accommodation.

For more details visit www.firestarter.im