Speaking personally, I would always avoid any Naturist event or locale that excluded any age group or social grouping. For example, “Over 18s”, or “Under 50s”, or “families only”. One of the things I like is to hang about with other naked people of all ages on the basis of equality. I feel that there is something missing if that does not happen.

Clubs, let's face it, are for members only. Unless you can find one where that membership includes numerous families, and there may be a few, as a visitor you are exceedingly unlikely to find anybody shy of middle age ever there. The sites tend to be isolated and secluded, with very little actually interesting happening, because that is what its members want. Meetings centred on swimming at a public pool hired for Naturist use are better, because the activity is integral to the event, and will be held at a much more accessible  venue. However, the “what about the children” crazies also find it easy to attend and protest, and one cannot blame organizers for making these 18+ in those circumstances. At best, they insist on under-18s being accompanied by parents, not only on admission, but “at all times”, which strikes me as unnecessary. With adequate safeguards, I see no reason why unaccompanied children and young persons should not be admitted on the same terms applied by the pool in normal sessions. Remember that the 14-17 age group are not legally children, they are “young persons”, and are perfectly capable of deciding for themselves if they want to swim in the nude, and of taking care of themselves in such a session. They don't want to seek, or really need, parental permission, and don't require constant parental oversight. Requiring either or both of these actively discourages them from showing an interest, and, secondly, implies that the activity is exceptional, even questionable, and not, as we are always saying, perfectly normal and safe.

So, certainly naturism wants and needs families, but I would say that it is insufficient to confine encouragement of young people to participate, in doing so via a family unit. If this were to happen, the only young people able to take part would be those with at least one Naturist parent. It is fighting with one hand tied behind the back to attempt to recruit only those who have reached 18, by which age people are likely to have lost any interest they might have had. Yes, Naturist families should be better provided for, but so should young people without having this advantage.

I blame the schools.

The thread contains a terrific discussion. We are wrestling with these same issues as our kids approach their teenage years soon. It is at times harder to find places where families feel welcome -- even a beach like Haulover or Gunnison -- children are not prohibited, but are uncommon enough that when there it seems to make some of the adult attendees uncomfortable even though the kids behave as the experienced naturists they are. This has been less the case at beaches in Europe, and for example at Vera Playa Resort in Vera, Spain where there were many other families both at the resort and on the public beach. We try to set a good example as much as we can and hope we inspire others to feel more comfortable doing so as a family.

You are right when we went to Vera there was loads of children and families - and the children were having a great time and enjoying making friends and some obvioiusly knew each other from previous visits. This is how naturism should be. 

We have to try and push forward with these beaches were there are few children - as if we do not go then there will be no children and the likelihood of families ever considering naturism will become les and less likely.

We had a great time at the NKD festival in the UK last year and it is suggested to be aimed at families and young BN members but families were still in the minority maybe a quarter or a fifth of the people there. This year they have moved the date to start on a day when our children are still at school so we would have to pay for four nights and only go for three and by the time you have set up camp you are already missing out of a big chunk of that second day. I think the lack of concern about ensuring this family based festival falls fully into a school holiday is a reflection of how little families are considered as important. Very disappointing. The event used to fall on this time and moved to the summer holidays during covid. Last year when we were there the organiser was saying how great it is that the number of families has increased in the last two years - but maybe didn't consider that that may be a direct result of those two years being in the school summer holidays. Will the family numbers start decreasing again? There has to be a commitment to families in naturism to guarantee a positive future for our lifestyle.  

A year has passed on this forum thread, and it is 2023, and “Forum Friday.” We have spent this morning going over the national body’s website, as yet again, it appears that “Family Friendly,” is somewhat missing from the agenda.

NKD, which we really wanted to attend, has moved to the last week of May. (Not the best time for British weather) It has the minor disadvantage of starting on a school date, which for us is yet again a problem, as legislation in this country forbids us from taking our child out of school, (Even for a day) as it imposes a fine on us parents for doing so.

We feel frustrated, and we have to ask the obvious. “Does anyone even look at a school terms calendar before setting these dates?” It appears not.

On the national forum, we noted a link to the, “New and Improved” Event from our national body, and clicked it, and to be honest, we got as little bit excited, because it is the same venue and date of last years NKD, and the list of events looked amazing. Glamping and Camping, Henna and Body Paint, Crazy Days, Yoga and Fitness, Live Music, Zorbing, Slip and Slide, Paint Fight, Sauna, Water Park, Campfires, and the Magic Tea Pot. To be honest, it is an amazing line up of events that every kid in the country would love, you could not get a better family friendly event to wish to go to. The new “Everybody Event” sounds like so much fun.

There is a catch, as we find right at the very bottom of the page. “18 +”

This is NKD, minus the kids, and it is so frustrating to really sit back and understand that once again families have been side-lined for a more adult inclusive event.

We have reached a point where we have started to give up on family naturisum from our national body. Everything is directed at young adults and older people, and the one thing they could get right and really be proud of, limits the days real families can attend. The adults have Nudefest, and the 18 to 30’s have Everybody, and we as a family get the token event where we cannot attend one of the days. We will literally have to drive overnight to get there early enough Saturday, and have no guarantee of decent weather.

It feels like “Families” are no longer welcome, and naturism is closed to those who have children in 2023.   

We considered the idea of arriving Saturday morning (we would have to leave early too - but not as early as you) but from experience that would not be very good and we would end up missing much of that day simply getting set up - while walking our things up through the main event field. And the first evening is also a fantastic ice breaker.

I think that this issue is all partly based on a fear that promoting naturism as family friendly will encourage child safeguarding  protesting and hatred. Children and nudity is simply not something people feel comfortable promoting any more. But another problem I think that cannot be ignored is that too many people who are involved in organising naturist venues/events/federations don't have children of that age to worry about - and too many other people don't like children any more. There is an idea that life is better/more fun/more peaceful without children - but one day these children will be adults and we will then have a whole generation of adults who have been denied access to life and disliked by adults and how do we then rejct them - start making events 30 plus? Then 45 plus etc. Society is crumbling apart at the seams and naturism has always been great at being social and welcoming. DON'T LET THAT CHANGE! - Naturist federations and clubs and venues everywhere - must recognise the importance of families now!