Gilwell Park completes first major upgrade, setting a new standard for community camping
Gilwell Park Adventure Centre has reached an exciting milestone, with campsite amenity blocks A, B and D now approaching final completion. This marks the first major capital upgrade delivered under Scouts Victoria’s long term redevelopment program, laying the groundwork for improved community access, safety, comfort and curriculum rich outdoor experiences.
Set across 460 acres of natural bushland in the Dandenong Ranges, Gilwell Park has long been one of Victoria’s most recognised destinations for school camps, Scout adventures and outdoor learning programs. The introduction of modernised amenities signals a new chapter for the site, enhancing its ability to support diverse groups in an accessible, inclusive and high quality outdoor environment.
The new facilities have been designed to elevate the experience for all campers, with improvements centered around universal accessibility, inclusivity and contemporary standards of comfort. The upgrades provide safer shelter, greater functionality and improved wellbeing outcomes for visiting groups, reinforcing the importance of strong foundations in supporting exceptional programming.
These developments also enable expanded delivery of curriculum aligned experiences, particularly across Health and Physical Education (HPE) and Challenge and Adventure learning outcomes. From student led navigation activities to environmental learning design and movement rich outdoor challenges, Gilwell is positioned to deliver even more meaningful impact across both education and community sectors.
This project has been delivered through close collaboration between commercial strategy, program design and operational teams across the organisation, demonstrating what is possible when vision is backed by investment and aligned delivery.
Scouts Victoria’s Executive Manager, Jon McGregor, congratulated the team on the milestone.
“Gilwell Park has always been a special place, and these upgrades reflect the importance of evolving for the community we serve. By enhancing the safety and quality of our facilities, we’re better positioned than ever to create life-changing outdoor experiences”
Commercial Manager David Spelman also acknowledged the workforce behind the scenes.
“This has been a true team effort. All the teams involved have worked hard to deliver facilities that reflect both community expectation and Scouting values, while supporting the future of outdoor learning and camping in Victoria,”
The opening of these amenities represents the first of multiple planned infrastructure improvements at Gilwell Park, with further updates to accommodation, experiential learning assets and outdoor adventure precincts to follow.
As bookings for 2026 school camps and Scout group programs continue to build, demand is already strong for experiences that combine authentic outdoor adventure with modern infrastructure expectations. The completion of these new facilities confirms Gilwell Park’s continued leadership in the evolving landscape of outdoor education and community camping.
What's next at Gilwell Park
Scouts Victoria’s redevelopment of Gilwell Park is driven by a commitment to:
Continuous improvement of infrastructure to better support a modern Scouting program
Improving infrastructure to meet modern expectations of community and school group partners
Strengthening inclusion and accessibility across all of our site experiences
Enabling extended partnerships that elevate impact for young people and the wider community
With the foundations now firmly in place, Scouts Victoria looks forward to sharing the next wave of improvements as the revitalisation of Gilwell Park continues.
