The Rewild Project is delighted to offer craft sessions for young people on the autistic spectrum.

Spectrum Skills sessions are specially designed to allow young people on the spectrum to spend a day learning a craft skills and be accompanied by their families or not, in a way that works for each individual & family.

The day will showcase the wonderfully diverse material of cob.

During this course you will get the chance to learn the history and future of cob building through hands on making. We will explore how to cob onto a pre-made wattled frame and learn the endangered heritage skill of brick making.

This course is an ideal introduction into eco-building, where you can take home the skills you have learned and apply them to your personal projects, for example pizza ovens and tiny home builds.

SPECTRUM SKILLS SESSIONS

We are parents of young people with autistic traits and diagnosed autism. We know the difficulties families face and we are now delighted to have funding to help others where we had none. If you have any feedback about how we can improve sessions to make these more suitable & accessible for families.

• Each session is limited to 5-6 attendees depending on the craft to keep the environment relatively quiet and calming, to prevent overwhelm.

• We will never put any pressure on anyone to take part.

• There will be 1 craftsperson (trained in supporting young people with autism) and 1 regular Rewild Project support person for continuity at the session and the day will run in a gentle and relaxed rhythm.

On the day

The workshop will be very informal and we welcome you to arrive anytime between 10:30 and 11. This will give you and your young person the chance to settle in, have a drink and snack and get to know the Spectrum Skills Team. At 11:15 we will give you a small introduction about the site and the craftsperson will introduce their craft for the day. Families are free to stay and join the workshop or go for a walk around the site.

The structure of the day is kept casual to suit the needs of the young people attending the workshop. This means if they would like to take a comfort break or have some alone time we will be able to support them in doing this.

We will break for a wholesome lunch, with ingredients grown from our permaculture allotment at 12:45pm where we invite the young people and families to sit around and have a natter. This is a great time for everyone to talk about shared experiences and what other exciting Spectrum Skills can provide!

After lunch the young people will continue to carry on with making until 3:30 where we will end our workshops. Young people are free to leave the workshop earlier or stay a little later to finish what they have made.

Please note: The young people on this course are likely to get pretty mucky! Make sure to wear suitable clothing

About Rosie

Rosie found her love for using natural materials whilst studying her degree. Rosie is focussed on sharing heritage crafts with children through the use of play – proving these traditional crafts aren’t just fossils from the past but sparks for the future to ignite new ideas and an interest in traditional making practices. With experience in Playwork and play facilitation through outdoor education and forest school, she is particularly passionate about engaging children who may not usually have access to the outdoors or an alternative, more supportive way of learning.

Spectrum Skills has been funded by NHS England to enable autistic young people to be supported to learn new skills and have specialist activities suited to their needs.

We are charging £10 nominal booking fee per place - which includes food for family members if they need to stay onsite or close by.

The Venue

This course is set at our off-grid woodland craft centre, Kensley Sheds, right in the heart of the beautiful Forest of Dean, situated on the famous Sculpture Trail, close to the Stained Glass Window and Wildlife Trust reserve ‘Woorgreen Lake’

Kensley Sheds is the home of our Social Forestry Project ‘New Leaf’. Here, local adults who are struggling with social issues come learn & practice new skills. We follow regenerative woodland management practices, to extract and process wood from disused Forestry England coppiced woodland. Here the wood is turned it into functional items, firewood and charcoal, giving people access to new careers and a sense of real community.

Kensley sheds has running water, a flushing disabled access toilet, onsite parking and is heated by wood-burner. You will be able to peruse our extensive library of eco / craft / alternative living books throughout the day

Any questions get in touch..

Come and visit the stunning Forest of Dean and learn a range of eco building skills.

The day will showcase the wonderfully diverse material of cob.

During this course you will get the chance to learn the history and future of cob building through hands on making. We will explore how to cob onto a pre-made wattled frame and learn the endangered heritage skill of brick making.

This course is an ideal introduction into eco-building, where you can take home the skills you have learned and apply them to your personal projects, for example pizza ovens and tiny home builds.

The Workshop

On the day of the workshop we invite to you arrive half an hour early so you can grab a cup of something warm, and get to know Kensley Sheds and The Rewild crew.

The workshop will start at 10:00am where you will explore the history of Cob and how it is shaping the bright and viable future of eco-building.

With the guidance of Rosie you will learn what is required for a good cob mix. You will investigate how to find the best soils for your mix and where to source other local materials.

After a short comfort break and demonstration, you will then start to create your mix and make cob bricks.

12:45pm - Break for lunch - Bring & share pot luck.

After lunch you will continue to make cob and start to explore how cob can be used when fitting it around a pre-made frame.

At 4:00pm we will end our workshop and invite you to provide us with any feedback you may have, so we can continue to develop our courses to continue to inspire you in the future.

Please note that this workshop will be run outside so make sure to wear weather appropriate clothing that you don’t mind getting mucky and sturdy shoes.

About Rosie

After discovering her passion for heritage crafts during her degree, Rosie started to share her skills with others in her community. She has turned the skills she has learned and taught herself into paid work and commissions which a special focus on using materials such as cob.

Rosie has a strong interest in eco architecture and permaculture. She is particularly inspired by Cob building, Straw bale building, market gardening, composting and other land-based practices. She believes that these traditional crafts aren’t just fossils from the past but sparks for the future to ignite new ideas and an interest in traditional making practices.

For more of Rosie’s work check out her website here.

The Venue

This course is set at our off-grid woodland craft centre, Kensley Sheds, right in the heart of the beautiful Forest of Dean, situated on the famous Sculpture Trail, close to the Stained Glass Window and Wildlife Trust reserve ‘Woorgreen Lake’

Kensley Sheds is the home of our Social Forestry Project ‘New Leaf’. Here, local adults who are struggling with social issues come learn & practice new skills. We follow regenerative woodland management practices, to extract and process wood from disused Forestry England coppiced woodland. Here the wood is turned it into functional items, firewood and charcoal, giving people access to new careers and a sense of real community.

Kensley sheds has running water, a flushing disabled access toilet, onsite parking and is heated by a wood-burner. You will be able to peruse our extensive library of eco / craft / alternative living books throughout the day

Profits

The Rewild Project is a Not for Profit, Community Interest Company, and Social Enterprise. It is our mission to support local craftspeople and promote heritage craft skills. We Rewild People by teaching these skills of self reliance and resilience for an uncertain future.

After the craftspeople are paid, and costs are covered we put any profits back in to the community with our ‘weekday sessions for disadvantaged groups’ a lifeline for many local people who we pick up each day and bring to Kensley Sheds and others sites to build community, skills, and share nutritious hot, locally produced food.

Come and visit the stunning Forest of Dean and learn eco building heritage craft skills with The Rewild Project team! Rewild yourself by building heritage craft skills.

This exciting workshop will showcase and give you a taster of the ancient heritage building process of wattle and daub.

During this 1 day course you will get the chance to learn not only the history, but the future of wattle and daub through hands on making. Together with the group you will construct a wattled frame and then begin to daub over the top of it!

This course is an ideal introduction into eco-building, where you can take home the skills you have learned and apply them to your personal projects at home, whether den building or a more involved larger project!

The Workshop

On the day of the workshop we invite to you arrive half an hour early so you can grab a cup of something warm, and get to know the site and The Rewild crew.

The workshop will start at 10:00am where you will explore the history of wattle and daub and how it is shaping the bright and viable future of eco-building.

With the guidance of Rosie, you and the other participants will used locally coppiced hazel to make a wattled fence ready to apply the daub mixture onto.

After a short comfort break, you will then start to create your daub mix and continue to wattle.

We will break for a simple lunch at 12:45pm. Bring & share pot luck, and bring some cash to make a contribution to our volunteer chefs.

After lunch you will begin to apply the daub onto the wattled fence.

At 4:00pm we will end our workshop and invite you to provide us with any feedback you may have, so we can continue to develop our courses to continue to inspire you in the future.

Our workshops our relaxed and inclusive and we aim to make sure everyone has a fantastic experience they will never forget.

Please note that this workshop will be run outside so make sure to wear weather appropriate clothing that you don’t mind getting mucky and sturdy shoes.

About Rosie

After discovering her passion for heritage crafts during her degree, Rosie started to share her skills with others in her community.

Rosie has a strong interest in eco architecture and permaculture. She is particularly inspired by Cob building, Straw bale building, market gardening, composting and other land-based practices. She believes that these traditional crafts aren’t just fossils from the past but sparks for the future to ignite new ideas and an interest in traditional making practices.

For more of Rosie’s work check out her website here.

The Venue

This course is set at our off-grid permaculture allotment at Noxon Farm, near Bream. We have an outdoor kitchen, glass house and compost loo. All set over beautiful views of the fishing lake and our established forest garden, tree nursery and log cabin round house.

Profits

The Rewild Project is a Not for Profit, Community Interest Company, and Social Enterprise. It is our mission to support local craftspeople and promote heritage craft skills. We Rewild People by teaching these skills of self reliance and resilience for an uncertain future.

After the craftspeople are paid, and costs are covered we put any profits back in to the community with our ‘weekday sessions for disadvantaged groups’ a lifeline for many local people who we pick up each day and bring to Kensley Sheds and others sites to build community, skills, and share nutritious hot, locally produced food.