All the courses are held in the woods at Higher Holditch Farm, in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, close to Bridport and Lyme Regis, Dorset, itself part of the Jurassic Coast 'World Heritage Site'.

If you don't know the area, what that really means is that we have wonderful countryside and coastline down this way. It's a good place to be at any time of year.

In the woods at Higher Holditch Farm we've created a clearing that's dedicated to the teaching of 'green woodworking'. This 'woodland workshop' includes a tipi, a working area with a roof made of parachutes, and an inside dining area. It is shaded in summer and cosy in winter - we've plenty of braziers and flares throughout the site in case it turns chilly.

Our guests often remark that they have enjoyed spending a day or two in the peace and quiet of the woods just as much as they have enjoyed the woodwork and everyone seems to get a buzz from 'connecting with nature' - through woodworking and through working in woodland.

There is also an abundance of wildlife here, including deer, buzzards, woodpeckers and owls.

I don't think I can sum it up any better than one of our guests:

"The setting is so spectacular that just being there was a welcome escape from day-to-day life indoors, and the satisfaction and pride of actually coming away with a fine sycamore bowl was fantastic".

Below are two short amateur video clips, taken recently, which hopefully show what it's like to come here for a course.

And A Perfect Menu

We've long been describing the lunches we provide as, well, lunches. However, we've had a number of guests say we really should make more of this aspect of our courses, and that the menu is as wonderful as the venue. Who am I to disagree?

The lunches are all freshly prepared by my wife, Boo, and, as much as possible, are locally sourced too. The menu varies from day to day and course to course, but the menus from a recent two day course are quite typical.

Day One:

Lamb with haricot beans, garlic and rosemary, rice and green salad, followed by apple crumble with cream and a selection of local cheeses. For vegetarians there was sweet and sour aubergine lasagne.

Day Two:

Pork with local Nettlecombe cider and apples, and baked potatoes, followed by an apricot and almond flan and local cheeses. Alternatively, there was organic spinach and lentil pancakes in a red wine sauce for vegetarians.

And that's all washed down with our own spring water. Of course there's also tea and biscuits in the morning break and tea and cake in the afternoon, and after we down tools at the end of Day Two, we do like a glass or two of wine as well ...

Please note: during May-June 2008 we are moving our woodland workshop to our new home at Higher Holditch Farm. Therefore, photographs on this web site showing the venue will soon be out of date. Please accept our apologies for this. We will be replacing them with photographs of our new, equally wonderful, woodland workshop as soon as we can.

Rest assured that our new venue is just as idyllic - and is also in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty!