I am looking for eager, active, team players, or people who want to help because they can be excited by the bigger picture even if they’re just cleaning, cooking, carrying logs or picking up sticks! Tasks can be heavy, long, cold, muddy and so on. I find it highly rewarding but you probably need to be a fairly hardy person who’s physically fit and not put off by hard work, mud, nudity or creepy crawlies. Though if you prefer lighter tasks or you feel you have other skills to offer, such as cleaning, cooking, healing therapies, or animal care etc, or something totally different that I haven’t mentioned yet... then please say so in your message! All I ask is that you keep to your end of the deal and provide 25 solid hours of your time and skills in return for everything on offer here :)
I follow a live and let live lifestyle here and love to meet similarly open-minded people. A love and respect for people and nature is a must - so no litterbugs here! Meanwhile, an ability to be independent both in work and free time is also appreciated.
It can get quite busy at intervals with between 1-4 volunteers here at a time, though this space is plenty big enough to isolate yourself away working or in your own time, or to be as communal as you want...I am hoping for volunteer stays from 2 to 6 weeks, but if we work well together and you like it here, we can discuss extending your stay :-)
Cleaning out animals, building log walls, collecting fallen sticks/making brush walls, collecting & axing wood, building projects (eg. food areas, hoop growers, the barn, maintaining animal pens and general maintenance), moving soil and wood chip, weeding/watering/planting/harvesting, bramble/bracken clearing, axing firewood, maintaining paths, etc.
We will all share and take turns with the ‘household’ chores of cooking, washing up, and cleaning the communal rooms. I can teach you how to feed animals and how to milk goats if you’d like :)
Spring - forestry management, Planting, Building, Baby Goat Kids!, Gardening, etc,
Summer - woodland tasks, Gardening/plant care, maintenance/building, firewood collection etc.
For more detailed information about a specific month you’d like to volunteer please message me!
As this is a private smallholding we don’t function like a job, our hours are pretty flexible and weather dependent. So, your 25 hours per week may include long days working, followed by days off sunbathing or hiding inside from the rain. I hope you’ll let me know when you’re energised & inspired to crack on with a task and also when you’re needing extra rest, so I can be aware of your needs and we can organise our scheduling together.
I have 2 lovely old caravans available, and a communal 3 bedroom tent! Caravan 1 has a double bed, wardrobe space and is lovely and homely. Caravan 2 is larger and can comfortably have 2 double beds (or one double bed and a sitting area), a wardrobe space and is lovely and bright. There is basic lighting in both caravans, and yes the sleeping accommodations do now have heating in them at night from October to April, though we all usually keep warm in the communal lounge with the log burner fire on hot all of the time!!
On the land we have a main communal Forestry building with just about all the off-grid facilities we need to survive and keep toasty warm to facilitate us working here.. I have just installed an outside shower and yes there is now hot water in the building (very exciting!) so we can all be a bit more spoilt in 2022. The communal building has a comfy lounge area with sofas & wood burner for heating, kitchen, office and tool storage. Outside there is a large bonfire pit and cooking facilities (BBQ, hot plate made of an old gas bottle and wood fired oven).
Most people like to spend a lot of the time outside in the warmer months and you can expect a good bit of bbq cooked food then too. We usually eat vegetarian here, but do occasionally buy meat, so I aim to be flexible and understanding of everyone’s dietary needs - so do please let me know in advance! Better yet teach me some of your favourite recipes! We will share out most roles here including cooking so be ready to get involved.
Being off-grid means resources such as water, gas and electricity are limited and to be respected, therefore used sparingly. There is also limited phone signal in the woods and poor 4G, so whilst Internet and phone calls via your mobile are accessible in areas of the woods, this place is most ideally for those people hoping for a break from the screens and social media of modern life.
I hope volunteers will be excited to get involved and put the hours in, but in your free time you may want to hike through the countryside, sunbathe* in our woodland clearing, read in a hammock, walk/jog the dog through the surrounding woodland paths, sketch, cycle, body paint, play games, start your own little projects (perhaps you want to create a seating area, carve a branch or plant a tree guild). Beyond the Woods there is a number of quaint English villages just 5 minutes drive away. Plus a couple larger towns nearby for shopping trips and of course iconic London is just a 40 minute train ride away for a full day or weekend of urban attractions.
There is no public transport passing this site itself but I am happy to provide occasional lifts so that you can experience more of the area during your time here. Please bring your own Alcohol, inebriates, snacks and chocolate! Also its handy to bring a head torch, dirty clothes for working, comfy chilling out clothes for evenings, any games and anything else that you fancy!
We usually eat a lot of eggs and dairy here due to the nature of farming onsite, and I stock the kitchen with food such as fresh fruits and vegetables for cooking, spices, sauces, tea and instant coffee & sugar etc , though I do not buy much processed food. Anything not on my usual shopping list such as sweet treats, non goat milks, chocolate, alcohol etc you are welcome to buy yourself at your own expense. Though please do message me first if you would like to find out anything specific!
* Please note; I am a true sun lover and naturist & believe naturism/nudity is a beautiful way of life, so this wonderful sanctuary is truly clothing optional...
To give you a truly honest expectation of off-grid woodland life, I have racked my brains for what I think are the down sides of working within this lifestyle:
- Secluded setting (although only a 10 minute drive to town)
- Poor internet and mobile connection
- Totally off-grid therefore very limited water (maximum 2 showers per week!)
- Also Limited Electric! We only have 12V electric (that means only a USB lead) - there is no fridge, freezer or any high consumption appliances here, and sadly I cannot charge laptops or anything with a plug.
- Outside toilet
- Outside shower
- It can be cold English weather in this country…
- Sleeping accommodations are caravans or the big tent. Heating in the caravans is available from October to April on most evenings, but normally we all keep toasty warm in the communal building with the log burner fire going nearly all of the time - it can get very hot in the main room, like a sauna!
Forest Management
Art Projects
Help with Eco Projects
Elderly Companionship
Teaching
Gardening
DIY and building projects
Animal Care
Farmstay help
Creating/ Cooking family meals
Help around the building
General Maintenance
I hope you'll gain a fun and eye-opening experience of off-grid living and working. Whatever time of year you visit, expect to leave well versed in animal care, fire starting and getting back to nature. Maybe you'll learn to build from found materials and see the potential in things laying around. Maybe you'll work out whether you really do want to keep your own animals or whether you're cut out for rural or off grid life. Hopefully we'll all learn more about how to support each other & nature, grow our own foods, and be self-sustainable while immersing ourselves in the healing trees. If you’re happy to put in the hours expected of you, then I’ll be more than happy to teach you everything I know about off grid farm life.
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Last Updated:8th May 2022