Acorns to Oaks

03/10/2026

https://www.facebook.com/share/17byUArcwv/

This year's BBC Radio 4 Reith lecturer will be the best-selling author and Spell Songs inspirer Robert Macfarlane,

Robert will argue that a belief in human superiority has brought us to the brink of planetary catastrophe.
He says: “We imagine ourselves perched atop a pinnacle, when in fact we are entangled in a web of life."
Across four lectures, each taking one of the elements (Earth, Air, Fire, Water) as its focus, he explores the causes and consequences of this ‘human superiority complex’ for our relationships with the larger living world. And he shows how scientists, writers, artists and activists around the world are contesting the story of human exceptionalism in order to realise a hopeful, viable future on Earth.

The lectures will be chaired by presenter, journalist and author, Anita Anand and will be recorded in front of live audiences in London,Bangor, Aberdeen and Amsterdam. They will be broadcast on BBC Radio 4 and the BBC World Service later this year and will be available to listen to on BBC Sounds.

BBC Radio 4
19 October 2026 – 10 November 2026

24/09/2026

Andy has created a thing of beauty with the roof of Fender's roundhouse. Fully waterproof tomorrow, ready to use next week.

15/08/2026

Details of our September Folk Festival at Fender Forest School

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1D7hTDoE5z/

11/08/2026

We've had a great first two days of our Fender Forest School Level 3 training.

Yesterday was at the school and we finished with a Forest School tea party, fire lighting followed by making foraged blackberry jam, fire cooked scones and tea. We have tweaked the order of the training to reflect the heat of the rest of the week.

This afternoon we headed to the deep woods of Roydon Park where it was significantly cooler for tree identification, discussions of forest management and tarp installation with knots we learnt this morning.

I wish I could say the highlight was my insightful knowledge and delivery, but I suspect it was the cows we met.

31/07/2026

Getting ready for our first Level 3 training course and back to Fender Forest School in September, we soon won't have to leave site for toilet breaks!

Andy and Ash have been working on the new composting toilet so no more staff trapsing off with the reception children and wondering where the others have got to.

16/07/2026

Catch Mikey Kenney - Fiddle and Voice at Folk on Fender on September 12th

14/07/2026

The roof beams went onto the Fender Roundhouse today. We were joined by Jamie Ingle of Construction who is going to be helping us more in the near future. He brings some great experience and knowledge of sustainable, natural building and will be a valuable member of the team.

11/07/2026

I've come down south to Lippits Hill in Epping Forest yesterday and randomly found a Blue Plaque for John Clare whose collected works are on my bedside table.

Clare was a Romantic poet from an agricultural labouring background who wrote extensively on nature and rural living and was an early environmentalists. He was in an asylum in Epping Forest for four years before escaping and walking to Northamptonshire, where he was again committed for the remainder of his life.

A Rhapsody by John Clare

Sweet solitude, what joy to be alone--
In wild, wood-shady dell to stay for hours.
Twould soften hearts if they were hard as stone
To see glad butterflies and smiling flowers.
Tis pleasant in these quiet lonely places,
Where not the voice of man our pleasure mars,
To see the little bees with coal black faces
Gathering sweets from little flowers like stars.

I have spent this morning almost in sweet solitude accept for my son, in a meadow surrounded by bees, butterflies, crickets and bird song, very appropriate being so close to where John Clare was.

09/07/2026

Roundhouse posts up and ring beam on. Next stage will be the roof timbers on Tuesday.

Great to have in place for this afternoon's kick off meeting for August's Level 3 Forest School training. Still places available if anyone is interested.

03/07/2026

Fender Year 6 started the roundhouse today, the first project of the Lottery bid. Laid out a decagon for the floor and used the 3.6m poles to mock up the reciprocal roof.

We are looking for someone to join our team for works like this. Get in touch if you are interested.