31/08/2026
🌻 Looking back on a very special summer at Hazelwood🌞
As summer draws to a close, I’ve been thinking about just how much this little corner of the world has given us over the past few months. ❤️
It’s been a very busy summer, one of our busiest yet, but when I look back at everything we’ve shared, I feel incredibly proud, grateful and, if I’m honest, a little emotional.
We’ve been so lucky with the weather ☀️ and have welcomed both new and familiar faces. We’ve tried new crafts, experiences and foods, learnt new skills, taken on challenges, made mistakes, worked things out together and laughed a lot.
We’ve watched friendships grow and deepen, and our little community grow with them. It is so special seeing children look out for each other, teach each other things and create their own memories and traditions. 🥹❤️
We’ve also continued to build Hazelwood together. We’ve improved our camp, created new spaces, fixed things that needed fixing, solved problems as they came up and watched the children take more and more ownership of the place they spend so much time in.
And then there is the woodland itself...One of my favourite things about Hazelwood is that it never stays the same. We’ve watched it wake up, grow, bloom and change around us. We’ve spent hours exploring it, climbing in it, cooking in it, creating in it, getting muddy in it, learning from it and simply sitting amongst it.
We’ve connected with nature in so many different ways, and hopefully, in our own small way, we’ve helped the children develop a sense of belonging to the natural world — and a desire to care for and protect it. 🌿🐛🌼
And I really can’t look back on this summer without mentioning Laura. ❤️
I sometimes worry that she doesn’t get the recognition she deserves because so much of what she does happens quietly in the background.
But Laura is a huge part of Hazelwood.
She’s there for the children, for me, for the woodland and for all the little things that keep Hazelwood going. She gets stuck in, solves problems, plans, creates, supports, laughs, gets muddy and somehow keeps everything moving alongside me.
Hazelwood has grown so much, and I genuinely don’t think it would be what it is without her.
I’m incredibly lucky to have her beside me, and I want her to know just how appreciated she is. ❤️
So as we say goodbye to summer, I’m feeling very grateful for the children, their families, our friends, our growing community, Laura and this beautiful woodland that we’re lucky enough to call Hazelwood. 🌿
Now we get to watch the woodland transform all over again. 🍂
And we already have some very exciting plans for autumn and winter… 👀
Thank you to everyone who has been part of our Hazelwood story so far.
Here’s to another season of growing, exploring, connecting and making memories together. ❤️🌿
Watch this space… 🍂🔥✨
