​Adult Courses
Our courses and workshops in green living, rural skills and bushcraft take place in our beautiful learning Centre in the Hampshire South Downs, near Petersfield. We are proud to host a range of excellent tutors, including renowned permaculture teachers: Aranya and Caroline Aitken; Forest School pioneer, Jon Cree; bushcraft and nature connection leaders: Jonathon Huet and Nick Ward; herb and foraging experts and a host of highly skilled craft teachers. ​

As well as our Course Listings below, we also offer private bespoke courses for your adult family group or organisation.  Please contact us on courses@sustainability-centre.org for more information.

10% Accommodation discount offer

We give special 10% discount just for course attendees, on our new South Downs Eco Lodge Accommodation from 2 nights or more.  Why not say for 2 or 3 days and really enjoy your course.

Courses Covid Update

​Our courses are up and running, operating within Government guidelines at all times. Our courses team are ensuring everything is safe and COVID secure for all of our visitors, course attendees and tutors.

2021

September

Art, Sound and Meditation ​
£75
Sunday 26th September 2021
10:00 - 16:00
​Janet Hammerton,  Jonathon Huet & Sam Britton
A workshop focused on the healing properties of sounds and pattern and the restorative qualities of the natural world. Spend a day focusing on your own wellbeing. We will explore the way experiencing sound and nature can spark our creative responses. ​

October

Introduction to Permaculture Design
£320
Reserve a place  
£75
Thursday 7th to Sunday 10th October 2021
09:30 - 17:30
​Aranya
​This course cover the key principles of Permaculture design theory and how we can apply them in redesigning our homes and gardens to be both more sustainable and abundant. 
Willow Frame Basket​
​£80
Thursday 28th October 2021
10:00 - 17:00
​Tutor: Louise Arthur
​Willow weaving training course in the Hampshire South Downs. Participants will make a hand woven gypsy style frame basket from sustainable locally grown willow. Use your basket for gathering berries, mushrooms, eggs, herbs or displaying treasures.
Climbing Frames, Ropes and Ladders​
​£95
Saturday 30th October 2021
09:00 - 17:00
​Tutor: Jon Cree
​This course is for educators wishing to be a little more adventurous with creative play structures at their sites, building them out of wood and rope and combining these with the natural features at your site. ​
Lost Words
​£75
Sunday 31st October 2021
09:00 - 16:00
​Tutor: Jon Cree
​This day course explores nature through the curriculum using literacy, art and pictures. Participants will discover the natural world through sensory observation, sketching and wordsmithing.

november

Coppicing 
£75
Friday 5th November 2021
09:30 - 16:30
​Les & Toni Brannon
​​This course will give you practical, hands on experience in the traditional art of coppicing.  You will work on a section of hazel woodland which is being coppiced as part of a wider woodland management plan to undertake conservation work on site.
Unwind in the Woods 
£75
Saturday 6th November 2021
10:00 - 16:00
​Jonathon Huet
​​Combining meditation and an introduction to basic whittling techniques, this workshop will give you the time and space to get away from a hectic everyday life and connect with nature.
Forest School Leader Training 
£1,170
Starts Tue 16th Nov 2021
09:00 - 17:00
​Adrian Goodhand
​​This training course is essential for anyone wishing to lead Forest School programmes in their own setting. It covers learning theory and practical skills, plus gives participants the confidence and knowledge needed to establish and deliver their own Forest School programmes.
Natural Cosmetics Workshop 
£75 
Saturday 20th and/or Sunday 21st November 2021
10:00 - 16:00
​Dee Dade
​​Learn how to make natural everyday beauty/bathroom products from ingredients you can find in your kitchen cupboards, herb gardens and amongst the hedgerows. We will be making a variety of products including balms, oils, hair conditioner and toothpaste. 
Hedgelaying 
£80
Friday 26th November 2021
09:30 - 17:00
​Les & Toni Brannon
​​Gain practical, hands on experience in the ancient art of hedgelaying (South of England style).  A local hedge will be laid using traditional tools i.e. billhook, broad axe and hand saws. 

december

Willow Trees & Rush Reindeer
£35
Thursday 2nd or Friday 3rd December 2021
10:00 - 12:30
​Louise Arthur
​​A fun hands-on session weaving natural festive decorations. We will create a freestanding Christmas tree using colourful willow then follow instructions to fold a reindeer from rushes. 
Festive Wreaths & Stars
£35
Thursday 2nd or Friday 3rd December 2021
13:30 - 16:00
​Louise Arthur
Get in the festive mood by learning how to create a natural willow wreath. You can then combine willow hoops to form frames to decorate at home. We will also make different style stars and decorate wands with foliage.

2022

january

Willow Garden Sculpture -
​SOLD OUT
£80
Friday 14th January 2022
Learn how to willow weave a sculpture for your garden. Choose what you would like to weave from a small animal to an abstract form.  Previous participants have made: dragonflies, hearts, cats, dogs, chickens, pheasants, obelisks and garden decorations - the choice is yours!
Youth Mental Health First Aid
£225
Tuesday 18th & Wednesday 19th January 2022
Youth Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) is an internationally recognised training course for anyone who works with, lives with or supports young people aged 8-18. We train the adults in a young person’s life to have the skills and confidence to step in, offer first aid and guide them towards the support they need. In doing so, they can speed up a young person’s recovery, stop issues from developing into a crisis, and ultimately save lives.
Willow Frame Basket - SOLD OUT
£80
Tuesday 25th January 2022
Learn how to make a hand woven gypsy style frame basket from sustainable locally grown willow. Use your basket for gathering berries, mushrooms, eggs, herbs or displaying treasures. 
Fabric Baskets
£95
Saturday 29th January 2022
Upcycle pre-loved clothing or favourite fabrics to make beautiful coiled fabric baskets. A great way to keep some of your children’s favourite outfits they’ve outgrown or your partner’s favourite old shirts and turn the materials into a decorative basket of memories for your home. 

February

Hedgelaying Course - SOLD OUT
£80
Friday 4th February 2022
On this training course you will gain practical, hands on experience in the ancient art of hedgelaying (South of England style).  A local hedge will be laid using traditional tools i.e. billhook, broad axe and hand saws. The stock proof barrier created will then be trimmed by hand and secured with stakes and top binding.  You will also learn about the history of hedgerows in our landscape and their habitat importance.
Natural Cosmetics 
£75 for one day
£135 for both days
Saturday 11th February 2022 &/or
Sunday 12th February 2022
Come and learn how to make natural everyday beauty/bathroom products from ingredients you can find in your kitchen cupboards, herb gardens and amongst the hedgerows. We will be making a variety of products including balms, oils, hair conditioner and toothpaste. Products that are kind to you, the earth, reduce single-use plastic and will save you pennies. Perfect to make for yourself or to give as gifts.
Willow Living Tree
£45 
Friday 25th February 2022 
Join us in learning how to weave your very own living willow Harlequin tree from locally grown willow. Living willow rods plaited into what is known as a Harlequin tree make a wonderful addition to your garden.  You will to take away your tree with the knowledge of how to nurture and care for it through the seasons to come. ​
Willow Lampshade
£45 
Friday 25th February 2022 
Learn how to weave a lampshade from locally grown willow on this half-day course. With a rising awareness of sustainable natural materials and handcrafted techniques willow lampshades make a wonderful choice for your home. On this course you will learn how  to weave a drum shaped lampshade onto a 25cm metal hoop for a standard light fixing with an LED bulb. ​

March

Kitchen Gardening Weekends
£250
Two weekends: Saturday 12th - Sunday 13th March and
​Saturday 11th - Sunday 12th June 2022
A four day course, split over two weekends, on creating and managing a successful and abundant food garden. The course will include hands-on practical sessions and all the theory you need to make your kitchen garden grow and keep your larder full. From crop planning to soil care, pest control to storing produce, this course will show you environmentally friendly and sustainable approaches to growing your own food. 
Forest School Taster Day
£55 
Friday 25th March 2022 
An experience day for teachers and parents to give a taste of the Forest School approach to learning in our beautiful woodland site. Have a go at fire lighting, den building, tool use, plus other woodland crafts and activities. Find out how Forest School supports children and adults of all abilities to learn in the outdoors. 

APRIL

Medicinal Herbs
​Saturday 2nd April 2022​
Learn how to use plants and herbal remedies to improve your health and wellbeing on this highly practical one day course. Spend a day with professional herbalist, Sarah Hillyer, learning how to identify and use medicinal herbs growing in our gardens and the wider countryside to detoxify and revitalise the body. 
Clay Oven
£105
​Saturday 9th April 2022​
Learn the techniques to build a clay oven at our beautiful site in the Hampshire South Downs. Participants will learn how to construct the oven from builder’s sand, clay, wood shavings and bricks. The course includes a pizza lunch. 
Spoon Carving
£70
​Tuesday 12th April 2022​
Learn how to carve a spoon, spatula and butter knife on this wood carving course in the Hampshire South Downs. Our tutor, Jonathan Huet, will teach you how to use a knife, saw, crook knife and axe to whittle items from locally harvested green wood. ​
Pendant Carving
£75
​Thursday 21st April or Friday 22nd April 2022​
Learn how to carve your own beautiful wooden pendant with simple knife techniques on this one day course. Create your own unique piece of wearable wood art with nothing more than a knife and a little imagination. An infinitely portable and transferable skill set (and toolkit) that will give you the freedom to carve creatively, whether at home or out in the wilderness.​