Created for home-educated families who want to choose a nature-based way of learning together. Established 10 years ago, I’ve run all sorts of things including the John Muir Wild Places award Guardian certificate in previous years and again in 2025/26.
And the name of the group? That comes from taking our own kids off to Embercombe many years ago and hearing the words of Mac….
“No law, no decision, no action of any kind shall be taken that will harm the children, now or ever.”
Mac Macartney, the founder of Embercombe and whom we met when our boys were young, carries this message by his indigenous mentors. ‘It’s the central principle of Embercombe’s work in the world. The story goes that the elders of a long-gone people came to understand that human institutions needed to reflect the balance and wisdom observable in nature. They made a pledge to the young of all species’
Words taken from Embercombe’s website.
Onwards into 2026-2027
A new venture with the Nature Connection & wellness level 2 course, delivered by me, regulated by Ofqual, through Adventure Therapy for Open Awards. I love what Adventure Therapy are offering young people and adults. I’m also training with them for my level 3 Forest School Leader too. More on myself and D’Arcy here.
The first qualifications of their kind in the UK, offering a GCSE-equivalent route through practical, nature-based, portfolio learning.
The qualifications are Ofqual-regulated, nationally recognised, and designed to be inclusive, giving young people the chance to gain a meaningful qualification in a way that reflects how they learn best. There are no written exams – learners build a portfolio through real experiences in nature.
Why we started..
We have always home-educated (now 13 & 15) and we wanted to give our own kids a nature-based education. I saw a need, that wasn’t being met in our current educational system, for creating a community of families that value this, and each other too. We’re like a tribe!
I’ve held all sorts of things: seashore sessions linking in all sorts of interests the kids have, spent many hours around a fire with them, teaching permaculture, weaving in conservation and watched them develop a beautiful, rich and deep relationship with themselves, their friends and the wider nature.
Whilst we tend to The Children’s Fire, to the young of all beings and non-being, the work of many is woven in: The Children’s Forest, Jon Young and Cultural Emergence with Looby Macmanara.
