The New Woodland Workshop at Horsenden

My carving journey began at Horsenden Hill, in February 2019. It was a spoon carving day with a very talented and patient woodworker, Thomas Bickerdike. A kind gift from my partner, Lucille. We went along together.

Much has changed since then (not least a global pandemic!). Carving greenwood with traditional hand tools quickly went from a hobby to a passion, and finally, a bit of an obsession - as my Instagram account confirms.

It’s been good for the soul. It got me back in touch with my creativity, nature, and a wonderful community. The Friends of Horsenden Hill pour so much love and hard work into the farm. Between them, Perivale Brewery (amazing on-site beer), The Horsenden Loaf (arguably the best coffee and brownies in West London), and many more. It’s a vibrant hub.

(I’ve included information below. No affiliate links - I just love the place and want to share it).

Sadly, the shelter where I learned eventually fell into disrepair. With Thomas busy at his day job, I decided to give something back: a new outdoor workshop...

The Woodland Workshop Project

The Woodland Workshop - view from the store

With support from the Friends of Horsenden, and the design and build leadership of the amazing Tricky - backed by Kirk, Nick, and Martha (Tricky’s ever-patient, chilled pooch) - this wonderful place has come to life.

Affectionately dubbed the 'Temple of the Spoon', it stands on, and extends, the footprint of the old shelter in a private wooded corner, a short walk from the farm. The main structure is made from sweet chestnut and incorporates timber from the old shelter, along with elm poles sourced from the surrounding woodland (felled sustainably by Nick, and carried off the hill by hand).

Its soul is very much an extension of the place and its people. The community rallied to help raise the frame, and Stephen Haskett captured it all on film while I was stuck doing the day job!

The Woodland Workshop - ready for a course

None of this would have been possible without Lucille's patience, or the sponsorship and support from the Horsenden folks: Jon, Emma, Elsa, Sarah, Justin, Beth, Mike, Emma, Anthony, and so many more - including a special shout-out to Charlie from Emma’s forest school for helping carry a very heavy log!

Since Summer 2025, we’ve been putting it to good use, successfully running several carving days, a pole lathe workshop, and restarting the carving club. We have plenty more coming up for 2026, so if you’d like to stay informed regarding new courses, please get in touch via the contact form on the home page.

About Horsenden Hill Farm

Horsenden Hill Farm is a historic working community farm and nature reserve nestled at the foot of Horsenden Hill in Perivale, West London (UB6 7PQ).

Horsenden Hill Farm, Perivale, West London

Getting here is very easy. You can drive (the A40 is close by, with free parking available) or take the tube; Perivale Station is on the Central Line and is a 12-minute walk, or 5 minutes if you run - I timed it! If you plenty of time (and a boat), the Grand Union Canal is nearby, too...

Farming here stretches back centuries, possibly to the Tudor period when Perivale was famed for high-quality wheat. By the 19th century, the land - including Horsenden Farm, then one of only five homes in the parish - shifted to growing hay for London’s many horses.

Today, the farm is part of Ealing's largest nature reserve, with the hill itself designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument thanks to an Iron Age settlement dating back over 2,500 years.

The farm and surrounding 100-hectare (250-acre) reserve are now looked after by the Friends of Horsenden Hill who I mentioned earlier, a local charity working with Ealing Council. They have transformed the site into a vital hub for conservation, education, and sustainable enterprise.

This renaissance has filled the old farm buildings with a modern collection of makers. In addition to The Horsenden Loaf (wood-fired bakery), Perivale Brewery (using foraged local ingredients), we have Mind Food (supporting mental health through horticulture), The Ealing Carpenter, Forest Buds and Be Wilder Education (Forest Schools), and the Horsenden Farm Flowers no-dig project. It ensures the farm remains a place of making and community, honouring the land's heritage while establishing a new generation of artisans and sharing this lovely place with all the visitors.

The Woodland Workshop offers a greenwood craft hub, alongside the hayloft venue and other spaces managed and run by the Horsenden team. I feel very privileged to be part of this, and will be running my own courses as well as helping organise others.

That will do for now - thank you for reading this far!

More coming soon.

Russ

Links

The main Horsenden website (this is also where upcoming courses will be booked - I will share these in forthcoming posts): https://horsenden.org/

The amazing team who built the workshop - links to their instagram accounts (Martha is too busy being a good dog to have a social media account):

• Tricky: https://www.instagram.com/yoden_crafts/

• Kirk (runs a pub games business too): https://www.instagram.com/yeoldepubgames/

• Nick: https://www.instagram.com/nickthecraftsman/

Steve Haskett who took pictures and filmed the build: https://www.instagram.com/stephenhaskett/

Perivale Brewery (award-winning beer, includes locally foraged ingredients too): https://www.perivale.beer/

The Horsenden Loaf (pop-up cafe on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, food, entertainment, roasts on a Sunday): https://www.thehorsendenloaf.co.uk/  

Horsenden Farm Flowers (community-grown flowers, wreath courses and more): https://www.instagram.com/horsendenfarmflowers/

The Ealing Carpenter: https://theealingcarpenter.com/

Be Wilder Education: https://www.facebook.com/be.wilder.education

Forest Buds: https://linktr.ee/forestbuds