Fox and Squirrel provide tailored Climbing Instruction with highly experienced, fully qualified and insured instructors. We can meet clients at their local crags, or deliver holiday-based experiences in the Cumbrian Lake District or the South East of England.
From first outdoor experiences, to indoor climbing wall coaching. Fox and Squirrel have worked with a range of clients from 1:1, children, families and educational groups. We can offer abseiling, lead climbing, top roped climbing, scrambling, bouldering and trad climbing days out, suitable for any age or ability.
We have worked with families, small groups and individuals to share the wonder of camping in the wild. Fox and Squirrel are committed to providing low impact, ‘leave no trace’ overnighters, to empower anyone to feel confident sleeping out in the wild. We will demonstrate the use of an array of kit and equipment, helping you to make informed decisions about the kit you need to continue your wild camping adventures after upskilling with us.
We have taken out families with children as young as 6, and as old as 84 wild camping! Using hammocks, tarps, bivvy bags, natural shelters or tents, filtering out own water, map reading and understanding UK Wild Camping law.
Fox and Squirrel have been regular workshop providers for Wakehurst Place (Kew Gardens), as well as working in partnership with primary schools, Stomping Ground (Lancaster and Kendal), Schools Without Walls (East Sussex) and the Youth Hostel Association. We offer workshops in green woodwork, cooking over fire, natural crafts, creative arts, basic foraging, den building, curriculum links and team games. All while fostering love, respect and wonder for the natural world.
We believe in creating from the site, taking in as little equipment as possible to harness the possibilities of the place we are fortunate enough to work in. We can also advise schools on the scope of their grounds in creating permanent forest school areas, and training school staff to feel more confident in taking their curriculum activities into nature.
Chloe Thwaites is the founder of Fox and Squirrel, which she established in 2017, to provide low impact experiences in nature that are accessible to all.
She was fuelled by the overuse of delicate sandstone climbing areas by large groups and beginners who didn’t know the huge impact they were having on the delicate South Eastern outcrops. This and the amount of constant waste found after inexperienced and disrespectful wild campers in the Lake District.
Fox and Squirrel was designed to enable a lighter approach to adventures in the outdoors, where respect and understanding goes hand in hand with kit use and climbing technique. We prefer to run small scale, family and 1:1 experiences, learning to adventure in harmony with nature.
Fox and Squirrel are proud to have created bespoke experiences for individuals, social enterprise groups and corporations including Kew Gardens, Food Pioneers CIC and Schools Without Walls. Our expertise includes bushcraft skills, fire lighting, cooking over fire, wild camping, rock climbing, bouldering, natural arts and jewellery making, charcoal making, whittling and Forest Schools. Get in touch if you have any queries.
