For the first 18 years of my working life I have been working in education and became a specialist in using Forest School to support children with additional social, emotional and mental health needs. It really was the perfect job for me as it balances deep level emotional work with highly engaging practical activity. I ran my own centre for the last 12 years and must have worked with 1000s of young people in that time. Its a job that provided me with so much but due to the nature of the education and care system, the children, the physical activity and sometimes my staff, it also took too much.
During my carer I was also been lucky enough to find my wife (at Forest School) and have 4 children who I am very proud of. We are in the process of renovating our second house, both of which have taken far too long and have cost far too much.
Sadly, my dad died in 2016, as did my wife’s. A very testing time for us all but from every event and experience comes some good. For me, a shock that made me realise that I have one life and if something doesn’t feel quite right, I need to do something about it. My work/life balance has been a challenge for as long as I can remember. Its time to have a closer look at it and maybe rebalance things. I loved my work in education, its part of who I am. But…. I can no longer afford to give that much.
I have always loved woodwork and making things and this is an area of interest that I have chosen to pursue for the next chapter of my career. For the last couple of years I have been building woodbgood into a business that I can now make a living from.
I always thought my biography would be longer than that! For more details of the past, present and future you will have to read and follow the blogs. Enjoy.
WoodBGood 