Hawkwood, Stroud

12/06/2026

IMPORTANT VISITOR INFORMATION

Please note that access to the Hawkwood Estate, gardens and spring will be closed to the public from Monday 22nd June to Friday 26th June inclusive.

During this period, Hawkwood's woodland will remain open under its usual permissive access arrangements. However, there will be no public access across the fields, gardens, spring or house grounds.

For everyone’s safety, there will be a traffic management system in place, supervised by experienced event staff.

- Member of Stroud Community Agriculture?
If you are a member of Stroud Community Agriculture, you will be contacted directly by the farm team regarding arrangements for collecting your share during this period. If you have any questions, please contact the farm team directly.

- Why is access restricted?
During this week, Hawkwood will be hosting The Wildlife Trusts' largest-ever professional conference, bringing together around 800 colleagues from across the Wildlife Trust movement to share knowledge, strengthen partnerships and support nature recovery across the UK.

We understand that many visitors value regular access to Hawkwood and the spring, and we are grateful for your patience and understanding during this temporary closure.

Events and bookings of this scale make a significant contribution to the long-term sustainability and success of Hawkwood, helping us to care for this special place and continue welcoming visitors throughout the year.

We look forward to welcoming you back from Saturday 27th June.

Thank you for your support and understanding. You can click the link to find out more about the access restrictions, including a dedicated telephone information line which will be available during the week: https://www.hawkwoodcollege.co.uk/the-wildlife-trusts-national-conference-at-hawkwood

08/06/2026

Our Artist in Residency programme opens our doors to over 100 artists each year, spanning multiple disciplines, giving them the opportunity to dedicated creative time, generously supported by The Francis W Reckitt Arts Trust 🎭

As staff, it is such a joy to see the house full of creativity and collaboration when we have artists in the house and even more of a treat when we get a special glimpse of their work they have created at Hawkwood!

Our latest newsletter takes a look at some of the recent artists who have joined us (link in bio) and you can head to the Read Our Stories section of our website to read our artists' blogs from their stay.

(Photos 3&6 Credit: Jon Aitken)

01/06/2026

28/05/2026

Our July - December 2026 Programme! 🎉

We're excited to unveil our brand-new July - December programme for 2026 - full of over 70 courses, events and workshops in writing, music, art, creativity, wellbeing, ecology, regenerative futures, and leadership.

With fresh courses, new tutors and familiar favourites including:
🎪 WILDWOOD! - Our new summer camp for families
👣 Wander: A celebration of walking
📚 Writing courses with Kate Young, Ella Risbridger, Horatio Clare, Nick Hunt, Abir Mukherjee and SJ Parris
🎭 Bunraku-inspired puppet making
🤸 Physical theatre training course with Frantic Assembly
🎶 Music masterclasses with Atéa Quintet for clarinets, flutes, oboes and bassoons

Keep an eye out for physical copies of our brochure in and around Stroud, but in the meantime scroll through our digital version here: https://hawkwood.s3.eu-central-1.wasabisys.com/39ef9b6d5b1f6f51df7fcd01aa4184695d22cb20

✨ Save with Early Bird rates! Secure your place - and the best price. Early Bird discounts are limited, so book while they’re still available!

We hope to see you at Hawkwood in 2026!

20/05/2026

Join us for a rich and playful course exploring the connection between music, movement and embodied listening on our Strings Musicianship and Body Awareness course!

Led by internationally acclaimed baroque violinist Rachel Podger, musician and teacher of Alexander Technique Judith Kleinman and multi-award winning composer Jennie Muskett MBE, this course will cover:
🎻 Gut-string playing
🎻 Connecting the breath and the bow
🎻 Body awareness
🎻 Body resonance
🎻 Finding a quiet strength in the activity of playing

To find out more about the course, we spoke to Rachel, Judith and Jennie about the importance of learning about the body whilst playing and what participants can expect from the course. You can read the full Q&A with the tutors on our blog here: https://www.hawkwoodcollege.co.uk/blog/qanda-with-tutors-rachel-podger-judith-kleinman-and-jennie-muskett

🎶 This course is open to all strings players and is suitable for both amateur and professionals alike.

📆 28th June - 1st July

To find out more and book your place: https://www.hawkwoodcollege.co.uk/our-programmes/programme/29021-string-musicianship-and-body-awareness

14/05/2026

We can't believe we are halfway through May already! But we are really excited about our upcoming courses later this month and going into June, including a variety of different music courses with musicians such as Elisabeth Parry, James Weeks and Rachel Podger. Plus, learn to mend your favourite garments with Skye Pennant and Loes Damhof and Alex Lambie return for their Emergence Academy this summer.

Take a look at what is coming up:
🎶 Sound Wisdom | 24th - 28th May - Learn new ways to hear, embody and express your truth, with confidence, courage and inner stability with Chloe Goodchild (2 Spaces Left!)
🎼 Flutes Inspired with Elisabeth Parry | 1st - 4th June - Improve your flute skills through ensemble playing, technique sessions, chamber music, and informal performance opportunities with Elisabeth Parry
🪡 Introduction to Visible Mending | Sun 7th June - Darning, patching and sashiko techniques for your favourite garments with Skye Pennant.
📚 Writing Gothic Fiction | 7th - 11th June - Step into the shadows of the Gothic with CJ Cooke and Cathryn Kemp and discover how to craft fiction rich in atmosphere, tension, and emotional depth. With midweek guest speaker, Emilia Hart.
🌱 Composing Ecology | 12th - 14th June - Composer, James Weeks, helps you explore how listening and sound can deepen our relationship with the environments we inhabit.
🤝 Hawkwood Huddle | 18th May & 15th June - Join us for our monthly networking group at Hawkwood.
💡 The Emergence Academy | 15th - 18th June - Explore practical tools for navigating uncertainty with greater clarity, creativity and resilience with Loes Damhof and Alex Lambie
🌳 Summer Forest Bathing | Sat 27th June - Slow down and reconnect with nature on a forest bathing journey with Dee Aebischer (Sold Out!)
🎻 String Musicianship and Body Awareness | 28th June - 1st July - A rich and playful workshop exploring the connection between music, movement and embodied listening with Rachel Podger, Judith Kleinman and Jennie Muskett.

More info on all our courses can be found here: https://www.hawkwoodcollege.co.uk/our-programmes

12/05/2026

We can’t believe it’s been over a week since our May Day Festival! 🤩

And as we reflect on the wonderful day that we had, it’s impossible to do it without thanking our amazing team of staff and volunteers for all their hard work, dedication and creativity that went into the event. We really couldn’t have done it without each and every person who helped us - whether it was sign writing, putting up gazebos, tidying the grounds, crowd control, organising the car park, moving tables or just offering cups of tea when needed! THANK YOU!

And we celebrated at the end of the day with a fantastic (and much-needed!) staff BBQ in the sun courtesy of our fantastic kitchen team ☀️