Caroline set up The Hive in 2014 when she couldn’t find outdoor activities for her son that were truly modern and exciting for a 10-year old!

As an experienced media professional, primary school Community Governor and Fellow of the RSA, she recognised that the growing disconnect between “nature skills” and “21st century skills” wasn’t serving children well. Caroline wanted to provide a place where kids could get their hands dirty, learn through doing, experiment with many different outdoor activities through ambitious projects, in nature and with technology! 7 years on, The Hive's innovative curriculum still very much focuses on creativity, project-based learning, collaboration and problem-solving to stretch the realm of “outdoor education”.

With 5 sites around London, not only does The Hive continue to attract educators and facilitators who have the passion and knowledge to inspire the next generation, but it has also become one of London's most established accredited provider of Forest School Training, with over 200 wonderful trainees joining our Forest School community since 2018!

Lauren has a background in theatre and filmmaking with children and young adults. She is passionate about the outdoors and creative ways to engage children in nature. Lauren leads the recruitment and management of our facilitators, oversees our Forest School training courses and helps to create exciting new missions.

Gina trained as an actor and has a background in teaching Drama and Music Theatre to children aged 3-18. She has previously worked for The Hive as a facilitator for the summer and half term camps and was keen to become more of a permanent member of the team. As the Logistics Coordinator, Gina makes sure that each mission and the forest school is well-equipped and runs smoothly. She loves nature and encouraging young people to learn from (and have fun!) being in the great outdoors.

Louise is a qualified teacher with over 12 years experience as a Level 3 Forest School Leader. She was most recently Curriculum Leader, Head of Learning and Forest School Coordinator in an outstanding SEN school. She also holds qualifications in Advanced Bushcraft, Wilderness Bushcraft, Youth Mental Health and Yoga Therapy. Her broad knowledge offers a unique perspective of how the forest school ethos can be incorporated into a wide range of settings.

Marlon is a qualified teacher and highly experienced Level 3 Forest School Leader. He also holds an EYTS qualification and has an MA in Education. Marlon trained in Denmark where he was highly influenced by both Steiner Waldorf and the Udeskole movement. These cemented his love for outdoor learning and providing the inspirational approaches that now form the basis of his teaching. He has a wide range of teaching experience in settings both in the UK and abroad and in recent years has been establishing and managing outdoor nurseries. He has a particular interest in how the forest school ethos can be incorporated into more urbanised landscapes through innovative thinking and sustainable models.

The Hive works with a wide range of expert facilitators. Some have been with us since we started. Others joined us more recently. Some work with us across several missions. Others bring specialist skills to specific missions.  Their background is hugely varied - they may be artists, film-makers, teachers, actors, architects, botanists, herbalists, bushcraft experts, forest school practitioners, kite makers, woodworkers, bee keepers, etc. - but a passion for sharing their skills and expertise with children is common to all of them. 

All our facilitators are DBS checked and experienced in running workshops for children. All camps also include several First Aiders, with a mix of outdoor and paediatric first aid experience.