About Us
Our Ethos
At ShelterCraft, our Natural Building courses are built on an ethos of sustainable, resilient practises whilst fostering community in the process. We believe that imparting knowledge and practical skills offers opportunities for both individual and collective empowerment, and encourages people to make positive change in the world.
Our Background
The ShelterCraft team met in 2017 while running roundhouse builds on the Shift Bristol Practical Sustainability Course, and have been building together ever since. We enjoyed our annual Shift builds so much, we decided to run more!
We are a team of experienced builders, teachers, organisers and facilitators with decades of practical experience in the field between us. We are passionate about making the learning experience on our courses a fulfilling and inspiring one. You can find out more about the team here.
The Building
At ShelterCraft, we are dedicated to working towards a more ecologically and socially sustainable building paradigm. This is reflected in our courses – from the sourcing of our materials, to the skills we teach and the way we teach them.
Our residential courses are based on the design of a simple timber framed roundhouse with reciprocal roof. Elements of cob, straw and stone are taught in varying degrees as parts of wall systems
We source our materials locally and sustainably wherever possible, and build structures that are part and parcel of their natural environments, rather than imposed onto them.
Our students learn natural building skills in an environment that reflects our values of social and environmental care. To read more about what you’ll learn on our courses please visit our course pages and if you have further questions, don’t hesitate to get in touch!
The Community
For us, building community is just as important as building structures. During our courses we make sure there is plenty of space for the group to get to know each other and socialise both within, and outside, building hours. We consider our courses to be an immersion in a way of being as much as a way of building.
We believe that the bonds forged between people are a crucial part of creating lasting change. Being part of the student group is an opportunity to meet like minded people and make meaningful personal connections, as well as being part of a community who learn from and support each other.
We endeavour to connect our students with wider sustainability networks, and are happy to suggest opportunities for further learning and work when they arise!
The Food
Meal times are our favourite time of the day on the build. We believe that the food is as important as the building. In a world where we are already feeling the effects of climate change, it is imperative that we support our ecosystem by eating food that is farmed to work for nature, not against it. We provide plant-based organic lunches and dinners on our overnight courses cooked by people that are passionate about cooking and where the food has come from.
We offer a skill swap for people who are interested in cooking on our courses. If you’re interested in applying for a cooking role, please follow this link to look at what’s available.
Our Clients
ShelterCraft is a mobile collective which moves between sites. Each build we run provides a beautiful, practical space for our clients. By joining one of our builds, you not only learn valuable skills but are part of creating a space for the client that will endure for years to come.
We work with clients who are interested in the development of sustainable practises, and building low-impact structures. Most of our previous clients have been community projects.
If you want to know more about becoming a roundhouse client, you can send us a message here.
Equality and Access
Having worked in building for many years, we know that it is a sector that isn’t even as close to being as accessible as it ought to be. We are dedicated to offering learning opportunities to everyone, and challenging the common narratives of who can build and who “can’t”.
We are living in a vastly unequal society, and as a business we want to be part of countering inequalities rather than contributing to them. We aim to provide a learning space that welcomes people from all backgrounds, identities and levels of experience.
If you are interested in joining us for a course, and have questions about access and inclusion, you can get in touch with us directly here.
As part of our access policy, we are offering concessionary places and instalment payments to those who need them. If you want to know more about concessionary places, you can find further information here.
About Shift Bristol
The ShelterCraft team met through our involvement with Shift Bristol and their wonderful Practical Sustainability Course. We owe a huge debt to Shift Bristol for bringing us together as a team, and enabling us to do the work we love.
Shift Bristol provides courses in practical sustainability and permaculture, and does fantastic work – bringing people together around a shared love of the natural world. If you want to know more about Shift Bristol and the courses they provide, you can visit their website.
The ShelterCraft team will be running the annual Practical Sustainability Course roundhouse builds, so if you sign up, we’ll see you there!