Team-building days, wellbeing retreats for 10 to 14 people and small weddings for 20 to 60 guests can be organized here, in woodland with cabins and yurts to sleep in. The venue is Forest Garden Shovelstrode, a six-acre eco-retreat on Shovelstrode Lane, just outside East Grinstead in Sussex, on the edge of Ashdown Forest.
Seminars and company events
Forest Garden sells corporate wellness and team-building days and residential retreats that combine time outdoors, practical activities and meeting space. Programs can lean toward skill building, toward wellbeing, or mix both. On site, groups can try yoga, Reiki, forest bathing, green woodworking, wild pottery, an introduction to beekeeping, tree planting, a drumming circle or a traditional English tea party, then finish in a wood-fired sauna with a cold plunge. Activities arranged nearby include bike treks, sailing, rock climbing, orienteering, clay pigeon shooting, golf and trout fishing. Retreats are sized for 10 to 14 guests plus up to four facilitators, which suits a leadership team, a project group or a coaching cohort.
Weddings and receptions
The site is aimed at small, informal weddings of 20 to 60 guests. A marquee, a tipi or a stretch tent goes up beside the wildlife pond for the meal, the speeches and the evening. Catering, lighting, flowers and photography can be arranged around the couple's plans. The venue's pages do not mention a license for civil ceremonies, so the legal ceremony may have to take place elsewhere.
Rooms and capacities
There is no conventional meeting room. The main workspace is the woodland workshop, an open-air covered area of about 75 square meters with a fire pit, used for group sessions, talks, movement and creative work. The Savannah yurt holds 10 to 11 people for indoor sessions, and a 9-meter Lotus Bell Tent takes 12 to 14. A lawn is used for outdoor yoga, and the barbecue area has a party tent of 7 by 4 meters.
Accommodation
Guests sleep in handcrafted, off-grid log cabins and traditional yurts, each equipped for cooking and sleeping. Groups of six can book individual units, and up to 14 people can stay on a twin-share basis. Toilets, showers and a washing-up area sit 50 to 150 meters from the units, which is part of the camping-style experience and worth telling participants in advance.
Catering
Cabins and yurts are self-catering. The Forest Garden cafe on site can provide some or all meals instead, and the wood-fired pizza oven and the barbecue area work well for a group dinner outdoors.
History and setting
The six acres are regenerating ancient woodland around a wildlife pond, with direct access to the walking trails of Ashdown Forest. The setting suits groups that want time away from screens rather than a hotel ballroom.
Getting there
The site lies roughly halfway between London and the south coast, close to East Grinstead and Forest Row, and is easy to reach for groups coming from London or Brighton.
