Find out more - Woodcraft Folk

Adventure awaits with Woodcraft Folk

Come and get involved with one of the longest serving and most established youth movements in the world!

Through our weekly youth group nights, campaigns, events, centres and programmes we have been supporting children and young people to take the lead and change their world for a century.

Being a part of Woodcraft Folk offers a chance for our young people and volunteers to develop skills, build confidence, make friends, get outdoors and explore new experiences in a safe space where everyone is welcome.

Joining Woodcraft Folk means being part of a thriving community of passionate and dedicated people. It’s about helping children and young people engage with the world around them and, developing their skills, making friends and most importantly, we have fun!

How to get involved

From attending a local group to volunteering, becoming a regular donor or even staying at one of our centres, there are many ways you can get involved with and support Woodcraft Folk. Find out more below.

Become a regular donor

As a charity, our work relies on kind donations that crucially fund a wide range of our work from being able to organise outdoor residential weekends for disadvantaged children to running campaigns that call for change on issues important to our young members.

Donating regularly by direct debit is one of the best and easiest ways in which you can support our work and help give young people a voice.

Our regular donors are called “Friends of the Folk” because of the amazing support they give to Woodcraft Folk.

Join a local group

Our local groups are the lifeblood of our charity and we are an inclusive organisation that aims to make our groups accessible and open to all young people who want to join. We seek to keep activity costs low, and offer financial support to young people where we can.

We have nearly 200 groups across England, Wales and Scotland for ages 0 to 21 with many of our older members aged 21+ years then staying in the movement to get involved with our volunteer programme.

Every week thousands of volunteers and young people across the UK meet in a wide range of venues to attend our local groups. There, our young members learn about big ideas and topical issues such as the environment and world peace through fun activities like craft, games, camping, and debating.

Volunteer with us

Woodcraft Folk’s work with children and young people is only possible with the support of a diverse range of volunteers. Some work with our young members at our weekly groups, and others provide valuable support behind the scenes or help deliver our UK-wide and international projects.

Volunteering with Woodcraft Folk is a chance to build your own skills and meet like-minded people. Whether you volunteer as part of a one-off event or develop a long-term link with a group in your area, your support will enable young people to have unique and life-enhancing experiences.

Stay at a centre

Woodcraft Folk runs four outdoor centres and campsites located across England, from Yorkshire to Kent. Many of our groups also use Darsham Country Centre and Wimbledon District Woodcraft Folk Park Farm.

Each centre is unique and special in their own way and can offer a tailored stay no matter what you are after. Try out adventurous activities at our Lockerbrook Centre, get close to nature at Cudham, sign up for a back to basics camping experience at Biblins or explore the South Pennines from our Height Gate Centre.

From families to other youth groups we cater for a wide range o bookings and can also offer catering and activities.

Sign up to our enewsletter

Sign up to our mailing list and we’ll keep you up to date with what Woodcraft Folk is doing, upcoming events you can take part in; and other opportunities to support our work and ways to get involved.

Become an affiliate

Are you a trade union or co-operative organisation? Would you like to work with the UK’s co-operative youth movement? Woodcraft Folk’s partners include the Co-op Group, the National Education Union and GMB East Midlands. Woodcraft Folk would love to affiliate with you, as we are always looking to expand our engagement with like-minded organisations. Woodcraft Folk teaches co-operative values through our programmes and residentials, and runs national campaigns on Children’s Rights, climate action and peer educational programmes to help young people to live a life free from violence. If these causes are important to your members we would love to hear from you – we can offer volunteering opportunities across England, Scotland and Wales. We are currently working with unions to run workshops for young people at our international camp this summer.

Please email fundraising@woodcraft.org.uk for more information.