The Future of Kith
I’m writing this in February, on a stormy windy day. The wind is howling, there are flurries of sleet and snow then bursts of bright sunshine, all the fun of a winters day. I’ve been thinking recently that whilst I know what’s going on behind the scenes, all the planning, organising, training and preparation, there’s a lot which you don’t know. I thought it might be time to pull you all into the loop and let you know what the future of Kith looks like.
Last year brought a lot of soul searching about what Kith is, it’s been a fun journey with so many moments where I wanted to bump my head against the oak tree in frustration. I know Kith isn’t easy for people to describe, I do understand; is it a farm? A forest school? A school?! It’s NONE of those. It’s a Homestead. Traditionally a homestead would have been a place with animals to tend whilst living on site, being a guardian of the land. Working with the seasons to maintain, live and earn a living from a home space. I think of Kith like a modern version of a homestead with a few very important twists.
To visit Kith is really an experience, a welcoming back to the land, into a homely space. It feels familiar, comfortable and easy. Your home away from home. With each visit, it becomes a place of solace, a place which becomes engrained and reassuring. It’s not a big space, the small woodland, yurt space and growing garden but each area has it’s own magic which is hard to explain in words. Kith Homestead has become a title which brings a little heart leap of knowing.
Let’s start from the beginning…
Kith began as a sheep field and closed woodland. Since 2019 it’s changed unrecognisably but the vision remains the same. This is why I’m here to fill you in, I’m not sure whether this vision has been shared in more detail than a small social media post?!
In 2019 we opened, running classes for families to explore and connect. They were so very muddy and so very rushed, they were crammed full of exciting activities and a flow which was quite scripted; keeping the group together and moving together. They were lovely but something didn’t feel very organic. The home-ed community was established and got off to a very wild start!
2020 saw of course, the biggest change of all, the national lockdown put a halt to the classes and gatherings. The dream was very much put on hold! Until the summer when slowly slowly I was able to begin welcoming people back for workshops and events, classes and camps. The garden had begun to grow, paths were establishing and the space was more refined.
2021 was a year of immense change. Structures were put up; the willow and hazel dome, the polytunnel got a permanent coat and the shed. I ran more events, classes, gatherings and workshops than I had before and finally the space began to feel something like I’d imagined.
2022…. so, what’s the plan!?
Behind the scenes I’ve been busily working with some brilliant people to bring Kith into the next phase of its existence. This calls for a lot more paperwork but less soul searching.
By September I will (all going well) be offering a full day(s) for home-educated children. Kith will boast a learning community comprising of families who understand the importance of connection and belonging. People who see the value in placed based, self directed, wholesome learning, not prescribed outcomes.
The work has already begun on the new woodland shelter, a space we’ve been so needing to re-do for a while. Better use of the space, with more area to move in and everyone keeping dry. Once these storms have passed (g’bye Storms Dudley and Eunice) we’ll be able to get the new cover on and be able to settle in.
Homestead Camps, events, workshops and classes will be running as usual from spring onward.
Work Weekends will be running again, as will the Garden Club. These are volunteer days, free to attend but guaranteed plenty of connection, tea and cake.
The values and pedagogy of Kith haven’t changed, I still champion the child, their unique experience and individuality. I value play in all it’s beautiful messy glory for adults and children, I value learning through living and experiential learning. I value discovery and wonder, giving children and adults the opportunity, space and time to flow into a rhythm to suit them.
Kith is a learning community. A place for us to learn organically, at our own speed, under our own self-direction.
This little Homestead is the beautiful space which holds us.
