The Wilderness Centre

This is a place to relax and simply reconnect with what matters. An historic Forest of Dean venue, owned and run by a local community business of passionate people, bringing the benefits of nature connection to a wide range of groups. We have a 30 acre estate of wildflower meadows and ancient woodland that is private and secluded. The views are stunning - one way is towards the Cotswolds and the River Severn, the other towards the Malvern Hills. The estate, because of our rewilding programme, has rich biodiversity.

Our private hire focus is large groups, from 30-80, staying in our Georgian manor house and tent village. The house is hostel-style accommodation in 10 bedrooms, sleeping 57. It also has a large common room for up to 70 people and commercial kitchen for self-catered guests. The tent village in the walled garden has 10 bell tents, large marquee, fire pit and pizza oven.

We also operate as an outdoor education centre, with schools, youth groups and corporates. We can therefore offer private guests outdoor activities on site, such as high ropes, archery, air rifles and wildlife discovery. We can also organise canoe trips on the River Wye at Symonds Yat.

We offer both catered and self-catered options for private hire guests. We have our own catering team and we work with local external providers. Equally we're happy to hand over our professional kitchen to you.

Our booking system aims to be straightforward and personal. We understand that group bookings need a bespoke approach and we'll support you to make your event as successful as possible.