What's On DEV
What's on At Birkhill House...
We offer a fully funded programme of opportunities to get involved with our animals, crafting workshops and gardens. Scroll further down this page for more information.
Additionally, we offer creative workshops for children and adults as well as a bespoke Crafting Directory. We also offer wellbeing sessions incorporating animal assisted activities and creative pursuits. Click on one of the four button below for more information.
Adult Workshops
Children's Workshops
Crafting Directory
Animal Experiences
Fully Funded Weekly Workshops
Open Crafting Sessions for Adults
Free, no booking necessary - just drop in!
Tuesday open session: 6-8pm
These sessions are hosted weekly.
Friday open session: 10am-12noon
These sessions are hosted weekly.
The open sessions are for members of our community who would like to bring along a crafting project to work on, share a laugh & a cuppa and generally soak up the creative vibe here At Birkhill House. We encourage attendees to breathe life back into neglected projects or take the plunge and start something new.
Please note: Sessions will resume after the 2025 holiday break w/b 12th January 2026. There will be a break in February as well (Tuesday 17th & Friday 20th).
Makers Group
Free, block booking necessary (see below)
Tuesdays, Wednesdays & Thursdays, 10am-12:30pm
The Makers Group was created in response to a need identified for opportunities to learn new skills whilst also helping to support our not-for-profit community interest company.
What we noticed about some visiting groups throughout 2022 and 2023 is that the social aspect of creating around the table and the skills developed during that process seem almost to outshine the finished products themselves. Visitors were keen to soak up the relaxed atmosphere, share experiences and learn together. And everyone was delighted when they felt that work they had done here could also somehow benefit our project by generating revenue that will go back into supporting the programme here.
So we have introduced five-six-week blocks in which participants can learn two or three new techniques/skills together, create items that will end up on the shop shelves here and hopefully make new connections with like-minded folk. Tea/coffee and lunch are included and there is also a small bursary to help with travel expenses.
The next blocks run from:
Tuesday 13th January - 10th February 2026 - FULLY BOOKED
Wednesdays 14th January - 11th February 2026
Thursdays 15th January - 12th February 2026
Email directorabh@outlook.com to book into a session
Garden Project
Free, block booking necessary (see below)
Please note: No sessions throughout the winter; back up and running again in Spring 2026
Wednesdays 1:30-4pm
If you have ever been curious about our natural dye garden and some of the other horticultural opportunities here at Birkhill then this is the group for you!
Even in the depths of winter, there are plenty of garden jobs to sort. Harvest inventory and decisions about what to use and what to save, lists of seeds to catalogue and buy, schedules for preparing beds and the polytunnel, planting schematics, etc all need some thinking time. And there are also some outdoor tidying jobs that need doing too, like cleaning up the polytunnel and cutting back scraggly plants.
Find out more about our gardens here.
Come share your expertise or learn from our staff, volunteers and other Garden Project participants. Booking necessary. Contact Sunshine Stewart to book: sunshineabh@outlook.com
Art & Animal Sessions
Fridays 3-5pm
Come join us At Birkhill House for a block of sessions of creativity and animal care. Sessions last two hours and will start with some arty fun and then move on to meeting some of the resident animals that help make Birkhill so special. Snack included. Fully funded through the National Lottery. Each block will will offer different creative activities so there will be no duplication for young people wishing to sign up for multiple blocks.
These sessions are made possible by a generous grant from the National Lottery Community Fund.
Next blocks:
Block 15: 16th January - 13th February 2026
Block 16: 27th February - 27th March 2026
FREE, ages 11+, 10 spaces max, booking necessary
Email directorabh@outlook.com to book a block.
