Wilding Day for Coaches - Summer
Join us at the world famous Knepp rewilding estate, for a rejuvenating and immersive retreat crafted exclusively for coaches.
Date and time
Location
Knepp Wilding Kitchen & Shop
Worthing Road Dial Post RH13 8NQ United KingdomRefund Policy
Agenda
9:30 AM - 10:00 AM
Arrival
10:00 AM - 10:30 AM
Welcome, tea & coffee
10:30 AM - 11:00 AM
Community agreements
11:00 AM - 12:30 PM
Connecting with Knepp
12:30 PM - 1:30 PM
Lunch
1:30 PM - 4:00 PM
Coaching in partnership with Nature
4:00 PM - 5:00 PM
Tea, coffee, cake and connection
5:00 PM - 6:00 PM
Tour of Knepp Market Garden (Special option)
6:30 PM - 8:00 PM
Chef's dinner (Special option)
About this event
- Event lasts 7 hours
Join us at the world famous Knepp rewilding estate, for a rejuvenating and immersive retreat crafted exclusively for coaches.
A day to remember
Set amidst a breathtakingly beautiful landscape, this experience invites you to step away from the everyday this summer, reconnect with your inner self, forge meaningful connections with others, and deepen your bond with the natural world.
Guiding your experience are Karen Liebenguth, a coach and mindfulness expert, and James Farrell, a coach and environmentalist. Together, they will create a unique program inspired by the wildlife, landscapes, and seasonal flavors of this remarkable setting.
Our seasonal theme
This is our summer retreat. The theme for this season is 'Replenish and Rewild', and we will be capturing summer’s vibrancy and abundant life throughout our day together.
What to Expect
Join us for a day that nourishes the soul and rekindles our connection to the earth, our self, our work, and each other.
This is an opportunity to:
- Time and space for yourself, far from screens and daily busyness
- Reflect on what truly matters in your life and work
- Deepen your personal connection with Nature
- Enriching mindfulness and nature-connection practices
- Experience the power and promise of rewilding, seeing land and wildlife restored firsthand
- Make new connections with like-minded people
This is not:
- A business workshop (though you’ll have the chance to network with fellow coaches)!
- A spa day (although there may be an opportunity for a refreshing lake swim)!
- A day of slides and screens (we’ll be outdoors, fully engaged in the natural surroundings)
About our venue
Knepp offers an inspiring model for a new approach to land management—one that embraces the power of natural processes over strict targets and micro-management. A beacon of hope in a world facing biodiversity loss, Knepp demonstrates the immense possibilities for Nature’s recovery and regeneration.
For our Wilding Day, we’ll have a peaceful, private space, situated close to pathways winding through Knepp’s breathtaking estate. Surrounded by ancient oaks, diverse shrubland, gentle waterways, and a thriving community of wildlife—including the 'Knepp Big Five', white storks, fallow deer, longhorn cattle, Tamworth pigs, and Exmoor ponies—we’ll immerse ourselves in this rejuvenating environment.
In the summer you may also see or hear nightingale and turtle dove, and catch a glimpse of a rare purple emperor butterfly.
Throughout the day, enjoy tea and coffee, as well as a delicious organic ‘no-plough’ lunch, sourced directly from Knepp’s own market garden.
To top it all off - a very special evening!
For a truly unique experience at the end of the day, opt to join an exclusive tour of the market garden, followed by a two-course Chef's dinner at the Knepp Wilding Kitchen. Here, the chef will share the farm-to-plate story behind each dish, giving us time in our private dining room to savour and connect as the day winds down.
This is a bespoke offer for our group - places are limited, and are offered to you at a special rate by Knepp. We believe this is a fabulous way to top off a very special day and hope you will join us.
About your guides
James Farrell
James is a professional coach and chartered environmentalist, whose practice is grounded in leadership and in Nature. He has worked in the environment sector for over 30 years, in roles including executive leadership, business management, operations, partnerships and policy.
At The Natural Coaching Company, James coaches leaders through major transitions. He specialises in working with his clients in partnership with Nature, in a process he calls ‘Nature Based Coaching’. He is also a qualified mental health coach, and accredited ADHD coach.
At The Human Nature Partnership, James helps public and private sector organisations become more nature-connected, integrating Nature into their business, employee and community outcomes.
James is also a TEDx speaker, writer, and author of ‘Being in Nature, 20 practices to help you flourish in a busy world’. James is also a TEDx speaker, writer, and author of ‘Being in Nature, 20 practices to help you flourish in a busy world’. He is leader of a new course for coaches in 'Nature Based Coaching Skills', with live online sessions beginning April 2025.
www.naturalcoachingcompany.com
www.humannaturepartnership.com
Karen Liebenguth
Karen coaches ethical leaders — people who care about the environment and other people — helping them to grow their confidence and make their life more meaningful. Her speciality is coaching clients outdoors, walking side by side through green spaces.
Karen brings a mindful, creative and highly personable approach to her work with corporate, public and charitable businesses across London, helping to develop a compassionate and effective culture, online and in-person.
Karen trained in transpersonal coaching, eco-psychology, mindfulness & compassion practices and restorative facilitation for repairing relationships.
Karen is German and has lived in London for 23 years. Spending time in nature has been an integral part of her life as well as practising mindfulness and meditation. Karen’s work extends to teaching at the London Buddhist Centre and to regularly co-leading retreats.
Our charity partner
We are proud to be partnering with Knepp Wildland Foundation - a charity which is working to galvanise nature recovery across Sussex.
A share of profits from our retreats will go towards the Foundation's work to
- recover the landscapes from the Weald to the Waves of the Sussex coast, restoring rivers and greenspaces in partnership with landowners
- share the knowledge and evidence generated from rewilding at Knepp with a wide audience
- investing in multidisciplinary training, research and employment opportunities for 16-25 year olds.
Event publicity photographs by James Farrell, Steer Photographic, Matt Ellery, Christoph Moning & Knepp Wildland Foundation
Frequently asked questions
The closest train stations are: Billingshurst (8.3 miles) Horsham (8.9 miles) Christ’s Hospital (9 miles) There is a taxi rank outside Horsham Station. Buses are not recommended. It may be possible to arrange lifts to train stations.
We provide a car park for walkers off Worthing Road (A24 access road), Dial Post, RH13 8NQ. This is next to the Wilding Kitchen and shop. Car sharing is encouraged. We kindly suggest a donation of £5 per vehicle. There are four 7kw Pod Point charging stations and 6 accessible parking spaces.
Unforunately our summer workshop venue is in an old barn, with step access only. If this is acceptable, there is disabled access to a toilet, and some of the paths have hard surfaces. We are hoping that the autumn and winter events will be accessible to wheelchair users.
There are 16 miles of walks at Knepp within the rewilding project, with five tree viewing-platforms, close to public footpaths, offering panoramas of the surrounding countryside, and a bird-hide overlooking Knepp Lake. We will be keeping to public footpaths at all times.
Knepp can be muddy, and the great British weather unpredictable! We will be outdoors for the much of the day, whatever the weather (unless it is deemed unsafe conditions). So please be prepared - wellies are handy! There is good advice on the Knepp website here: https://knepp.co.uk/plan-ahead/
You can stay overnight at Knepp. Options include camping and even a treehouse. Book well in advance. Find out more at https://knepp.co.uk/stay/ There are various B&Bs and private accomodation in the surrounding villages, or you might consider Brighton, Worthing or Horsham as nearby options.
There is a shop, restaurant and seasonal 'snack wagon' Airstream at the Knepp Wilding Kitchen, next to our event venue.
Organized by
Our events are focused on helping people grow in a way which is good for them, and good for the planet.
We develop skills in working in partnership with nature, through science and evidence-based practices as well as the art and craft of coaching and leadership.