New Forest Young Carers visit Cameron’s Cottage

23 May 2025

We were delighted to sponsor the New Forest Young Carers to enjoy a day in nature at Cameron’s Cottage.

They spent the day engaged in numerous outdoor activities, namely collecting branches and building dens, various team building activities and whittling tent pegs and mallets (which they used to make their dens).  All activities were  brilliantly led by the RSPB.

It’s always a pleasure to see groups enjoy the beautiful peaceful surroundings at Cameron’s Cottage and we are particularly pleased to work with so many Young Carer Organisations.  Young Carers look after someone in their family with a long-term health problem or disability.  It can often be isolating being a young carer and New Forest Young Carers Organisation has a supportive team who offers them support to ensure they are well looked after.  

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Fabulous den built, can you see them hiding inside?

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New Year at Cameron’s Cottage

21 February 2025

Hello again!

I’m Laura, I work for the RSPB and I run Cameron’s Cottage. I started working here last year and in the Autumn decided to write a seasonal update of all of my goings-on. This is edition 2, Winter!

The Cottage Chronicles will be a seasonal update, written by me, of what we’ve been up to at Cameron’s Cottage. I’ll try to include the highlights, some stories from recent groups and my general musings of what the last few months have been like.

Although sunny outside today as I write this, it has been a cold, windy and rainy few months since I wrote the last blog. Cameron’s Cottage doesn’t host many groups of young people over the Winter, so it’s been strange to see the Cottage so quiet after a full-on summer! But that doesn’t mean I haven’t been busy. With less of my time spent on planning bespoke activities for groups and delivering sessions, I can bring my focus to improving current systems and devising new plans for an improved 2025 season. In addition to many other things, I have worked on finding new volunteers to help out at Cameron’s Cottage, started planning for a sensory trail around the woodlands of Cameron’s Cottage and begun research for an interpretation wall inside the Cottage to display information around how the renewable energy powers the cottage.

My other important task this season has been to create and implement a new marketing strategy, to encourage new and repeat bookings to the cottage. This has been in the form of creating a new promotional leaflet, contacting local group leaders and organisations, visiting local careers and volunteer fairs and working with other RSPB colleagues internally for a range of media and press opportunities. Keep an eye out for a Cameron’s Cottage social media page, hopefully coming soon!

I have worked on finding new volunteers to help out at Cameron’s Cottage, started planning for a sensory trail around the woodlands and begun research for an interpretation wall

And the hard work is starting to pay off, new bookings and return visits are trickling in as the calendar starts filling up for March onwards.

A definite highlight for me over these winter months was an unexpected snow flurry, turning Cameron’s Cottage into a scene from a Christmas Card! I was totally unprepared, having left my coat behind, but being caught out in the snow was a small price to pay for a magical memory and some fabulous photos.

Now the days are getting longer, and the first signs of Spring are appearing, I look ahead to the first of this year’s groups visiting Cameron’s Cottage and making lasting memories in nature.

If you, or anyone you know might be interested in volunteering with us or booking a stay at Cameron’s Cottage, do use the links below for more information.

Volunteering: https://bit.ly/cameronscottagevolunteering

Booking a stay: https://bit.ly/cameronscottage

Until next time,

Laura

Laura enjoying the snow at Cameron's Cottage

Cameron's Cottage Residential from Leaside Trust

13 December 2024

Please read this excellent blog from Leaside Trust in Hackney after their visit in October.

It’s always such a pleasure to fund groups of young people from London so that they can experience a residential trip to the countryside and Cameron’s Cottage in the RSPB reserve, is a wonderful place for them to spend some time in nature.

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Leaside Returns for another New Forest Adventure

New Beginnings at Cameron’s Cottage

19 November 2024

Hello everyone!

For those who don’t know me, I’m Laura, I work for the RSPB and I run Cameron’s Cottage. I started working here in June and it’s been a busy few months since then!

The Cottage Chronicles will be a seasonal update, written by me, of what we’ve been up to at Cameron’s Cottage. I’ll try to include the highlights, some stories from recent groups and my general musings of what the last few months have been like.

It’s looking very autumnal outside as I write this; and I love using nature to reflect on the recent times gone by. Summer is a busy time for all, Cameron’s Cottage included, but Autumn sees a quieter pace of life, a sense that nature is winding down, ready for Winter. Like the trees losing the last of their leaves, the Cottage has seen the last of its residential visitors for the year. But that doesn’t mean there’s not work to be done! Like busy squirrels, the Cameron’s Cottage Team are gearing up to use this quieter season to plant some metaphorical acorns - planning and preparing for next year.

Since I started at the end of June there have been 24 visits to Cameron’s Cottage, some part-week or full-week residentials and some day visits. That’s more than one group per week! Like I say, it’s been busy!

We’ve made natural shelters, whittled mallets, discovered wildlife, explored nature by night, brainstormed conservation issues, forest-bathed, partook in teambuilding challenges, cooked on the open fire, written nature poems, designed nature art and so much more.

It’s hard to pick one highlight, my role is incredibly rewarding – I love seeing young people coming out of their shell through the medium of nature. We teach them about conservation and wildlife, but what they take away is so much more than that, it’s a confidence in who they are, a strengthening of team building skills, an appreciation of conservation work and a new-found understanding of how nature improves our wellbeing. I find, for urban groups, this is most prominent. For some individuals this has been their first time in a woodland.

“As an inner-city youth organisation, a key goal is to enable young people to get out into more natural environments. It’s fantastic to be ‘off-grid’ and for the young people to learn so many new skills in a largely outdoor environment. Many of our group have never been in a forest type environment so it was helpful they learnt more about the area and how to respect the environment.”

A stay at Cameron’s Cottage is so much more than a visit to a nature reserve, it’s a time of firsts and of new beginnings for so many – myself included! It’s a blessing to watch so many young people take part in these ‘nature firsts’. Whether that’s their first time in a woodland or developing a desire to pursue a conservation career, this is how I know Cameron’s Cottage is quietly changing lives.

To sum up just how much fun we’ve had, let’s hear one young person’s take-away:

“One of the best weekends of my summer.”

Let’s hope there’s many more ‘best weekends ever’ to come!

Until next time,

Laura

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Cameron's Cottage in Autumn

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Laura investigating a hive of bees by torchlight

New Members for the RSPB Management Team

07 October 2024

We are delighted to welcome to new members to the RSPB's management team, Visitor Engagement Officer, Linda Ronald and Learning Officer, Laura Pringle.

We will let them introduce themselves:

Linda: Hi, my name’s Linda, and I’m the Visitor Engagement Officer at Cameron’s Cottage. My background is mostly in support work and welfare within the education system, from primary schools to sixth form colleges, and I began volunteering with the RSPB as a residential volunteer for five months at the RSPB Old Moor reserve in South Yorkshire at the start of this year. What a fantastic change of direction! I’ve always loved being out in nature, and have learned so much more this year through the RSPB. The more I learn, the more fascinated I am by the wildlife and habitats around us, and the more passionate I feel about protecting and promoting our natural world. I’m loving being part of the Cameron’s Cottage team and welcoming guests to this unique and peaceful space. It’s a privilege to lead sessions where young people can enjoy being active, exploring nature and experiencing the beauty and calm of the forest.

Laura: I am excited to have joined the team as Learning Officer for Cameron’s Cottage in June this year. I have been with the RSPB for 5 years, firstly as a volunteer then in as an employee working in a couple of different visitor facing roles since early 2020. I have spent the last 3 and a half years working for the RSPB in Dorset, with a large part of my time spent at Arne Nature Reserve. I enjoyed leading guided walks and family activities and doing all the behind the scenes planning this needed, but my favourite part of my role was definitely organising and delivering sessions to school groups visiting the reserve. Creating a space where children and young people could learn and begin to care for nature was the highlight of my role. Which is why I’m so excited to now be working at Cameron’s Cottage. This team has created an amazing facility and I can’t wait to continue to build on this work and grow Cameron’s Cottage and its ability to capture the hearts and minds of thousands of young people! I look forward to working with many of you and want to thank those of you I’ve already met for your warm welcome.

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Linda Ronald

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Laura Pringe