Be bold, be you

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Chobham

Fearless Girls Club launches in Chobham and Sunninghill this month empowering girls to be bold and live fearlessly as founders Elle & Kate tell us

Fearless Girls Club is a non-profit organisation founded by two Chobham mums last year with the goal of providing an innovative solution to a significant social problem.

The club offers a supportive and nurturing environment for girls aged 8 to 11 to boost their confidence, self-esteem and resilience so they can go on to thrive in an increasingly complex modern world. Elle Wilks and Kate Cooper’s mission is for every girl to be bold and live fearlessly.

They explain: “We want this to be the club we always wished we could have joined as young girls! Built on personalised support our girls can’t easily access anywhere else and encouraging meaningful peer relationships, we’re helping our girls to build a toolkit of critical thinking, curiosity, resilience and confidence to carry with them throughout their lives.

“We know that girls can struggle socially, emotionally, and academically in the later years of primary school (Years 4 to 6; age 8 to 11) in direct correlation with well documented plummeting levels of self-esteem, confidence and resilience, and a huge increase in poor mental health.”

• The Good Child Report (2021) identified that there are significant differences in wellbeing between boys and girls, with girls more likely to report lower wellbeing across a range of factors, including confidence and resilience.
• The report also identified that by the age of 13, girls are significantly less satisfied with their appearance, body and self-confidence than boys in England.
• A Mighty Girl research published in February 2024 shows girls’ confidence drops by 30% between the ages of 8 and 14.
• The Dove Global Girls Beauty and Confidence Report (2017) showed only 39% of girls in the UK reported high levels of self-esteem.
• A Girlguiding study in 2023 reported that girls’ happiness is at a 15-year low.

“Fearless Girls Club focuses on boosting confidence, resilience, and self-esteem through its innovative Confidence Quests – fun, research-based activities that help girls embrace their boldness and develop leadership and communication skills. 

“Fearless Girls Club also incorporates an innovative mentoring programme where older girls can step into leadership roles as Quest Leaders and Junior Quest Leaders, gaining valuable experience while inspiring younger girls. You can find out more about these volunteer leadership positions for girls aged 12 to 18 on the club website.” 

For more information or to join the club, please visit fearlessgirlsclub.co.uk or email [email protected]

Fearless Girls Club is opening its first two weekly after-school clubs in Chobham and Sunninghill.  

• Wednesdays (6pm-7.30pm) at St Lawrence Church Hall, Chobham
• Thursdays (5pm-6.30pm) at St Michael’s Church Hall, Sunninghill


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Chobham’s ‘King of Chelsea’ Mark Gregory

Ellie Cox

Chobham

Mark Gregory returns to RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2023 with a “Plot To Plate” haven for Savills

“King of Chelsea”, Mark Gregory, is set to return to the RHS highlight for 2023 with a “plot to plate” garden for Savills. 

The Savills Garden will be his 108th Chelsea show garden and marks his return to design in his 34th consecutive year. The Savills Garden is set within the grounds of a country hotel. Revealing an intimate walled seasonal potager, with the show’s first ever working kitchen at its heart.

“The garden will be a feast both for the eyes and for the palette”

Mark said: “I am incredibly proud to have designed this garden for Savills.  I think it will speak to a lot of people and has, at its core, elements that are very close to my heart. A beautiful space, created considerately, that brings people together to enjoy fantastic food and great times.  The garden will be a feast both for the eyes and for the palette, demonstrating that productive gardens can be both elegant and delightful.”

Designed to demonstrate an “edimental” planting theme, combining edibles and ornamental planting, the garden provides inspiration for a “plot-to-plate” alfresco dining experience.  Ingredients will be foraged from the surrounding living larder and used to prepare delicious meals for the guests to enjoy in the adjoining dining area. Cementing the relationship between grower, guests and chef.

Visitors are invited to immerse themselves in this tranquil retreat, resting beneath a mature tree, taking time to reconnect with nature, enjoying the formal planting, whilst anticipating the taste experience to come.  The aim of the space is to help change the way we think about our gardens, the way we eat and source our food. And to share ideas and knowledge that can be introduced into even the smallest of plots.

This evocative and aromatic garden will capture the sights, smells and tastes of a productive garden while also delivering a beautiful, elegant space and a haven for wildlife.

Following the show, in keeping with its sustainability commitment, Savills will work with the Shaw Trust, a national charity running employability programmes and complementary services for people with complex needs, to relocate the garden. It will be replanted at Meadow View House in Nottinghamshire for their residents to enjoy.

Additionally, Savills will work with existing charity partner Rethink Food, an organisation focused on educating school children on food security, to share learnings from the garden.

Richard Rees, Savills MD, said: “We are excited to be returning to Chelsea with a garden design that touches on so many themes that are core to the future success of our industry and gives us the opportunity to bring to life our commitment to promoting sustainable development. It’s impossible to overstate the importance of nature in our lived environment. Whether in an urban or rural setting, and Mark Gregory, five times Chelsea Gold Medal winner, has designed a garden that will be both stunning to the eye and packed full of learnings for us all.

“I look forward to seeing the garden relocated post show in conjunction with the Shaw Trust. An organisation committed to challenging inequality and breaking down barriers to enable social mobility. We also welcome the opportunity to further develop our employee engagement with Rethink Food, and to exploring with them issues around food production and food miles, sustainability and the learning and sharing of knowledge.”

For more information about Landform Consultants please visit landformconsultants.co.uk

For more information about Savills please visit Savills.co.uk