About the Company
Dan began trading as Dan Watson Woodland Products in 1997. Since then the business has grown from the core products of charcoal and hurdles to the full range of services and skills Dan offers today.
Growing up among the fields, hedgerows and more often trees of Buckinghamshire, he forged a deep rooted love, knowledge and respect for the British countryside which continues to this day. Dan completed a degree in Landscape Architecture at Leeds Metropolitan University in 1994 which helped develop his design and graphic skills but a desire to work outdoors drew him back to the woods.
From 1992 Dan had begun to develop his green-woodworking and coppice management skills on courses with highly respected purveyors of the trade, Mike Abbott and the late Bill Hogarth. He also learned traditional hurdlemaking from ‘the old boys’ in Devon who insisted that it must be done right. In 1996 Dan began work for ‘Chick’ Henderson, a charcoal burner at Castle Hills Wood near Tadcaster which required him to live in the woods in an old caravan, giving him the time and materials to develop his range of skills further.
The Princes Youth Business Trust gave Dan the business support he need to get started . He purchased a Series 3 Landrover and his first chainsaw (the latter, curtesy of his Grandfather who recognised a good excuse to spend time in the woods).
The business aims of Dan Watson Woodland Products are not purely profit-motivated. Instead Dan has resolved to undertake the type of work he loves by working in the woods, making products that look great and perform well. Respect for the woodland environment is paramount, as being responsible for a well managed or restored woodland brings deep satisfaction. All of this as well as including his family in his work where possible helps him to balance generating an income with a high quality of life.
Dan lives in Ledston Luck near Leeds, West Yorkshire with his partner Liz Murphy. Liz is a Chartered Landscape Architect, has a business selling Usborne childrens books and helps out with Dan’s work. They have two boys, Billy and Stan. Both sons appear to be fine woodsmen-in-the-making.
Jim Bunting works alongside Dan on many commissions. Jim has an excellent work ethic, uses his brain and will only do a job if it can be done well. He is a skilled hedgelayer and a great all-round worker.
Rob Pickering is the guest tutor for several of the courses. Growing up around the woods and orchards of the North Downs of Kent, he has an extensive knowledge of bushcraft, wild foods, fungi and green wood skills and a passion for fishing. Rob trained with Ray Mears and has spent several years teaching on bushcraft courses in the Lake District. All combine to make him a fascinating and enthusiastic course leader.
