Having worked in a number of different industries, I found my calling to be a primary school teacher in 2015. After completing my PGCE, NQT and ITT years, I worked in a selection of different primary schools across the south west. It was apparent in all of them that there was little or no scope to reap the benefits of working with wood - through no fault of their own. Having spent my childhood creating things using wood, metal, stone (and any other base material I could get my hands on) I struggled to see why children weren't being introduced to these at primary school. Internet searches revealed the change in National Curriculum, budget cuts and a lack of knowledge as the primary culprits. So I set up Woodwork for Schools to bridge the gap and with the vision that I could build resilience using simple woodworking techniques.

Knowing the demands placed on teachers and fully understanding how much is expected of them, I thought that if I could set up a company that alleviates the pressure and workload of teachers for a day, the classroom teacher could work on building relationships without having to focus on the learning.

Seeing the lack of resources when it came to woodwork, I thought about the possibility of bringing the resources to the school. Woodwork For Schools was born.

Sam Lifton

BA Hons, PGCE

Fully qualified, former teacher

DBS certified