Meet our TSP Team

Derek brings a wealth of experience (and a fair bit of legend status) to Wild Embers. His career spans statutory, voluntary, and independent sectors, including NHS and Social Care management consultancy, leading prison mental health for the Department of Health and Social Care, and senior commissioning roles. Most recently, he retired as Head of Mental Health and Social Health Commissioning for Devon CCG, where he oversaw the entire mental health allocation for both children and adults. ​ An expert in commissioning services and bridging the gap between public and VCSE sectors, Derek also happens to be a trained outdoor education and leadership mentor, because he believes learning doesn’t always happen in a classroom. Beyond Wild Embers, he’s the director of Resilient Lives, chair of Dartmoor Skylark Radio CIC, a personal trainer, and a facilitator for The Incredible Years parenting programme. Around here, he’s known as “Grandpa Justice,” “Baldylocks,” and our very own SEND superhero. There’s truly no one quite like Derek, and we wouldn’t have it any other way

Anna, a Forest School teacher for seven years, brings a deep love of nature, creativity, and alternative education to Wild Embers. Backed by over 15 years of experience in education, she now works with a range of outdoor education teams across South Devon, championing learning that happens beyond the classroom walls. Alongside her work with Wild Embers, Anna runs her own education platform, Wylde Hearth, collaborates closely with Blackberry Barn, and can often be found leading workshops at events across the country. Her background also includes working alongside wild food author and forager Miles Irving, teaching foraging skills and wild food preparation rooted in connection to land and season. A maker as well as an educator, Anna creates beautiful jewellery inspired by nature and indigenous crafts. With a rich blend of Forest School knowledge, bushcraft skills, and creative flair, she brings curiosity, warmth, and a little wild magic to everything she does.

Cameron brings a deeply thoughtful, playful, and story-rich approach to his work at Wild Embers, creating spaces where children feel safe, accepted, and truly at home, even if just for a short while. He believes in the power of play, imagination, laughter, and shared wondering, alongside the quiet strength of listening and presence. Originally studying Physical Geography (BSc), Cameron’s love of nature grew into years of learning practical bushcraft, ancestral skills, and outdoor living. A deeper calling soon followed: making these experiences accessible to young people who may find them harder to reach. For the past seven years, Cameron has worked extensively with children and young people with SEN, SEMH, and additional needs across specialist schools, alternative provisions, home education settings, holiday clubs, bushcraft camps, and forest schools throughout South Devon. Growing up exploring Devon’s streams and woodlands, Cameron believes that access to the outdoors is every child’s birthright, and a powerful environment for emotional processing and healing. He trusts that when given time, space, and the right support, each child will show us what they need and reveal their own unique genius. Alongside his hands-on experience, Cameron holds a Level 2 Certificate in Counselling Skills, a Foundation Certificate in Outdoor Education Leadership, and is a qualified Paddlesport Leader. His current passions include storytelling, folk songs, animal tracking, canoeing, and Dartmoor tales shared around the campfire, balanced always with an appreciation for silence, and what can be gently spoken into it. As Cameron puts it, listening to a young person is a lot like following an animal track: noticing the smallest signs, understanding where they’ve been, and helping them choose a path that leads somewhere good.

Veronique's warmth, compassion, and a deeply empowering approach lends itself effortlessly to Wild Embers. A fully qualified Solution Focused Hypnotherapist and Clinical Psychotherapist, Veronique supports people to break through the challenges holding them back, whether that’s anxiety, sleep difficulties, phobias, or other barriers—helping them regain a sense of control and move towards the life they want to live. Helping others has always been at the heart of Veronique’s work. Her background includes a wide range of care-focused roles, from supporting children with additional needs to working in family therapy, developmental play, and as a family support worker. She even co-wrote a children’s book to help families prepare for the arrival of a disabled sibling. With a long-standing fascination with psychology and what helps people feel happy and well, Veronique’s journey eventually led her to train in Solution Focused Family Therapy after moving to the UK. While she loved counselling, she was drawn to a more uplifting, future-focused approach, and found it in solution focused hypnotherapy. For Veronique, this blend felt like the perfect fit, and she has never looked back.

Yasmin brings a wonderfully child-led, relationship-based approach to the Wild Embers team, rooted in the belief that children thrive when they feel safe, connected, trusted and free to be themselves. She has worked across mainstream education, alternative provision, home education and SEND settings, supporting children with a wide range of needs, including SEND, SEMH, autism and school avoidance. A qualified upper secondary and A-Level teacher who grew up and trained in Sweden, Yasmin’s own journey as a home-educating mum of three has deepened her passion for self-directed, curiosity-led learning. While living in Belize, she founded Sattva Learning Co-op, a community outdoor learning group set amongst the jungle, where children and adults learn alongside one another through nature, play, exploration, creativity and connection. At the heart of Yasmin’s work is a desire to create spaces where children have real agency and feel seen, heard, respected and accepted exactly as they are. She believes that when we give children the freedom to follow their curiosity, a little bit of magic can happen – and where better to do that than outdoors, where there is space to explore, connect and simply be? Yasmin is equally passionate about the power of community and creating a sense of belonging for the adults around a child too, recognising how important it is for parents and families to feel seen, supported and connected. We're excited to have Yasmin as part of the TSP team.

Simon is a firm believer that a good pizza can bring people together! The legend that is Simon is one super grounded and good-humoured guy, and has a natural rapport with children and young people. With over 15 years of experience working with men, boys and young people across homelessness, recovery, education and community development, it's not hard to see why he's slotted into the team perfectly. As a session worker on our Transitional Support Programme, Simon works alongside children and young people with SEND and experiences of trauma, focusing on building the trust, safety and connection they need to feel comfortable, take part and move forward at their own pace. A qualified and EMCC-accredited coach and mentor, Simon takes a trauma-informed, relationship-based approach to his work. He has particular experience creating environments where people who may struggle to engage with more formal support can find their way in through meaningful activity, genuine relationships and a strong sense of psychological safety. Simon is also the founder of Resilient Lives CIC, a social enterprise supporting men and boys with wellbeing, healthy masculinity and healthy relationships. His own lived experience of mental health and neurodiversity, alongside many years of professional practice and men’s group facilitation, has shaped an approach that values authenticity over performance and meeting people where they actually are. And when he’s not coaching, mentoring or supporting young people, Simon has another important role: 'Pizza Pirate'. A firm believer that a good pizza can bring people together, he loves getting the young people involved – and, given half a chance, showing off his pizza-spinning skills. He claims to be exceptionally good. We’ll let the young people be the judges!

Meet Emma, she's curious, yet calm and has a deep connection with nature that she applies to her approach at Wild Embers. She believes in the powerful role nature can play in supporting wellbeing – creating space to slow down, regulate, explore and simply be! She's also a Forest Therapy Guide and a qualified Lowland Walk Leader which we think is pretty cool! Trust, listening, presence and sensitivity to individual needs sit at the heart of her work, helping young people feel safe enough to connect with themselves, others and the world around them. With an undergraduate background in Psychology, Emma developed a particular passion for ecopsychology – exploring the relationship between human wellbeing and the natural world, and how reconnecting with nature can become part of the healing process. Professionally, she has supported students with SEND in school environments, alternative provision and through one-to-one tutoring, alongside experience working within the environmental sector. Emma loves finding different ways for young people to express themselves, whether through movement, play, song, exploration or simply noticing what’s happening around them. As a walk leader, she combines a strong focus on safety with opportunities for environmental learning, curiosity and adventure. Unsurprisingly, Emma is happiest outdoors. You’ll often find her hiking across Dartmoor or along the coast, wild swimming in rivers and the sea, camping, cycling, foraging or getting to know the plants, birds, animals and tiny creatures we share our surroundings with. And unlike many of us, that includes spiders – which Emma genuinely loves!

Gareth brings a wealth of knowledge, warmth and enthusiasm to Wild Embers. With an incredible 35 years of experience working with children and young people, His career has taken him from adventure play to the primary school classroom, and from headship to working as a safeguarding leader and advisor, keeping children’s wellbeing and education firmly at the heart of his work. Gareth is passionate about creating opportunities for every child to succeed, recognising that success looks different for everyone. With such a broad background in education and safeguarding, he understands just how important it is for children to feel safe, supported, listened to and given the confidence to discover what they can do - something that fits rather nicely with life at Wild Embers! Away from work, the outdoors is very much the place to be. Add a bicycle, time with family and his dog Lilly into the mix and he's one happy chappy! With a love of adventure, learning and getting outside, Gareth feels right at home amongst the mud, campfires and general Wild Embers madness...sorry, wilderness!!

Chris is an outdoor leader who believes wholeheartedly in the power of nature to build confidence, nurture wellbeing, and create moments of pure joy. A qualified Hill & Moorland Leader and trained in Outdoor First Aid, he brings years of experience supporting children and young people to thrive in outdoor environments. Alongside his work with Wild Embers, Chris leads Duke of Edinburgh expeditions across the country, guides walks on Dartmoor, and runs archery sessions, always with the same aim: to get people outdoors, having fun, and discovering what they’re capable of. Whether navigating open moorland or introducing someone to archery for the first time, Chris brings enthusiasm, calm leadership, and a genuine love of the outdoors to everything he does.

Meet Lisette; Wild Embers’ very own Energiser Bunny! With over 30 years of experience working with disadvantaged communities, she's spent much of her career bringing people together, building confidence and making a difference through sport, play and a whole lot of enthusiasm! After a decade of teaching fitness, Lisette swapped some of her gym time for gardening gloves, discovering a love for horticulture, sustainability and all things green and growing. She's a firm believer that getting outdoors, getting stuck in and having a good laugh along the way can work wonders. Never one to sit still for long, Lisette loves a good game (the more running around, the better!), and you'll often hear her singing or making music whenever the opportunity arises. With boundless energy, a love of nature and a knack for getting everyone involved, she's right at home amongst the mud, mischief and magic of Wild Embers. Just don't expect her to sit quietly around the campfire for too long!