rurning point staff memeber proudly showing her oak leaf clay tiles on a circular wooden board at team building day in leominster

turning point mug with turning point staff doing pottery team building in leominsterLast week we took our mobile pottery studio, The Flying Potter,  to Leominster. We were hired by Turning Point Herefordshire to share the immeasurable benefits of working with clay with their staff as part of their annual team day celebrations.

team photo of staff at turning point hereford

Turning Point are a UK social enterprise providing support with drug and alcohol, mental health, learning disability and autism, employment, and sexual health.

mobile phone taking a photo of freshly made pottery tiles as part of pottery team building day in herefordshire

We worked with x40 participants, each person hand modelling a clay tile based upon their individual roles with-in the organisation. Once all the tiles have been fired, glazed and mounted on boards, the work will be installed at Turning Point’s offices in Hereford – forming a gigantic oak tree panel and a permanent reminder of the power of collaboration!

oak leaf shaped clay tiles made by turning point and eastnor pottery

“just wanted to say a big thank you for last week. The team loved the pottery and everyone seemed to get stuck in, which was great. Really looking forward to seeing the final piece.” Turning-Point UK
If you would like the Flying Potter to visit you, anywhere in the UK…or if you and your team fancy an away day in rural Herefordshire, please take a look at our Away Day and Team Building pages.
rurning point staff memeber proudly showing her oak leaf clay tiles on a circular wooden board at team building day in leominsterrurning point staff memeber proudly showing her oak leaf clay tiles on a circular wooden board at team building day in leominster
group of work colleagues do a pottery team building activity at eastnor pottery herefordshire

We’ve facilitated some pretty epic team building events in the past, often working with hundreds of participants in a day in venues all over the country. Check out our Flying Potter activities.

Things are a little different in the pandemic and when we can welcome businesses and organisations to the Pottery, the groups may be small, but the quality is HUGE!!!

Smaller participant numbers make for an intimate and meaningful experience with participants reporting comradery and improved communication when they return to the workplace.

childrens hands in wet squidgy clay at cheltenham science festival 2019

childrens hands in wet squidgy clay at cheltenham science festival 2019Under normal circumstances (remember them!?) we’d have been up to our eyeballs in clay at the brilliant Maker Shack as part of Cheltenham Science Festival.

We’ve been involved in the Makershack since its inauguration in 2017. Last year we encouraged visitors to make a press molded brick, using real brick clay from Coleford Brick and Tile Company based in the Forest of Dean.

The bricks were assembled into a giant castle and we worked with nearly 10,000 people over the x6 days of the festival! – that’s a shed load of bricks! The sheer volume of visitors meant we had to build a fresh structure each day, deconstructing the building at the close and re-claiming the material for the next morning.

Athough the Makershack was primarily aimed at Primary school aged students – (and man, there must have been very few Gloucestershire schools who didn’t visit the show), on Friday night grown-ups got to play with the technology in a special after-hours session between 8pm and 10pm.

Although it’s full-on, we love the #makershack and look forward to sharing the scientific benefits of engaging with clay, with festival visitors in 2021.

Pottery team building event at Eastnor Pottery Herefordshire

Staff from the School of Biological Sciences, Bristol University descended on the Pottery in August, (all 18 of them) for a spot of pottery team building.

Participants built a collaborative jug, took turns on eight potter’s wheels and made some intricate pottery models before enjoying a buffet lunch in The Potting Tent Marquee.

If you would like to reward your staff or our planning a unique works away day for your colleagues, please take a look at our page dedicated to team-building.

Clay tiles made at eastnor pottery by nfu west midlands as a team building exerciseNo less than five counties, agricultural speaking were represented at Eastnor Pottery on Monday.

The West Midlands region of The National Farmers Union took turns on the potter’s wheel and made a fantastic coat of arms depicting agricultural aspects of Herefordshire, Worcestershire, Warwickshire, Shropshire and Staffordshire.

Once the crest has been fired, glazed and mounted it will hang in the organisation’s office in Telford, serving as a permanent and creative reminder of their team day at Eastnor Pottery.

National Farmers Union take part in pottery teambuilding day in Herefordshire