ABOUT US
Our Values
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Inclusivity
This is at the heart of our work. We welcome anyone and everyone who identifies as a woman or another marginalised gender (inc trans, non-binary and intersex folk). We strive to make all of our activities as accessible as possible for anyone who identifies as having a disability, visible or otherwise. We recognise the many different types of discrimination experienced by women and gender diverse people and strive to operate with intersectionality as a key value.
02
Sustainability
The construction industry makes a huge impact on our climate. Within capitalist systems timber is an disrespected and uncared for resource - at In Our Hands we resist and refuse to be part of this narrative. We reclaim and re-use 100% construction waste for all of our workshops, and for greenwood classes use only storm-fell timber. We teach people to work with reclaimed wood so nothing goes to waste, and we work with wood recycling charities and signpost our community to their services.
03
Community
In Our Hands has always been a community driven project. Everything from our funding bids, classes offered, workshop decoration, and project aspirations are shaped by an active community of volunteers. We regularly consult them via a shared phone chat, in person at Community Building Days, as well as at formal community meetings. We also continuously consult with service users at supported sessions to make sure we’re thinking about and serving those in our wider network.
How it all started
In Our Hands was started by Georjie in January 2022, though dreamt up years earlier whilst building a wooden ‘tiny house’ called Bluebell. The project was born from a result of countless conversations had with women and AFAB people in Georjie’s life who were too scared of using tools or learning the skills in spaces that didn’t represent them well. A simple idea: with a little dose of fundamentals and big boost of confidence everyone is cable of basic carpentry and DIY, which improves self-reliance, independence and gender dynamics in the home.
What we bring
We are a passionate team committed to delivering an inclusive and empowering building space to those historically excluded from it. With lived experiences of misogyny in building environments, we bring insight and empathy from our own encounters to the project. We recognise women and gender marginalised people face many different forms of discrimination and aspire to promote intersectionality in our goal. We are made up of a core team, and a wider group of volunteers and community members who are helping us guide the project.
CORE TEAM
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Georjie Adams
Director, Project Manager & Facilitator
Georjie founded In Our Hands after witnessing and experiencing the need for safe and empowering spaces for women and gender diverse people to learn everyday DIY and building skills. Georjie facilitates and teaches woodwork at our workshop space, and manages the project development.
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Ali Peel
Director, Facilitator
Ali helps facilitate our community building days, manages our finances and oversees our green wellbeing space at our workshop. Outside of IOH she is an experienced market gardener and produces all the veg for our community lunches!
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Elbie Owens
Director, Facilitator
Elbie is a transmasc queer craftsperson and horticulturist working throughout Sussex. They joined the team as our spoon carving tutor and share the joy of heritage craft and greenwood carving. Elbie is passionate about spoon carving and the empowerment it brings, and they are amazing at guiding people through the day with thoughtful, considerate and relaxed facilitation.
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Flic
Workshop assistant and material production
Flic joined our team early 2023 and has been a crucial part of our project ever since. As well as putting her growing woodwork skills to use all over the workshop, she processes and prepares all the timber for our workshops - whatever needs to be done, Flic does it with unrivalled energy, hardwork and commitment to IOH!
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Nat Staples & Rae Woods
Facilitators
Nat teaches our DIY workshop on putting up shelves and using electric drills. She is also a full-time tradesperson working in and around Brighton with her own business, NTS Property Maintenance! Rae is a non-binary woodworker specialising in small mobile dwellings. They teach our joinery course! Having trained in furniture making and timber framing, they are comitted to making these skills more accessible through facilitating community builds and tailored learning environments.
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Laura Morgan
Director
Laura came to our project first as a service user - her beaming enthusiasm helped champion us through the difficult stages of finding funding and growing as a project. She has so much passion for IOH and joined us as a director to help steer our direction! Outside of IOH Laura is a fantastic visual and multi-disciplinary artist!
ACCESSIBILITY
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Yes, our space is wheelchair accessible however a few things to note:
Our workshop has a gently sloped ramp up into the doorway which can accomodate the width of a wheelchair. So far wheelchair users have had no problem using this. Leading out to the garden is a small lip where the concrete drops down to some woodchip (hard ground underneath) - again so far no problems using this, but if there are any issues with the lip we can fix easily for you on the day with some plywood.
Please read on about the toilet below this.
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The main toilet currently in the yard made another organisation has unfortunately not been built wheelchair accessibIe - it has 4 steps up. Inside we have added a mobility rail to allow getting down to and off the toilet easier. Due to being close to a water source we unfortunately have not been able to build a composting toilet ourselves. However, we have a strong commitment to providing a temporary wheelchair accessible portaloo for any wheelchair users - they aren’t luxurious but are clean and tidy to use!
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Absobloodylutely! All ages, all abilities, and all body types. We have wheelchair designed benches and vices for use if you need to sit for your workshop. We cannot guarantee you won't struggle at times, and some things may be a bit trickier than for able bodied folks, but there is zero reason you cannot achieve the same outcomes and we regularly facilitate many diverse body and brain types here who all leave the workshop empowered! Please do consider your own abilities and needs, and relay it to staff. We cannot fully hold and facilitate the space for you without your honesty and self-management. There is no FOMO or rush at the workshop, we treat everyone and their projects as individuals and you will not need to compare your work to others. Asking for more help is never a problem and actually the joy of a shared workshop environment!
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We sadly recognise and acknowledge that the reality of our barn being in a rural space, whilst beautiful and calming, can be a source of anxiety and uncertainty for some. We strive to do everything in our power to welcome and support you in your visit to us and inclusivity and wellbeing is absolutely crucial to us. We’re a fully lgbtq+ team who feel passionate about taking up space in the countryside, though we know that battle is harder for some more than others and those of us who are white are aided with that privilege. If you’re concerned in any way please let us know as we may be able to support you to feel safer at the space. In the instance that our location is a total barrier to your attending, we are also very open to running a remote workshop in a space that feels better for you in your town or city - there’s a limit to what we can run but let’s have a conversation if that feels important!