THE CAMPFIRE TEAM

We’re proud to have an exceptional team of Campfire Instructors who bring every camp to life with energy, expertise, and a genuine love for what they do.

Our team is made up of individuals from all walks of life; teachers, outdoor educators, youth workers, artists, and adventurers. What brings them together is a shared passion for helping young people grow through outdoor experiences that are safe, inclusive, and unforgettable.

Every instructor brings real-world outdoor knowledge to the field, whether it’s fire lighting, shelter building, safe tool use, or cooking over open flames. Their hands-on skills are backed by formal training, DBS checks, and years of experience working with children and young people.

But more than that, they bring warmth, humour, and a natural ability to connect. It’s this mix of practical know-how and positive energy that makes our camps feel so special—and keeps students engaged, challenged, and excited to learn.

Here are a few of our Senior Instructors:

Two people outdoors with mud on their faces and clothes, wearing Campfire Wild Adventures shirts, smiling at the camera.
Man drinking water in a lush green forest with sunlight streaming through trees.
Man in an orange jacket and blue hoodie smiling outdoors, with leaves and greenery in the background. He wears a black cap with a Camperfire logo, and has leaves and mud on his face and around his eyes.
A man standing outdoors in a grassy area with trees in the background, wearing a green vest with patches, holding a small fire starter tool, and smiling.

Rob

Russ

Ryan

Gab & Alice

Group of 12 people outdoors sitting and standing on a fallen tree in a forested area, smiling for a photo.

What Makes Our Team Different

Beyond their outdoor expertise, our instructors are selected for their ability to connect, adapt, and inspire. We invest in every team member through ongoing in-house training, peer learning, and skill-sharing—raising the bar across the board.

Some instructors also bring specialist knowledge in areas like primitive tool-making, wild food foraging, leatherwork, and traditional crafts—adding depth and richness to our camps when the opportunity arises.

 About the Founders

Sometimes, you find an idea which combines all of your experience, passion and enthusiasm in to one amazing challenge - and that’s exactly how we feel about Campfire. We grew up making dens in the forest and running barefoot in the sand dunes. We know the value of connecting with the great outdoors, and we cherish the memories of adventures as children and more recently too.

A smiling person in winter gear, including a red jacket, black gloves, and blue ski goggles, is outdoors in snowy weather.

I was fortunate to spend my childhood living in the New Forest, which was a giant area to explore and play. As soon as I was old enough, I joined the Scout movement and stayed for as long as I could. In fact, I even went back as an adult leader to help with my local troop! It’s a real privilege to now be a Scout Adventurer, helping the Scouts to promote their messages and equipping young people with skills for life.

It’s this foundation which not only gave me my passion for the outdoors, but also the skills to see it as a wonderful resource for fun, learning and growth. With a Scout expedition team, I started mountaineering, which became a huge part of my life. It took me to climbing the highest mountain on every continent, and becoming the youngest person ever to complete the Seven Summits, culminating on the top of Mount Everest.

Once it was time to find a “real job”, I set up an adventure travel company, and ultimately oversaw the Middle East region for one of the largest school travel providers, running safe and successful expeditions for thousands of young people.

For the past 5 years, we’ve grown Campfire Wild Adventures into a trusted provider of outdoor residential experiences, welcoming over 5,000 students to our camps. Our programmes are designed to develop resilience, teamwork and independence, using the outdoors as a powerful environment for personal growth. We work closely with schools to create meaningful experiences that stay with students long after the campfire goes out.

Rhys Jones

A woman trail running in a mountainous landscape with snow-capped peaks in the background. She is wearing a red jacket, black shorts, sunglasses, and a blue cap, and carrying a backpack.

Laura Jones

I was lucky to grow up a stone’s throw away from the coast, in the Gower Peninsula of South Wales. Living so close to the beach meant that it became a huge part of my life, spending most of my spare time training and competing with our local lifeguard club. Later in life, I started working in the travel industry, originally organising much of the detail behind successful school trips for thousands of students. 

I began climbing with Rhys, and we successfully climbed the highest mountain in the Arctic Circle, during an 18 day self-supported ski mountaineering expedition. More recently, I’ve started running extreme marathons and ultra marathons, and have completed the World’s highest marathon on Mount Everest, and the World’s coldest marathon in the Arctic.

I’m also honoured to be a Scout Adventurer; of a group of explorers, trail breakers and people pushing the limits. I’m a huge advocate of Scouting, and in fact their work has in many ways inspired us to begin this journey.

As a parent, I know how important it is to give young people the chance to experience the outdoors in a way that’s safe, well-managed and genuinely fun. Campfire Wild Adventures was created to do just that—giving students the space to challenge themselves, build new friendships, and create lasting memories in the natural world.