Fiona Gilfillan from Tranent in East Lothian is the second student on our month-long intermediate course.

A keen woodworking hobbyist, Fiona fist came to the Chippendale school two years ago on one of our one-week introductory courses.

A self-employed business change management consultant, Fiona is taking a short sabbatical from her consultancy work to take her woodworking skills to the next level.

She has her own workshop near her home and has made furniture for friends and family using, for example, old scaffolding boards.

During her month at the school, Fiona will be making an elm and ash console table and learning some restoration skills.

As part of the flexible intermediate course, she has brought in an old table to restore – and hopes in future to buy more old pieces that she can bring back to life.

“The school’s intermediate course is ideal for me,” she says.  “The professional course is too much of a commitment, but a month is the ideal period of time to further my woodworking skills.”

Details of our intermediate course will be on our website very soon, with students able to specify, subject to demand, when they would like to start.

The course is taught by Alan McGovern, who has over 30 years of experience, and will only have a maximum of two students at a time – making it a real one-to-one learning experience.