Stewart Atkinson
Our staff is headed up by Stewart who loves sharing the outdoors with others. He has been working professionally in the outdoor sector for almost 17 years. As the founder and director, he brings to Outdoor Classrooms.scot a wealth of experience both practically and academically from a variety of different roles and settings. He has delivered, facilitated and developed in and alongside schools, local authorities, independent schools, third sector organisations, charities and many more….
He has various high level leadership, guiding, coaching and instructional qualifications in:
- Hillwalking
- Sailing/Powerboating
- Canoeing/Kayaking
- Snowboarding
- Mountain Biking
- Climbing
- Orienteering
In addition to the practical knowledge of many adventurous activities, Stewart has a Masters Degree in Outdoor Education from The Moray House School of Education and Sport – The University of Edinburgh.
He is also a volunteer lifeboat helm with The RNLI and panel member of the Scottish Adventure Activities Forum.
As part of his MSc his final dissertation took the form of an applied research project whereby he embedded himself in a primary school and helped them to develop a whole-school cultural shift towards curricular outdoor learning. This individualised approach to cultural change and recognition of the importance of “place” was the spark that grew into OutdoorClassrooms.scot !
Murphy
Murphy is almost as passionate about being outside as Stewart! He is currently part of our background staff and his main tasks include: tennis ball acquisition, meet and greet expert and full-time crumb patrol. When he grows up he wants to be a qualified therapy dog and visit schools with Stewart to help in whatever way he can! He brings to OutdoorClassroom.scot the enthusiasm that only a Black Lab can and also supports Stewart by giving him a reason to go outside every day!
Craig Burry
Craig is a qualified Chemistry teacher and holds an MSc Outdoor Environmental & Sustainability Education from the University of Edinburgh. His thesis investigated the potential of Microadventures as a method of Outdoor Education for Sustainability.
Craig brings a wealth of experience to our staff at OutdoorClassrooms. He is our ‘STEM in the outdoors’ expert and is passionate about Learning for Sustainability. He is a Mountain Leader, Snowboard, Telemark ski and Paddlesports instructor and when not working in schools for us or as a Science teacher he works with a number of groups providing training and supervision for expeditions in the mountain environment. https://www.linkedin.com/in/craiglburry/
Rachel Egan
Rachel is a passionate outdoor educator who has a first-class BSc in Environmental Science and Outdoor Education from the University of Stirling. She has also recently completed a Master’s in Outdoor Education from the Moray House School of Education and Sport, University of Edinburgh.
Rachel is deeply committed to advancing equity in the outdoors. Her academic research has included exploration into barriers that women may encounter while working in the outdoors, focusing on menstruation, clothing, and cultural sexism.
In addition to her academic achievements, Rachel holds the Mountain Leader qualification, has undertaken the British Canoeing Paddlesport Safety and Rescue Course and holds an Outdoor First Aid qualification. When she isn’t hiking munros or camping, you can probably find her on the rugby pitch as she has played the sport for 10 years!
Now, as part of the OutdoorClassrooms.Scot team, Rachel is excited to bring her expertise to Edinburgh primary schools, helping pupils and teachers in their own outdoor learning journey!