Meet the Team
Helen McGloughlin
Designated Safeguarding Lead and School/Student Liaison
After learning to ride horses from the age of 8 and having many throughout her childhood, Helen took a break from horses to focus on her career and family. Helen has three children and her youngest, Ruby, also has a keen interest in horses and animals and volunteers at The Ark during the holidays.
Helen has worked within the education system for 25 years supporting children and families, while still having a keen passion for horses and animals in her spare time.
Throughout her career, Helen has worked along side many animal and outdoor projects in conjunction with schools, and has seen first hand the positive impacts this can have not just on her own wellbeing, but also the students she was supporting.
Seeing those positive changes in those students gave Helen the drive to make this her full time career, with the help of Kane who she met while working on one of those projects.
Kane Wilson
Project and Livestock Manager
The great outdoors has always played a large part in Kanes life. From the simple pleasures of growing vegetables to hiking mountain trails.
Kane graduated from university with a degree in physics and loved the challenge of trying to understand the world through the mathematical and theoretical modelling of the universe. He has now turned those analytical skills into trying to understand how we can live more harmoniously with nature and the land. Using the simple but powerful skills of observation, he hopes to investigate alternative and more natural methods of keeping pastures in condition. Each of our animals have been chosen to do a specific job on the land, from weed control to providing manure for fertiliser.
Ruby
This is Ruby, a keen horse rider and has been riding since 2015. Ruby helps out at The Ark during the holidays and on weekends. When Ruby isn’t hanging out with all the animals, she loves art, reading, cooking and loves to bake buns.
Ruby has 3 horses of her own: Rosie who we use at The Ark; Gordon who is a young resuce pony; and her newest addition Daisie who is only 7 months old and is also at The Ark.
Together we now have an ever growing smallholding, with sheep, horses, goats, quail, guinea pigs, and an ever expanding flock of chickens.
Since The Ark opened we have welcomed many students who have become part of the project, helping us to build and grow into a space for both them and the local community.
We are fully safeguarding and first aid trained. All staff and volunteers have full DBS checks.
We have a real passion for working with animals. All our livestock have been handled by both children and adults and are very much part of our family.