Leadership Residential and Day Courses

Westcountry Initiative Learning and Development (WILD)

Our residential courses offer a dynamic and accelerated approach to developing leadership and team-building skills through practical, hands-on challenges. Each program is tailored to align seamlessly with your organisation’s unique requirements and corporate culture, ensuring maximum relevance and impact.

We recently developed a day course to match a client’s needs with no overnight element.

Originally hosted at the Dartmoor Training Centre in the heart of the National Park, the ‘WILD’ weekends began as a cornerstone of the Royal Academy of Engineering’s Advanced Award Scheme in 1995. Since then, thousands of ‘Wildsters’ have graduated, many of whom now play pivotal roles leading the engineering world.

Building on this success, the concept has evolved to include additional locations and flexible accommodation options. While the original dormitory-style setup was ideal for fostering collaboration among undergraduates, we now offer premium alternatives tailored to senior managers and executives, ensuring a comfortable and inspiring environment for every participant.

We offer a fully comprehensive experience, providing

everything you need—from rucksacks and waterproofs

to top-tier catering, ensuring a seamless and

stress-free program for your team.

 

“Everyone should go on a WILD course” 

The WILD Team, a group of seasoned leadership coaches, mentors, and outdoor education experts, is passionate about cultivating essential leadership qualities like confidence, resilience, positivity, and courage. We believe there’s no better way to accelerate these skills than through immersive, high-impact activities set against the stunning and untamed backdrop of one of the UK’s most iconic National Parks.

“I just wanted to email to say I really enjoyed the weekend. I felt like it was a real personal achievement that I was able to do all of the activities. It was also great getting to meet so many different student engineers from different disciplines. I would also like to put the opinion forward that maybe you should think of starting WILD 4 and 5! It’s just so much fun!”     Mike G

Wild Programme

  • Wild 1

    The first weekend of the ‘Wild’ experience focuses on basic theories behind the concepts of teamwork and leadership and to apply those theories in a variety of challenging situations. You will look at leadership styles and be in an environment where you can start to develop an awareness of your own strengths and worth within a team

    The main part of the weekend will be your participation in a team event whereby you will be set a mixture of challenges to overcome.

    We will look at the difference between leadership & management. What makes a good leader, a good team, and stages of development of a team, and what makes a good team leader.

  • Wild 2

    Progresses your development with a focus on managing and coaching and delivering results through others.

    The ‘Wild’ team firmly believe that leadership is about behaviour and their relationship with others.

    Team work, the art of building a team, and recognising your role within a team are essential factors in your personal development and in-relation to your leadership progression.

    You will be challenged with a number of practical tasks and the weekend culminates with an overnight camp with a difference, where your knowledge, skills and instincts will be tested in in the ’wild’.

    “Friendship, enhanced leadership, communication and great memories” Ed T

  • Wild 3

    The third element of the WILD programme focuses on;

    Selling your ideas and vision

    Negotiation technique and practice

    How to handle difficult conversations

    Using the drivers of motivation to create a HP team

    Performance management (the right way)

    “The activities were brilliant, loved the dragons den evening task and the day challenge was hard work but brought everything wonderfully together”

    Dan K

Contact Us

Feedback on Wild

  • I had a really enjoyable weekend. The staff were brilliant and the course was very effective in exploring leadership as a whole, thankyou.

    Eleanor W

  • I would like to say thank you for the opportunity. The experience I have gained from this I KNOW will become invaluable in my later career. Not only have I gained EXTREMELY useful expereience I have made friends had a great time through the process. I am sure I will apply for WILD2 next year. Thanks again.

    Tom C

  • The course was amazing, it was so nice to meet new people and the leaders where really helpful and inspirational. I'm so glad I applied for it and thank you to the Royal Academy for providing it. I found it really worthwhile and feel I'll be able to use what I learnt in any group situation that I'll come across, engineering related and otherwise.

    Hannah B

  • Royal Academy of Engineering (‘By Royal Charter’)

    Engineering Leadership Advanced Award Scheme

    A programme to provide support and motivation to some of the most exceptional engineering undergraduates in UK universities

    The objective of these Awards is to allow ambitious, inspiring engineering undergraduates, those who want to become leadership role models for the next generation of engineers, to undertake an accelerated personal development programme”