What we do

A small number of things we do well.

SHACADEMY helps good projects succeed by combining decades of practical experience with a carefully developed network of trusted specialists.

We don't claim to do everything ourselves. We focus on a small number of areas where our own experience — and the right people from our network — can genuinely add value.

Service 01

Venues & Landowners

Helping landowners, estates and venue operators explore opportunities, develop ideas and turn land or early-stage concepts into working outdoor operations — from feasibility through to live delivery.

Relevant Experience

Buckland Park Lake — founder-led outdoor activity operation built from the water up through The SHAC
Birtley House Estate — founder-led venue and operational development
Belmont School — one of the earliest sites where Skip and The SHAC developed and operated an outdoor activity offer
Stand up paddleboarding lessons, guided river journeys and operational delivery on National Trust waterways and land — beginning on the River Wey and later expanding to the River Mole
Estate diversification and feasibility thinking
Activity venue creation and site planning
Operational design and infrastructure planning
Partner introductions to make development happen

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Service 02

Events, Festivals & Water Safety

Planning, leadership, safety management and operational delivery for events and festivals that need to go right first time — from first concept through to people on start lines. SHACADEMY can help new and existing festivals integrate outdoor activities, water-based programming, woodland activity, wellness, participation sport and nature-based experiences into their event offer.

Relevant Experience

Festival development — integrating outdoor activity, water programming, woodland and wellness experiences into new and existing festivals
GLAGLA UK — cold-water paddle event conceived, founded, built and operated by Skip Innes and his Yukon 1000 paddle partner Craig
Big Swim Series at Buckland Park Lake — conceived by Skip and developed using the operational systems, safety framework, staffing structure, documentation and event infrastructure created through The SHAC
Pips Fit Club — early consultancy work designing and delivering adventure weekends combining wild camping, mountain biking, navigation, paddleboarding, campfire experiences and live woodland music
Reigate Tri Series & Box Hill Tri — swim operations, swim course design, water safety planning and operational delivery support
SUP BIKE RUN — consultancy and practical delivery support, including MTB route planning, safety input and training weekends
Mass participation paddle and swim events
Open water event safety and water safety teams
Risk management, staffing and operational planning
Community, challenge and participation events

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Service 03

Production, Locations & Creative Support

Helping outdoor brands, organisations and productions tell honest stories and shoot safely on location — from finding the right spot to keeping the crew safe in the water.

Relevant Experience

Mustang Survival — product field testing and creative collaboration
Water safety support for film, TV and commercial shoots
Location finding across UK outdoor environments
Location management on active shoots
Photography and stills for outdoor brands
Content creation and storytelling
Film production support and on-location logistics

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Service 04

Leadership, Learning & Workforce Development

Building capable people through real environments, real responsibility and experienced practitioners who understand the places they work in. SHACADEMY's approach to leadership and learning is not classroom-led — it is grounded in operational delivery, mentoring and the day-to-day reality of running outdoor projects.

Relevant Experience

SHACADEMY — the workforce development programme behind the name
Weirwood pilot — early-stage workforce pathway
Leadership development for venue, event and operational teams
Experiential learning programmes built around live projects, not simulations
Mentor pathways for early-career outdoor practitioners
Lifeguard and water-team development through on-the-job training
Workforce pathways for young people entering outdoor careers
Schools and youth development — outdoor learning delivered through The SHAC at Belmont School, Box Hill School, Dunottar School, Eton College, Hurtwood House, Reigate Grammar School and Warlingham School

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Service 05

Qualifications, Frameworks & Safety Systems

Practical support around qualifications, awarding-body frameworks, safety management systems and the operational documentation that holds outdoor delivery together — built from years of running real venues and events, not from a desk.

Relevant Experience

Safety management systems for venues, events and water-based operations
Risk assessment frameworks built from operational experience
Qualifications guidance and awarding-body pathways
Operational documentation, SOPs and emergency procedures
Secret Swimmer reviews — independent venue and customer-journey audits seen through the eyes of an experienced practitioner
Benchmarking against established outdoor venues

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Service 06

Networks, Partnerships & Project Development

SHACADEMY is as much a network as it is a service. Years of working alongside operators, venues, productions, educators, governing bodies and specialists have built a set of relationships you cannot buy. When a project needs the right person in the right place, we usually already know them.

Relevant Experience

Connecting projects with operators, venues and specialists across the UK and beyond
Partnership development for new venues, events and festivals
Trusted relationships across the UK, Europe, Canada, Alaska, Central America, Australia and Thailand
Introductions to governing bodies, awarding organisations and sector specialists
Project development support — turning ideas into deliverable plans
Speaking, workshops and advisory sessions for leadership teams and outdoor organisations

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Service 07

Technology & Operational Systems

Practical technology that supports good operations and capable people — never a replacement for human judgement. Ask Matt, SmartBand and Race Mode were built from inside real venues and real events to solve real operational problems, and they sit alongside experienced practitioners rather than in place of them.

Relevant Experience

Ask Matt — an operational thinking and triage assistant for early-stage project conversations
SmartBand — practical participant and safety technology for venues and events
Race Mode — event-day operational tooling built from live event experience
Operational systems design for venues, events and festivals
Documentation, briefing and incident-management workflows
Technology that supports — not replaces — experienced people on the ground

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See Projects & Experience →

Who we help

Organisations we work with

Landowners and estates
Venues
Event organisers
Production companies
Schools and educators
Outdoor operators
Brands and organisations

Not sure where to start?

Many projects don't begin with a clear brief.

They begin with an idea, a challenge or an opportunity. That's exactly why Ask Matt exists. Ask Matt helps organise thoughts, identify priorities and create a clear starting point for a conversation.

View Projects & Experience