My experience

Since then I have climbed in the beautiful countryside, mountains and sea cliffs of Wales, England, Spain, France, Morocco, Austria and Sardinia.  I have extensive experience in both traditional climbing and sport climbing, and teaching rope skills is what I enjoy the most. I went on to gain my climbing wall instructor qualification in 2020, and outdoor rock climbing instructor soon after.  I qualified as climbing wall development instructor in 2024, so that I could teach intermediate skills like lead climbing and belaying. 

What I love most is getting out into nature with epic, soul-enriching views, spending time with like-minded, easy-going climbing community, and meditatively moving forward and problem solving on big climbing adventures. 

Future hopes for 'Climbing Therapy'

I am a third-year student with the Open University, studying Psychology and Counselling, with the goal of delivering professional climbing therapy sessions in the coming years. 

I am interested in learning from you as much as you will learn from me, and in that 2-way connection I believe greater, trusting bonds are created. There are many parallels in climbing to the problems that we face in life. It offers us the chance to learn resilience and trust in ourselves and our body. For me, its 'active meditation' - when its difficult to turn the noise off in the mind whilst sitting down - climbing gives you the opportunity to meditate and pratice mindfulness whilst moving. 

Community 

I have met some of my greatest friends through climbing. I have found safety and solace in some of my darkest times supported by a community of kind hearted, open-minded and wonderfully weird climbers. If you’re looking for community, then look no further. You will find friends here.

Frequently asked questions

What if I don’t have the right outdoor clothing or shoes for these activities?

Get in touch! With my passion to provide access for all, I strive to break down any potential barriers

to the outdoors that might be holding people back. I may be able to provide clothing and shoes that you need, so please get in touch and let me know your size so I can endeavour to source them in plenty of time before the start of your session.

I’m terrified of heights! Maybe climbing is not for me?

You are exactly the person I want to introduce to climbing!!!  This is not all about getting to the top, this is about making mighty personal gains in small steps.

I don’t mind if you don’t get any further than 3 feet off the ground – today, you made progress by

showing up and trying. That is a victory - and you got out into fresh air in a

beautiful environment, enjoying getting into nature and trying your best. 

There’s always tomorrow to  try and ascend one more foot.

Little by little, together in time, we will conquer heights, both physically and mentally.

What qualifications, insurances and policies do you have to ensure my safety?

I am a qualified Rock Climbing Instructor, Climbing Wall Development Instructor and a Mountain

Leader Trainee, a member of the Mountain Training Association, the British Mountaineering Council and accredited by Mountain Training. I hold an up to date 16 hours Outdoor First Aid certificate. I have previously been accredited as a  Wilderness First Responder, and I attend regular BMC Mental Health Awareness workshops. 

It is important for me to take part in Continued Professional Development. 

Vertical Victories has Personal Liability Insurance and is fully insured to deliver all of the above courses and services.  All activities have risk assessments in place which are regularly updated and developed. 

I have a strict ‘near-miss’ recording policy in place to ensure constant reflection and improvement.

Do you run sessions for Under 18’s?

I regularly work with under 18’s at my local climbing wall under their directive, and hold full DBS

disclosures with them. 

However as an independent business, if I were to do a session with a person under the age of 18 then they would always need to be accompanied by a parent, as I do not hold the

required AALA license needed to take children unsupervised. 

Parents can be involved in the climbing and skills if they like, or just accompany the child to the crag or wall.

I do not offer the Skills courses to under 18’s.

What is your cancellation policy?

If you want to cancel your booking you must inform Vertical Victories in writing as soon as possible. Please see the Terms & Conditions page for more details (can be found in the footer).

What if the weather is bad?

The weather will not affect the indoor courses.  However high winds, rains and storms will likely affect the running of the outdoor sessions. I will be in touch as soon as possible if the weather is not suitable for the session to go ahead. I may need to alter our planned location or reschedule your experience, often we can have the option of spending some of the day indoors doing some skills or coaching instead.

I regret that I do not offer refunds due to circumstances beyond my control, but instead I can offer a

gift card to the value of your booking.

If for any reason the weather does take a turn for the worse during your experience, I must safely

guide you back to a safe place/meeting point.

How do I book?

Please get in touch with me via the enquiries form on the Contact page. You can also join the

WhatsApp community where there are regular updates on upcoming events that can be booked on to.

Let me know in the Message section what dates will work for you. This does not guarantee a booked space quite yet.

Once I have received your request, I will check my availability and also take into consideration

whether the indoor or outdoor environments will be suitable for those requested dates.

I will then liaise with you via email or Whatsapp to work out a date that works for all of us.