SOMO award for Best small business
Rockleigh Ltd is redefining arboriculture training by proving that specialist careers and
accredited qualifications can be built from the ground up. Its flagship programme takes
complete novices and develops them into fully qualified tree surgeons, intentionally removing
traditional barriers to professional entry and career progression.
The programme, which won the King’s Award for Enterprise (2024) and a Princess Royal Training Award (2023)
for promoting social mobility, focuses on young adults with little to no tree-surgery experience, many of whom are
neurodivergent and require workplace adaptations often unavailable within conventional recruitment pathways.
Rockleigh Ltd ensures that lack of prior credentials or personal networks never prevents access to training or employment,
with funding support embedded from day one so that financial limitations do not restrict participation.
Since October 2024, four new staff members have enrolled, gaining real-world technical training while earning the living
wage. A dedicated office team provides compliance, pastoral care, and operational support, including digital tools for risk
assessments and secure systems to store qualifications and credentials.
Rockleigh Ltd partners with schools, charities, forest schools, and nature-based enterprise programmes for children aged
8–11 from less advantaged backgrounds, co-designing outdoors skills, environmental awareness, and careers exposure.
This all runs alongside the training scheme and business,
