Thank you so much Rachel, I am delighted with the mosaic you produced with the children and I know they are too. We really enjoyed having you as part of our school - you fitted in seamlessly and your interaction with the children was brilliant.

- Deputy Head, Charlton Kings Junior School

Thank you! Fabulous morning. Excellent tuition, made to feel part of the group - even though I came alone. Perfect start to Christmas. Rachel you are the best. x

- Sam (Christmas Class participant)

Brilliant Rachel - thank you! I loved it. So well thought out and a lovely teacher.

- Valerie (Christmas Workshop participant)

It is rare to find practitioners who achieve the fine balance between allowing the children to have control of a project and yet at the same time are able to direct the project in just the right way. Rachel was superb, the children's ideas were all valued and the project was guided by those ideas. The artwork which was produced reflected all of the pupils original thoughts for the spooky mural and they were involved in all stages of its creation. The area which has been developed is now being used as an outdoor literacy area and the writing which has been produced from the visual stimulus of the mural has been amazing. Thank you

- Art Coordinator, Longleven Junior School

Rachel is an amazing person to work with, she lights up the room with her energy and ideas. Rachel recently oversaw a fantastic event, to commemorate the Place - ‘Giants Chair’ at Beechenhurst - setting up several activities and engaging people of every age to take part in making art from the charcoal acquired from ‘The Place’. She is a wonderful ambassador for culture and art in the Forest of Dean.

- Project Manager, The Forest of Dean Sculpture Trust

Rachel has worked successfully on many projects at St John's including welcome mosaics at the front entrance, an olive tree mosaic around the kitchen servery area and a reflective mirror for our quiet garden. Rachel has also designed the Welcome logo, The Olive Tree logo for the school kitchen and a design for our new pre school group, St John's Acorns. In all the projects Rachel has worked with children from a wide range of ages and has incorporated their ideas into the final design. She engages well with everyone at St John's, children and adults alike, and her enthusiasm for her work is contagious! We are very proud of the work Rachel has produced by working with our children. Rachel's originality and creativity are an inspiration to future generations of artists.

- Head, St Johns Primary Academy, Coleford

MindSCAPE is a Wye Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty project, delivered in partnership with Artspace Cinderford, which enables people with dementia and their carers to reconnect to the landscape, via a series of fortnightly, creative workshops. Rachel has delivered various sessions for participants of the mindSCAPE project. Her thoughtful, well planned workshops are sensitive to the needs of the group and enable everyone to participate and create something fantastic.

- Manager, Cinderford Artspace

We were pleased to select Rachel Shilston’s ‘Baa-bushka’ as one of 120 designs for the Shaun in the City trail from 2,000 applications. Based on the decorative headscarves commonly featured on Russian or matryoshka dolls, Rachel’s design appealed to the commissioning panel with its bold use of colour and pattern, high attention to detail, and spirit of fun. ‘Baa-bushka’ fulfilled the brief of a characterful, strong, and family-friendly design, and Rachel effectively translated her ideas from paper on to the 5ft fibreglass sculpture within the required timeframe. The final sculpture was very popular with the public when it was placed on Carnaby Street in London from March to May 2015, and later raised £6,500 at our grand auction in aid of sick children in hospitals. ‘Baa-bushka’ has also been selected to become one of our limited range of Shaun in the City figurines, as well as featuring on a range of official merchandise including badge sets and magnets. Rachel has been a pleasure to work with, and I am pleased to support her application for a local Business Award.

- Project Manager, Shaun in the City Art Trail

Rachel was given a brief to create two pieces of unique artwork for my new events venue called the Apple Barn.
I wanted a painted orchard scene to cover an unsightly hole in the wall and an apple mosaic to be the centre piece of the barn. Rachel took my vague suggestions and sent me images via email for my approval. After I suggested a few alterations we went back to the original designs as they were as per the given remit. Rachel was then given some rough off cuts of wood to work with as a background to the mosaic. What arrived was beyond my expectations and the colours in the mosaic were rich and almost 'eatable'! Rachel also helped get the works of art installed for me when I had difficulty in finding a handyman. I am more than pleased with the service, the design and the finished pieces and would highly recommend Rachel.

- Principal, Hart's Barn Cookery School

We are thrilled with the peace garden mosaics and have had so many lovely comments from parents and visitors to the school. We love that from the children’s designs you were able to include each and every member of our school in creating some artwork we will treasure. It was lovely listening to you explaining your work to the children and welcoming you into the school family for the four days you were with us. Nothing was too much trouble! We hope that we can work together again in the future until then thank you so much!

- Head Teacher, Gwenfo Church in Wales Primary