'A Walk with Friends’ Launch - Sun and Smiles at West Horsley Place
Yesterday the Beyond Words team had the pleasure of launching our latest book, A Walk with Friends, at the lovely West Horsley Place. What better venue for a book that celebrates the joy of the countryside than the stunning grounds of this historic estate?
What’s the Book About?
A Walk with Friends follows friends Jim, Angela, and Helen as they set off on a countryside walk with dog Biscuit. Along the way, they discover the joys of nature including birds and butterflies, the sun, and even the rain - and meeting new people along the way. This story is the latest addition to our Picture This series, which brings you fun, accessible books created in collaboration with our incredible book clubs.
We’re especially proud that this book was developed with the support of our Surrey Book Clubs, as well as our wonderful partners at Active Prospects and Surrey Choices.
Creating the Book: A Journey of Collaboration
Last summer, 20 adults with learning disabilities joined the Beyond Words team for a series of walks at Newlands Corner, the Devil’s Punchbowl, and Box Hill. Fifteen of these participants also attended creative meetings to help shape the story. Through walks, photographs, discussions, and drama, they shared their ideas and brought the book to life, infusing it with themes of friendship, nature, wellbeing, and accessibility.
Our talented illustrator, Belinda Evans, then transformed these shared experiences into the beautiful, vibrant pictures that fill the pages of A Walk with Friends. As always, the book underwent a thorough trialling process with people with learning disabilities - making it our most popular trial yet, with over 25 groups involved!
A huge thank you to everyone who contributed, read, and trialled this book. Collaborating with you all is a highlight of what we do.
A Perfect Launch Day
The Beyond Words team arrived early to set up in the charming West Horsley barn, hoping the morning rain would clear and luckily, it did, and we were greeted by glorious sunshine! We were then joined by a wonderful group of representatives and self-advocates from across the community, including key contributors to the book’s production: Surrey County Council, Community Foundation Surrey, Active Prospects, and Surrey Choices. We were also delighted to welcome Councillors Tim Hall and Paula Keay, as well as Mole Valley District Councillor Simon Budd.
The day kicked off with tea, coffee, and delicious cakes. Once everyone had arrived, Tim Hall welcomed the guests, followed by a talk from our Publishing Manager, Emily, who shared the story behind the book’s creation and the extensive co-production process that brought it to life.
The highlight of the morning was an uplifting reading by our wonderful self-advocates Nigel, Michael, Robert, and Natalie who took to the stage to read an excerpt from the book together. Their lively and heartfelt delivery filled the room with laughter and smiles.
We were then honoured to have Gordon Jackson, Chairman of the Surrey Hills Society, present beautiful wooden acorn keepsakes to the self-advocates from Active Prospects and Surrey Choices who had played such a vital role in the book’s development.
The celebrations continued with a sensory workshop led by our former CEO, Katie Smith, in the stunning West Horsley Place walled gardens. Everyone enjoyed exploring nature and spending time together, just as our book encourages!
A Big Thank You
A massive thank you to everyone who attended and made this launch possible. Your enthusiasm and support mean the world to us. We’re always eager to create more books like this in the future and we hope you’ll enjoy A Walk with Friends as much as we enjoyed creating it!
