Intermediate Wheel Throwing Courses

For people who can already centre, throw, trim, and glaze. Eight or twelve weeks of next-level wheel work: collaring, belly shapes, plates, and throwing off the hump.

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A young woman with braided hair shaping clay on a pottery wheel in a pottery class

Three people shaping clay on pottery wheels in a ceramics class

Handmade ceramic pots crafted at Turning Earth pottery studio in London

3 hours

Each lesson

inc. 30 min cleanup

12 students

Per teacher

per person

8 or 12 weeks

Course length

one session per week

£340

Price from

12-week course

Intermediate

Experience

prior experience required

As featured in

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What to expect

Our intermediate throwing classes are for people who can already centre, throw, trim, and glaze. We won't cover those basics. The course picks up from there, working through more complex forms over eight or twelve weeks.

Tuition, clay, glazes, and use of studio equipment are included. Firing is the only thing charged separately, at £2.50 per 500g, which works out at around £2 per piece. You can bring your own tools or pick up our eight-piece starter toolkit at the studio for £5.

The course is tutor-led but self-directed. Your teacher introduces new techniques each week and works with you individually, but there's room to pursue your own ideas too.

Person shaping clay on a pottery wheel using a metal tool.

What you'll learn

You'll start with bottle shapes. Collaring is the key technique here: narrowing the opening of a thrown form to create vases, bottles, and enclosed shapes. From there you'll move into belly shapes, learning to control the clay's outward curve.

Plates are one of the hardest things to throw well. You'll learn to use throwing batts and work with wider, flatter forms, which require different centring technique and wall control than the cylinders and bowls you've already mastered.

The course also covers advanced trimming for bottles and vases, and glazing techniques like brushing, layering, and pouring that build on basic dipping. Your tutor will work with you on proportions, wall consistency, and finding the forms that suit how you work.

The final sessions are dedicated to glazing your finished pieces. You'll work with our studio glaze range and your tutor will guide you through application techniques that change how the surface of your work reads.

You'll leave with a more refined throwing practice and a collection of work that shows what you can do when the basics are no longer the challenge.

Techniques covered

Collaring & bottle shapes

Belly shapes

Throwing plates

Using throwing batts

Advanced trimming

Bowls & proportions

Glazing techniques

Student-led projects

What our students say

Three students on what their intermediate course was actually like.

“Ben was really great in articulating the techniques and was really helpful during my making process. He was always patient with my questions as well. I have really enjoyed the course, thank you so much!”

Camden Art Centre, 2025

“I've been attending a pottery throwing course with Rosie, and it's been a great experience. Rosie’s approach is supportive and clear, making it easy to learn and improve. She combines technical know-how with plenty of encouragement, which has helped me build confidence and develop my skills. Each session has been hands-on and engaging, and I’ve enjoyed seeing progress with every class. I’d definitely recommend this course.”

Chris, Highgate, 2024

“I absolutely loved the course at Turning Earth Highgate. Rosie was the best teacher sharing her expert knowledge in the creative and fun class. I loved working alongside other learners and we all worked well together. The Highgate studio is spacious and well managed and just an absolute delight to visit every week. I would love to come back. Thank you”

PIPPA, Highgate, 2025

Book an intermediate course

Eight or twelve weeks of next-level wheel work. Pick a location and a date.

SHORTER COMMITMENT

8-Week Intermediate Wheel Throwing

from £340

8 weeks3 hours/weekPrior experience needed

Eight weeks picking up where the basics leave off: collaring, belly shapes, plates, and refining your throwing. For people confident with centring, cylinders, and bowls who want to extend their range without committing to twelve weeks.

View available dates →

GO DEEPER

Group working on pottery in a well-lit studio

12-Week Intermediate Wheel Throwing

from £515

12 weeks3 hours/weekPrior experience needed

Twelve weeks of intermediate wheel work: collaring, belly shapes, plates, throwing off the hump, and refining your control. Room to develop a collection of more complex pieces with time between sessions to refine each one. For people who already centre, throw, and trim with confidence.

View available dates →

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Why train at Turning Earth?

We run intermediate throwing courses at all four London locations: Hoxton, Leyton, Highgate, and Camden. Every student gets their own wheel for the full session. Most of our tutors are working ceramicists who make and sell their own work.

Three of these are our own open-access studios. Camden is a teaching space we run at the Camden Art Centre.

We've been doing this since 2013. We were one of London's first dedicated open-access ceramics studios, and over a decade of teaching has shaped both how we structure our courses and how we look after the people in them.

Turning Earth is a social enterprise. We exist to keep studio ceramics alive and accessible in London, and we work to improve the studios and support the people who use them.

Students working on pottery around a table in a well-lit studio with large windows

Frequently asked questions

Practical questions about intermediate courses, prerequisites, and what to expect.

What experience do I need?

▸

You need to be confident with centring, throwing cylinders and bowls, trimming, and glazing. These techniques are not covered on the intermediate course. If you're not sure whether you're ready, the 8-week or 12-week wheel throwing course is the right starting point.

Is this wheel throwing only?

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Yes. The intermediate course is focused entirely on the wheel. There is no hand-building component.

What's included in the course fee?

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All tuition and use of studio glazes. Firing is the only thing charged separately, at £2.50 per 500g, which works out at around £2 per piece. You can bring your own tools or pick up our eight-piece starter toolkit at the studio for £5.

How is the course structured?

▸

The 12-week course: Twelve three-hour sessions. Sessions 1 to 8 cover new techniques and project work. Session 9 is the last chance to start new pieces. Session 10 is the cutoff for the firing queue. Sessions 11 and 12 are dedicated to glazing. Pieces are usually ready to collect two to three weeks after the final session.
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The 8-week course: Eight three-hour sessions. The same structural rhythm applies, condensed: most technique and project work happens in the first five sessions, with the final two or three weeks dedicated to glazing and finishing.

What happens to my finished pieces?

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After your final session, you choose which pieces to keep. We glaze them, fire them in the kiln, and they're typically ready for collection two to three weeks later. Collection is self-service, so you don't need to wait for an email. Just come by the studio after that window. We can hold pieces for up to two months. Firing is charged at £2.50 per 500g, around £2 per piece.

Which location should I book?

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Whichever is most convenient. The intermediate course follows the same structure at all four locations: Hoxton, Leyton, Highgate, and Camden.

Can I buy this as a gift?

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Yes. Our gift vouchers cover any course or session and are valid for twelve months. The recipient picks their own dates and location, or you can book a specific class for them directly. Tasters are one of our most popular gifts.

What should I wear?

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Something you don't mind getting clay on. It washes out of most fabrics, but lighter colours can pick up stains. Avoid long, loose sleeves because they'll drag through wet clay on the wheel. Closed-toe shoes are sensible because studio floors get wet and tools occasionally get dropped, but they're not required. Please bring an apron. Long hair needs tying back. One thing worth knowing for the wheel: long nails will affect your grip on the clay.

What comes after the intermediate course?

▸

Studio membership at Hoxton, Leyton, or Highgate. That gives you independent access to wheels, kilns, and shared studio space on a monthly rolling basis. Members work independently. Technicians are there for advice and equipment questions but don't teach, so the intermediate course is good preparation for working on your own. Members can also book private tuition if they want more structured teaching after joining.

Students working on ceramics at a Turning Earth studio table

Know someone who’d love this?

Our gift vouchers cover any of our courses, from a single taster session to a full twelve-week programme. The recipient picks their own class and dates, with twelve months to use it.

Ceramics is one of those things people have always meant to try. A voucher gives them an actual occasion to start. Because there's no fixed date on the gift itself, they can find a week that genuinely works rather than scrambling round a pre-booked slot.

Vouchers are sent by email immediately after purchase. If you'd rather gift a specific course on a specific date, you can do that directly through the course pages instead.

Buy a gift voucher

AFTER YOUR COURSE

The intermediate course gives you the technical range to make the work you've been imagining.

From there, studio membership at Hoxton, Leyton, or Highgate is the natural next step. That gives you independent access to wheels, kilns, glazes, and shared studio space on a monthly rolling basis. Members work independently, with technicians on hand for advice and equipment questions.

Book your place