Forest School
“Children cannot bounce off the walls if we take away the walls” – Erin Kenny
At Birchills, our Forest School is a long-term, nature-based programme designed to support children’s growth and wellbeing. Set within woodland and natural spaces, our sessions take place regularly and focus on child-led, achievable experiences. We nurture physical, social, intellectual, communication, emotional, and spiritual development through hands-on exploration. By building confidence, independence, and a sense of community, our Forest School empowers every learner to flourish and thrive.
At Birchills, Forest School gives children a positive—and often magical—connection with the natural world. Through meaningful outdoor experiences, learners become more aware of their emotions, build self-motivation, strengthen social skills, and develop empathy as they navigate challenges and perceived risks. All of this takes place within a safe, calm environment where a strong sense of community is at the heart of every session.
Children develop practical skills such as tool use, shelter building, woodland crafts, and campfire cooking, all of which support their social, emotional, and physical growth. By nurturing confidence and self-esteem, Forest School helps to build essential life skills including teamwork, resilience, perseverance, and empathy—skills that stay with them well beyond their time at Birchills.
“We must teach our children to smell the earth, to taste the rain, to touch the wind, to see things grow, to hear the sun rise and night fall – to care.” – John Cleal.
Forest School is built on a strong developmental ethos shared by thousands of trained practitioners around the world. These practitioners continually grow their own skills and approaches to support creative, curious, and imaginative learners. The roots of Forest School can be traced back to friluftsliv—the Scandinavian tradition of “free air life”—where spending meaningful time outdoors is seen as an essential way of living. Introduced to the UK in 1993, Forest School has grown rapidly and is now an established, highly valued approach to outdoor learning.
More than simply gathering knowledge, Forest School supports the social, emotional, spiritual, physical, and intellectual development of every learner. It offers a safe, nurturing, and non-judgemental environment where children are encouraged to try new things, take appropriate risks, and learn from real experiences.
Forest School fosters a deep connection with the natural world and helps learners understand their place within it. By engaging with manageable risks and real-world challenges, children build self-belief, problem-solving skills, and resilience. At Birchills, we believe that risk is not only about physical challenge but about every opportunity to grow. Through these experiences, Forest School helps children to become healthy, resilient, creative, and independent learners—skills and qualities that support them throughout life.
“Let Nature be your teacher.” – William Wordsworth
6 Principles of Forest School
- Forest School is a long-term process of regular sessions, rather than one-off or infrequent visits; the cycle of planning, observation, adaptation and review links each session.
- Forest School takes place in a woodland or natural environment to support the development of a lifelong relationship between the learner and the natural world.
- Forest School uses a range of learner-centred processes to create a community for being, development and learning.
- Forest School aims to promote the holistic development of all involved, fostering resilient, confident, independent and creative learners.
- Forest School offers learners the opportunity to take supported risks appropriate to the environment and to themselves.
- Forest School is run by qualified Forest School practitioners, who continuously maintain and develop their professional practice.