Branching out in the community
Bedworth Early Years Centre and Nursery’s new on-site Forest School will offer tree-mendous learning opportunities to youngsters and community groups.
The centre will celebrate the opening of the new resource on Wednesday 9 June with a special event for local families and staff.
The project began in December 2009 when the school sought out the services of the county council’s forestry division to develop an empty field around the centre into a useful outdoor space.
Architect David Cox designed the scheme with input from centre staff on their requirements and how they planned to use the area.
“We wanted an outdoor space that could be used by nursery pupils, and local schools and community groups, to offer learning and natural world experiences outside of the classroom,” explained Nicola Whitaker, a senior teacher at the centre.
“We had previously developed a small area of land at our old site in Bulkington Road as a Forest School. The children loved the activities such as making animal homes, toasting marshmallows on a camp fire and making story sticks so much that we decided to develop the new site and train staff to be Forest School Leaders.”
It recently took the forestry division four weeks to create the Forest School. The work involved removing and relaying turf on the 1200m2 plot, planting 43 trees and over 800 whips, using 5-6 tons of wood to create walkways tables, seats, stepping stones and a central feature. The wood and 70m3 of mulch was recycled from tree maintenance work across the county.
Warwickshire County Councillor, Heather Timms, the county’s portfolio holder for children, young people and families said: “This is one of the biggest Forest School projects to be developed so far in Warwickshire, and the many educational and ecological benefits of the scheme will be enjoyed by local children, families and the community for years to come.
“The scheme is also a great example of partnership working, bringing together different council services and external agencies to create a meaningful learning space. The county’s Extended Services programme - with its practice of enabling schools to work together in clusters - will extend these benefits to an even wider audience.”
Two members of staff Sharon Casey (Early Years Educator) and Claire Shale (Teaching Assistant) are in the process of completing their Forest School training delivered by the Warwickshire Wildlife Trust in partnership with the county council’s Early Years Team.
The philosophy of Forest Schools is to inspire individuals of any age through positive outdoor experiences. It is an innovative educational approach to outdoor play and learning.
The method teaches children about the natural environment through play based small achievable tasks that encourage self-awareness, confidence, independence and sound emotional and social skills.
At Forest School they are encouraged to take risks, use their own initiative, to problem solve and to cooperate. The site can be used all year round in all weather conditions which pose different challenges to the youngsters.