The Team
At Forest Grove we have a passionate and dedicated team of experienced practitioners. We are committed to supporting and nurturing children, helping them develop the skills that they will need throughout life. Our child-led approach bolsters their independence, confidence, and self-esteem. We encourage the children at our setting to become inquisitive problem solvers. Their resilience grows whilst we foster their connection to the natural world.
LIZZY, Founder/Director
Lizzy believes nature is the best learning environment for children as it allows children to explore using all their senses. Children learn best through first hand experiences, ‘real life’ experiences. Forest Schools (Skovboernehave) is part of Lizzy’s own childhood in Denmark and wanted this for her own boys.
Lizzy is a qualified Educator and Forest School Leader. With 10 years experience working with children in an outdoor natural environment, Lizzy has seen the many benefits of outdoor learning from improved wellbeing, physical and cognitive development as well an instilled curiosity for learning and a connection to our natural world. She is delighted to offer this style of paedology for the local community.
Sam, MANAGER
Sam comes from a family of educators and found his own way into the field through teaching English as a foreign language in South Korea. Since then he has worked in primary schools and nurseries, specialising in working with children with additional needs. He is a qualified Forest School Leader, avid birdwatcher, and keen gardener. Having grown up in the countryside Sam is a passionate advocate for outdoor education.
Mirjam, Deputy Manager
Mirjam is a qualified Forest School Leader and Educator. She has worked in education in New Zealand and England for more than 15 years.
Spending time outdoors and in nature has always been a great passion of Mirjam’s. Since 2016, she has been delivering Forest School sessions in Hackney, first for the Nursery and Reception classes of a local primary school and now at Forest Grove.
Growing up on the edge of a forest in Germany and spending all her childhood summers in her family’s lakeside summer house and surrounded by forests in Finland, Mirjam believes very strongly in the importance of child led, play based activities and experiences, and the natural environment for inspiration and well-being.
Patti, Early Years Senior Forest School Leader
Patti is a qualified Early Years Educator who has found herself in nurseries and primary schools in London. She has a young daughter who provides early years’ insight on a daily basis.
Having taught English as a second language in Barcelona and Hong Kong. Patti then gained her Early Years Practitioner qualification in London. After teaching in primary schools, Patti qualified as children’s yoga instructor. She believes that if we understand ourselves, we are better equipped to understand others.
Yessica, FOresT School LeaDER
Yessica comes from a small Galician seaside village. Growing up, she developed a strong connection to nature and Celtic traditions thanks to all the outdoor play and freedom she had as a child.
Nine years ago she moved to London. During this time, her passion for education got her involved in different projects where children were at the centre. She has volunteered in community spaces offering sessions for children and worked in inclusive play settings supporting children with special educational needs.
Yessica is a qualified Level 3 Early Years Educator. While working in nursery settings, she realised the strong need for children to be outdoors and to learn through play by following their own interests. That’s why she decided to train as a Forest School Leader and be part of the change the education system needs.
Giuseppe, Forest SCHOOL AssiStant
Giuseppe’s interest in working with children outdoors began during his studies to become an early years educator, when he chose to focus his dissertation on Forest School. He explored both the benefits of this approach and the challenges faced by Forest School leaders, and this research deepened his belief in the huge value of nature-based learning.
Giuseppe has always felt that attending a Forest School setting is a privilege for a child, giving them an opportunity to connect with the natural world, a skill that has been lost over time. Growing up, Giuseppe didn’t have access to this kind of education, and he is now passionate about creating those opportunities for others; offering them the early years experience he wishes he had had.
Qualifications
All Management and staff are qualified as Early Years Educators (L3)
All staff are qualified, or undertaking their training as Forest School Practitioners (L3)
All staff are qualified Paediatric Forest School First Aiders
All staff are DBS checked