sustainabilty

Being a Forest School, sustainability is of course at the heart of all that we do. Using the woods, meadows and marshes as our classrooms, with nature themed weekly topics, sustainability and conservation is at the forefront of our little learners’ education.

We believe that early experiences in nature nurture a lifelong respect for the planet, and that small, consistent actions can have a lasting impact.

Our sustainability approach is structured into four focus areas—Decarbonisation, Climate Adaptation & Resilience, Enhancing Biodiversity, and Climate Education & Green Skills. These areas guide how we make decisions, design our curriculum, and involve our community in caring for the natural world. They ensure our work is balanced between reducing our environmental footprint, adapting to change, enriching our surroundings, and preparing children with the knowledge and skills they need for a sustainable future.

We recognise that caring for the environment is a shared responsibility. Staff lead by example, children contribute ideas and actions, and families are valued partners in our efforts. Together, we aim to cultivate a culture where sustainability is a way of life, embedded in our learning, daily routines, and community values.

Children

  • All children are taught the importance of the Five Rs: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Repair, and be Respectful

  • Each snack time the children are reminded about the importance of recycling and composting our waste. Every child uses the correct bins provided

  • The children will see the result of the composting of their food waste later in the year

  • The children regularly work alongside the park rangers and our forest school practitioners to create new wildlife habitats; be it through raising nest boxes, creating deadhedges, planting bulbs and sowing wildflower seeds

Practitioners

  • Our practitioners deliver daily sessions that always have nature themes running through them

  • Circle Time discussions concerning sustainability and conservation are an everyday occurrence 

  • Our innovative team are always using natural resources for everything from crafting to cooking to storytelling

  • We have a Sustainability Lead who keeps our Sustainability Policy up to date, has devised and actioned a Climate Action Plan, and regularly attends relevant training

Families

  • We keep parents up to date with our daily topics and discussions so that they can continue the conversation at home

  • Parents regularly donate useful bits of kit that their children have grown out of for others to reuse

  • We invite parents to a termly clothes swap to encourage the reusing of unwanted clothing

  • We invite parents to join us in leading small circle time discussions so that they can join us on our sustainability learning journey