I love outdoor learning, be it on the school field, in the woods or even at the beach.
If you want to be a Forest School or Coastal School Leader, Jobs of the Wild has all the information about the job and how to find the right course at a location near you, including useful links and background facts.
I’m thrilled to welcome Hannah Ridgeway, who has recently qualified as a Forest School Level 3 Leader and kindly told us about her training and work.
Hannah is also a Primary School Teacher (though you don’t need to be a teacher to be a Forest School Leader).
What is Forest School?
The concept of forest schools, or ‘fresh air learning’, originated in Scandinavia, becoming a huge part of their standard education system, particularly in Denmark. In 1993 a group of British nurses visited Danish forest schools researching pre-school learning for the UK. Their ideas translated to a BTech in Forest School in 1995 and by 2000 the first Welsh and English local authorities adopted the scheme, notably Oxfordshire and Worcestershire initially. The movement is fast becoming a well known and much sought after educational tool throughout the British Isles with courses now available in beach school leadership too.
Hannah says:
Forest School offers children opportunities to develop self confidence, meet new people and learn new skills through hands on, practical experiences in a woodland – basically having fun in the woods! Sessions might include den building, having fun in a mud kitchen, using tools to whittle or saw wood, making arts and crafts from natural materials, or simply having fun with friends around the campfire.
Job Description
Forest School Leader: planning sessions, thinking of fun games and activities. They are also responsible for looking after tools, such as saws and pen knifes, and maintaining the site that the Forest School uses. They look after the children involved in the session, making sure that they are safe and happy, and chat to parents and carers, reporting on what fun things the children have been up to! They may also work with schools to promote outdoor learning, and link sessions to curriculum activities taking place in the classroom.
Income
Variable. Most forest school leaders are directly employed by schools, some are freelance, setting up their own business to run groups. Some may start by working as a volunteer to gain experience.
Qualifications
- Forest School Level 3 Practitioner award
- Outdoor or Peadiatric First Aid certificate
- Security check
Character Traits
- A love of the outdoors is essential, as sessions take place in all weathers!
- Resilience
- A good sense of humour
- Enthusiasm
- Imaginiation
- Willingness to have a go
Job Training
Forest School Leadership requires a Level 3 qualification. There are many Forest School training providers so research well to ensure you provider is professional and legitimate. The Forest School Association (FSA) provides an online database for accredited trainers in the UK though this is a new facility under construction (see links below). Level 1 and 2 courses build up to the Level 3 award and also enable you to be a Forest School Assistant if working alongside a fully qualified leader.
Some schools pay for staff members to gain Forest School qualifications. However, if you want to go freelance, you will need to fund the training course yourself.
See links below for training options.
Top Tips for Interview
No interviews! Anyone can apply to attend Forest School leader training!
Top Tip for Doing the Job
Have an open mind. Sessions go wherever the children’s imagination goes, so don’t feel you have to stick to a plan. Enjoy seeing what ideas the children run with.
Pros
- Working outside
- Having fun outside of the classroom
- Being creative
- Seeing children develop and grow in a setting different to what they may be used to
- Being surprised by what the children come up with
Cons
Being cold! Bring plenty of layers.
Working Hours
Variable. Usually school hours though some freelance forest schools run at weekends and during school holidays.
Travel
Variable. It depends where your forest school site is.
Anything Else To Consider?
Forest School qualifications level 2 and 3 involve completion of a work portfolio.
You also need to obtain either an Outdoor or Paediatric First Aid qualification (link below), sometimes included in the training depending on the provider.
You will also need an enhanced DBS check (link below).
Public Liability Insurance (link below) is required if setting up your own business and not already provided by the school or workplace.
In order to provide food to attendees at Forest School sessions a Food Hygiene Certificate may be needed. This can be a basic online course or a specific outdoor learning course, depending on your public liability insurance requirements (links below)
Why I Love The Job
Hannah says she loves her job “because every session is different and you are never forcing children to take part in something they don’t want to do. Unlike school, during Forest School children can pursue their own interests and gain confidence from this. I also love being outside, it is so much more relaxing than the classroom.”
Hannah at work cooking and whittling in the woods, her Forest School classroom!
Useful Links
More information about Forest School at Forest Schools Association
How to choose your Forest School Trainer details
Forest School Leader Training with Cambium
Forest School Leader Training with Archimedes Course Information
Forest School Training Co-operative Course Information
Apply for a DBS check here
Obtain Forest School Public Liability Insurance with Birnbeck here
Online Basic Food Hygiene course information
Outdoor Food Hygiene Course with Ignite here
Also search online for the Annual Festival of Outdoor Learning
Distance Learning
A Forest School Level 3 online course was recently introduced by Archimedes though they have not yet run a full course. I would include a link once the programme has been evaluated by the FSA but in the meantime I advise caution on participating in this course. Given the practical nature of Forest School I am intrigued as to how an online course would be assessed. I can see potential for leaders who already have a huge amount of outdoor experience and just need the practising qualification for Forest School but my first impression was that you could do the Level 3 course without prior training which seems pretty irresponsible practice. Watch this space for more info, but whatever course you choose, research well and read the Choose your Forest School Trainer link first!
To browse ALL our outdoor jobs in one place click on Jobs of the Wild.
Hi, I have just come across your website, which seems right up my street. I was wondering if you knew of anywhere that does Forest School level 3 training at weekends or in school holidays. I’m a teacher, but currently raisingm y children at home, with no other childcare, so I’m struggling to find any training i could do. I was thinking abou the Archimides online one, but had the same reservations as you. I am pretty confident with most aspects of the outdoors, but would like to be assessed on practical skills in person really.
Hi Anna, lovely to hear from you and thanks for getting in touch. Without knowing where you live I can’t recommend anyone specifically but my own outdoor learning instructor, Vicki Stewart, based in Wiltshire, would probably be able to point you in the right direction. Could you send me an email via the contact page on my website and I’ll put you in touch with Vicki. She might be able to advise about different courses, perhaps distance courses, with hands on work towards the end. I don’t know exactly what’s available. You can also consider a Certificate in Outdoor Learning, a much quicker course, to enable you to work outdoors within the education system while taking Forest School training more slowly i.e. in the holidays etc. You could also try Vicki via her own website http://www.brightwoodtraining.com. Good luck, Forest School is a fantastic organisation and brilliant for children. Wild wishes on your journey (and feel free to contact me via here or Facebook if you struggle to get Vicki.) Lucy
Hi I am starting a level 3 course with my local Wildlife Trust which are two initial weekends except one is 3 days. There is also later on a skills weekend. You do work on-line and meet up with others. There are 18 on the course which is good to network, compare notes and social.
There was another Wildlife Trust that had a week long course in the summer which may have fit your needs.
Have a look on line for Wild Life Trust.
I like them as I volunteered with their outdoor classroom learning sessions they run and enjoyed their outdoor knowledge and fun they impart to the children visiting.
Good luck,
Belle
Thanks for getting in touch Belle, the Wildlife Trust courses sound great – a good combination of online work and person to person practicals. I’d love to hear how you get on. Wild wishes!