8. HEALTH, MEDICAL NEEDS & FIRST AID
The health and wellbeing of children in our care is important to us. Parents and carers must provide up-to-date information about their child’s health, medical conditions, allergies and medication before attending. Please let us know promptly if anything changes.
Medication
If your child needs medication during a session, this must be discussed with us in advance. Medication must be provided in its original, clearly labelled container, with appropriate instructions. We will only administer medication where the necessary parental consent has been provided and arrangements have been agreed in advance. Children who need emergency medication, such as an inhaler or adrenaline auto-injector, must have it available during their session.
Illness
Children should not attend if they are too unwell to comfortably take part or if attending could pose an infection risk to others. If a child becomes unwell during a session, we will care for them and contact their parent or carer where necessary.
First Aid & Accidents
Appropriate first-aid cover and equipment are available throughout our sessions. Minor injuries will be treated appropriately and parents or carers will be informed. Accidents and significant incidents are recorded in accordance with our procedures. In an emergency, we will provide appropriate first aid and contact the emergency services where necessary. Parents or carers will be contacted as soon as practicable.
9. HEALTH, SAFETY & FOREST SCHOOL RISK
Forest School gives children opportunities to experience appropriate challenge and managed risk as part of their learning and development. We believe children benefit from learning how to recognise hazards, make decisions and develop confidence in managing appropriate risks for themselves.
Keeping the Woodland Safe
The woodland and planned activities are regularly risk assessed, and practitioners check the site before sessions for any significant changes or hazards. Children are encouraged to take an active part in recognising and understanding risk, while practitioners remain responsible for maintaining appropriate safety and supervision.
Tools & Fire
Children may have opportunities to use real tools and take part in campfire and fire-lighting activities, appropriate to their age, ability and experience. These activities are introduced gradually, with clear safety expectations and appropriate adult supervision. Children are never required to take part in an activity they do not feel ready for.
Changing Conditions
Woodland environments naturally change with the seasons and weather. Practitioners continually assess conditions throughout a session and may adapt, restrict or stop an activity if circumstances make it unsafe. Our aim is not to remove all risk from children’s experiences, but to provide an environment where they can explore, learn and challenge themselves safely.
10. LEARNING, DEVELOPMENT & PROGRESS
Every child’s Forest School journey is different. We value development in the whole child, recognising progress in confidence, independence, resilience, relationships, communication, creativity, problem-solving and practical skills. Our approach is child-centred rather than academically driven. Practitioners observe children’s interests, strengths and emerging skills and use these observations to help support their individual development and future experiences and learning.
Celebrating Progress
Where appropriate, we use ClassDojo to create an individual portfolio of a child’s experiences, learning and development during Forest School and coaching sessions. This may include observations, achievements and examples of activities or skills the child has been developing. The aim is to celebrate progress and share meaningful moments with families, rather than compare children against one another. Parents and carers are encouraged to share their own observations and aspirations for their child so that we can work together to support their development. For children attending our regular tee-time provision, at the end of each academic year there is a ceremony of strengths where each child receives a certificate celebrating their individual journey.
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The health and wellbeing of children in our care is important to us. Parents and carers must provide up-to-date information about their child’s health, medical conditions, allergies and medication before attending. Please let us know promptly if anything changes.
Medication
If your child needs medication during a session, this must be discussed with us in advance. Medication must be provided in its original, clearly labelled container, with appropriate instructions. We will only administer medication where the necessary parental consent has been provided and arrangements have been agreed in advance. Children who need emergency medication, such as an inhaler or adrenaline auto-injector, must have it available during their session.
Illness
Children should not attend if they are too unwell to comfortably take part or if attending could pose an infection risk to others. If a child becomes unwell during a session, we will care for them and contact their parent or carer where necessary.
First Aid & Accidents
Appropriate first-aid cover and equipment are available throughout our sessions. Minor injuries will be treated appropriately and parents or carers will be informed. Accidents and significant incidents are recorded in accordance with our procedures. In an emergency, we will provide appropriate first aid and contact the emergency services where necessary. Parents or carers will be contacted as soon as practicable.
9. HEALTH, SAFETY & FOREST SCHOOL RISK
Forest School gives children opportunities to experience appropriate challenge and managed risk as part of their learning and development. We believe children benefit from learning how to recognise hazards, make decisions and develop confidence in managing appropriate risks for themselves.
Keeping the Woodland Safe
The woodland and planned activities are regularly risk assessed, and practitioners check the site before sessions for any significant changes or hazards. Children are encouraged to take an active part in recognising and understanding risk, while practitioners remain responsible for maintaining appropriate safety and supervision.
Tools & Fire
Children may have opportunities to use real tools and take part in campfire and fire-lighting activities, appropriate to their age, ability and experience. These activities are introduced gradually, with clear safety expectations and appropriate adult supervision. Children are never required to take part in an activity they do not feel ready for.
Changing Conditions
Woodland environments naturally change with the seasons and weather. Practitioners continually assess conditions throughout a session and may adapt, restrict or stop an activity if circumstances make it unsafe. Our aim is not to remove all risk from children’s experiences, but to provide an environment where they can explore, learn and challenge themselves safely.
10. LEARNING, DEVELOPMENT & PROGRESS
Every child’s Forest School journey is different. We value development in the whole child, recognising progress in confidence, independence, resilience, relationships, communication, creativity, problem-solving and practical skills. Our approach is child-centred rather than academically driven. Practitioners observe children’s interests, strengths and emerging skills and use these observations to help support their individual development and future experiences and learning.
Celebrating Progress
Where appropriate, we use ClassDojo to create an individual portfolio of a child’s experiences, learning and development during Forest School and coaching sessions. This may include observations, achievements and examples of activities or skills the child has been developing. The aim is to celebrate progress and share meaningful moments with families, rather than compare children against one another. Parents and carers are encouraged to share their own observations and aspirations for their child so that we can work together to support their development. For children attending our regular tee-time provision, at the end of each academic year there is a ceremony of strengths where each child receives a certificate celebrating their individual journey.
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