Forest School

 

In 1877 the school was gifted a parcel of land. Whilst the 2.75 hectares of land was originally transferred for school purposes, it had never been used by Goathland Primary School. In 2018, staff, Governors and parents began the process of developing the site into a Forest School.

The school received help from The Land of Iron Project, they paid for new stock proof fencing around the boundary and also donated 770 hedge plants that parents, children and Park Volunteers planted.  These hedge plants are native, indigenous species and are protected by spiral guards and canes. The plants have been placed along the boundary of Beck Hole Road, The Incline and the new hardstanding area.

The school staff and community are committed to using the site as a wildlife area and have already planted Alder Buckthorn to encourage the rare Brimstone butterfly to the site.

Our seating area is an important part of the outdoor learning experience, enabling the children to sit and record their learning by writing or drawing in a safe and manageable environment.

To counteract any negative effects caused by the new hard standing area, a further 21 oak trees and shrubs (native, hardy species) were planted by the children along the flat area of the field and wild flower seeds scattered to encourage insects and animals to the site.

With the help of the North York Moors National Park Rangers the children and parents also dug out the gully and used heather bales to make ‘weirs’ down its length to create wildlife ponds and wetland areas for frogs, toads, newts and aquatic insects at the lower end of the site.

With the help of The North York Moors National Park – Land of Iron Project our Forest School is now a reality and the children enjoy weekly lessons from our qualified Level 3 Forest School teacher, Mrs Bordoli

Forest School is an inspirational process, which offers ALL learners, regardless of academic ability, regular opportunities to achieve and develop confidence and self-esteem through hands-on learning experiences in a woodland or natural environment. It enhances learning across the curriculum by offering opportunities to explore and extend classroom learning, and supports our school Vision by fostering an appreciation of our unique local area.