Home Education

We operate a waiting list for these sessions.

We will have approximately a 1:5 ratio of staff to children.

Children can attend a maximum of 2 days a week only.

Our days will be child-led, allowing children to explore and follow their own lines of inquiry and interest with support from enabling adults. Children will develop confidence in the environment and learn practical skills alongside developing their own imagination, creativity and problem solving skills. They will develop ownership of their environment by being part of designing, building, growing and maintaining their space to include their own interests and needs. They will have opportunities to use tools, make fires and develop understanding and care for their environment and sustainability.

The days will follow a loose routine to include times for reflection and forward planning and to develop strong relationships and a community feel but also plenty of time for play and exploration without time constraint or interruption.

We ask that children are at an age and stage in their development where they are happy to be left and separate with ease from their parents. Unfortunately parents are unable to stay with their children during the session. If your child is not yet at this stage, it may be best to delay starting Forest School until they are a little older and more confident.

If your child is to be 'Flexi Schooled' please only add their name to the waiting list once you have an agreement in place with their school.

Those children with special educational needs.

We are able to take children with additional needs as long as they are able to be able to play safely within the ratios of 1 adult to 5 children. The staff have a great deal of experience with children who are Neuro diverse and those that have other difficulties. If your child will need additional support, we will endeavour to do our best to provide a space for them within Forest School but sometimes this may not be possible. Please get in touch to discuss this. If you feel your child may have additional needs please read the information on the Special educational needs page.

The Practicalities (Times, Dates, Fees)

The sessions will run term time only (following Lancashire term dates - see our Term Dates)

We do not offer half days.

Full Day Fees:

£37 per day.

Each additional sibling who attends receives a 10% discount or if children attend 2 days, they receive a 10% discount for the second day.

Payment will be through a plan where the termly fees are spread evenly over a number of months. A monthly invoice will be sent at the beginning of each month. You can pay through standing order, Go Cardless or in cash.

We accept Childcare Vouchers and Tax Free Childcare

If you were to decide to take your child out of Forest School we require 4 weeks written notice (not including holidays).

We ask for children to sign up on, at least, a termly basis. This is to ensure we are able to adhere to the Forest School ethos and give the children the time needed to develop their community, their relationships with others and their environment and get the most from their Forest School experience. Therefore, we will not be offering any sessions on a 'drop in' basis. Priority will be given to those children wishing to sign up for the whole year.

If you wish your child to continue forest school in the holidays we also offer ' Holiday sessions'.

A full kit list will be provided.

If you have any further questions or queries, please contact info@intotheark.co.uk

Kit List

For the children's comfort and safety, it is essential that your child is dressed appropriately. If a child is not dressed ready for the weather, unfortunately they will be unable to join us in the woods. Signing your
child up to forest school means making a commitment to purchase the correct clothing in order for them to enjoy their day in the woods, even in the worst weather.

Children will need:

General clothing
Many of the items can be sourced fairly reasonably from Decathlon or local supermarkets eg Aldi/Lidl, however we would recommend a good quality set of waterproofs.

Waterproof over-jacket and dungarees – these need to be of a high quality to keep the children dry in the worst weather. We would recommend Didrikson Slaskeman sets or similar quality and must be PU coated. Please do not send children in waterproofs that are only suitable for light rain.
Waterproof/showerproof Rucksack
Waterproof mittens – again we would recommend Didrikson pileglove.
Warm down gilet without a hood (optional but great for keeping warm)
A warm fleece
Thin long-sleeved tops
Leggings, tracksuit bottoms or similar (no jeans)
Good fitting baseball cap (kept in bag if not wearing) to keep rain out of face and for shade in summer.
Footwear- Waterproof snow boots (or neoprene wellies as mentioned below), needed when temperatures are below 8 degrees. There are lots of cheap snow boots that are only good for 'dry’ snow, make sure they can cope with puddles too, ie are waterproof.
Wellies (tall if possible) with thick socks or….…..
We recommend ‘Bogs’ or similar (rubber/neoprene) wellies as they are suitable for very cold weather whilst being waterproof. If your child has neoprene wellies they can wear them all year round. They are slightly more expensive, however you will not need to purchase snow boots as well. (They could be sold on to other parents if your child grows out of them.)
Water bottle attached to their bag with a carabiner (if possible), so they can easily access it. (please do not send box drinks/cans)
Packed lunch
Hot chocolate mug (unbreakable eg camping mug)
Full change of clothes within a plastic or fabric bag (socks, underwear, trousers, long sleeved top and spare warm jumper) In the winter make sure they have a full set of clothing to change into if needed (including extra layers)
Plastic/fabric Bag (or similar) to place wet gear in
Thermal base layers (leggings, long sleeve top)
A warm hat (without a bobble) or balaclava and/or a snug fitting snood (no scarves or hats with long dangly bits please as these can be dangerous when climbing and when cooking on the fire)
‘heat holder’ socks or similar
Sunscreen and insect repellent (please apply these in the morning when needed)

We will send more information on what they should be wearing during different temperatures.

****Please write their name on everything that is removable, otherwise things do get lost.***
Please try to keep everything in their back packs (except lunch) as we do not have much storage space for extra bags.

Please be aware that we may have to close Forest School at short notice if we deem the weather to be too dangerous. This is a fairly rare occurrence.

To add your child's details to the Home Ed waiting list/ mailing list please click here.