What our friends say

  • "Our daughter is not the typical adventure seeker - she loves her quiet reading and drawing. However she is enamoured with forest school, and it's amazing to see her happily stroll out there in any weather and then come home bright eyed, smelling of firewood, full of nature stories and beautiful crafts. She has learned so many skills and done things we would never have thought, from climbing mountains to carving wood unicorns to baking bread on a stick on a campfire. Ian and Lucy are the most amazing, resourceful and creative team. We only regret there can't be more forest school days in the week! "

    - Parents of Forest School Child, age 7

  • "“Happy and free” is how my child describes feeling at BHFS. Every week she’s excited to go back. She climbs trees, forages and has even learnt some whittling! For my part, I love that she can go there and just ‘be’; while there are always activities the children can participate in, they also have the freedom to choose to follow their own interests as well. This is a great counterbalance to the social pressures and timetabling of a normal school day. We heard about BHFS through word of mouth recommendation and feel very pleased and happy we did "

    - Friday FS parent

  • "Forest school with Lucy and Ian is the highlight of my son’s week! He has made some wonderful friendships and learnt skills for life. He is able to pursue what he enjoys doing with compassionate guidance, exploring his way in the world. He particularly loves climbing trees and learning to carve new figures. His knowledge always amazes me. Best thing we ever did! "

    - Heather, Forest School parent

  • “Fridays in the forest are the absolute highlight of our child’s week! She has been taking part for two years now and it is the perfect addition to her Monday to Thursday school week. What she learns in the forest is invaluable - she has made great friendships, learned about nature and begun working on her leadership skills. We couldn’t recommend it highly enough!”

    - Kirsten, parent 

  • “A highlight of our week is forest school day! The small and nurturing outdoor environment has greatly benefited our child, boosting his physical health, confidence, and curiosity about the wonders of the forest. We’re always amazed by the wealth of knowledge the kids gain, from making woodland sushi and foraging berries for smoothies to cooking over a fire and building things. Lucy and Leila bring joie de vivre to the kids- thank you for the great work you do!!”

    - Mandy, parent

  • "This is just the most wonderful thing you could do for your child. We were trying to think how many years my daughter has been going to these beautiful classes, this must be the fourth year. And now we are coming all the way back from California to go to Forest School. There is a lot of fun, skill building and frankly any child should have BHFS in their life to inspire a love for birds, plants and nature."

    — Janne, parent

  • “Friday Forest School is my favourite day. We get to have little adventures and I love carving things, making swings and dens.”

    - Emilie, aged 9

  • “Forest school is much better than normal school 😉 and my favourite game is Robin and Ice Sprites.”

    - Dean, aged 12

  • "Rooted in love and emotional intelligence and a deep respect for childhood, BHFS is a beautiful place for children to be children and learn through experience and play. It's literally the best day of my son's week"

    — Nitai, parent

  • “BHFS gathers in a beautiful spot in the trees, with good fun games, learning and kind folk. My son loved it!“

    - Anna, former Thursday FS parent