Mama Beech

The Year 3 Forest School Group wanted to help with the Wildlife Area, so they thought about how they could encourage birds into the 'garden'. The felt that an abundance of bugs would probably be a big draw, but also wanted to offer an alternative to watching the birds eat all the Minibeasts the Bug House could attract! So - and we are so proud of them for doing this - 2 of the group went home for the weekend and looked at bird boxes they have in their own garden, using these as a template they worked hard with family members to have bird boxes from scrap wood, and they brought them into school to use in the Wildlife area. So we now have two bird boxes, and two bird feeders. We also cut back the overgrown whips on the willow tunnel by our raised beds and planted it to create a square. When it grows it will fill out and the perfect 'hide' for watching the birds - and as we soaked it first - it grew shoots in a week!

The wildlife Garden needs quite a bit of taming one way or another. Despite a lot of it being left to nature the shallow soil and occasional class visit has done little to encourage wildlife into the area. So the Year 4 Forest School Group decided they would like to help build a 'Bug House'. The prep work - lugging large pallets was not their remit - but after that, the design was mainly theirs. The children enjoyed finding things to go in the drawers that we added: feathers and charcoal and pine cones etc. We also downloaded and laminated some information sheets from the Woodland Trust. We aren't keen on adding plastic to the environment but for now it's the only way we can prolong the life of information we want readily available. There are alternatives, and hopefully further along this rewilding journey we can fundraise to supply a more ecologically sound way to display information. We will add to the structure as time goes on. The children had lots of...

Our pond is a bonus for any school to have. It's a good size, it's a good depth, but it's concrete all around and not very nature friendly. Digging it out is not an option so we have to try and rewild the area and the margins. This will be an ongoing project throughout the year and any advice will be gratefully received!  There's a lot of pond weed beneath the surface and what we think is 'Duckweed' spreading across the water. There was spawn, froglets and the odd toad spotted in there across the last school year, but there is no easy access in or out for any amphibians. So let's start with that.  The trees in this wildlife area have lots of fallen branches, and there are larger logs against the fence. The beech hedge is 'trimmed' via the lane outside with a huge vehicle and the debris is scattered around. dragging and rolling finally meant long and lean branches could span the pond and dip into the water to allow birds to drink and wash,...

Welcome to new school year. This is Mama Beech, a huge a glorious mother tree that stands in the corner of Forest School on land next to our Primary School. We sit atop a hill and share our grounds with a Children's Centre and a Day Nursery, but have full access to 9 acres of field and a little woodland, as well as a huge mud kitchen area, some raised beds for gardening, and a good ol' school garden complete with concrete pond!  This year is THE year we start to make use of it to it's fullest. Mama Beech is huge, one day I will try and work out exactly how huge, and what her age is, meanwhile, she offers shelter, food, refuge and some evolving Autumnal colours to all manner of wildlife - including children! At the start of the academic year she was a marker for my introduction to the area, and a much needed beacon of how beautiful the school grounds are, as well as a constant reminder of how lucky we are to have such an amazing resource to hand. September weather ...