We are very sorry to say that Wild Wednesday Forest School Group is cancelled this week - if you have completed a booking form with us, we will be in touch by email with you about refunds and our future group plans.
Unfortunately we have had no formal advice from any of our usual contacts to help us make an informed choice, and we have had to come to this decision ourselves.
We haven't taken this step lightly, and have tried to take into account everyone's continued need for some normality, mentally, physically and emotionally. That said, we now believe that the benefits to all of reducing contact and not meeting this week outweigh the benefits (even holistically) of meeting.
We hope to find new ways to encourage you to explore the outdoors with your little ones in the coming weeks, but in light of how fast the advice is changing, we feel it would be best for all if we just watch this space and follow the official advice of government.
Please keep in touch with us by checking in on Instagram and this site. We would love to see what you are all up to, and hope to check in on those tadpoles and keep you up dated too! We will miss seeing you all in the coming weeks.
Be well,
Kat
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Wild Wednesdays are here!
We are really excited to launch our new stay and play Forest School group for kids aged 0-5 in Tilehurst this Spring and we hope you will join us.
Our group meets every Wednesday morning from 10-11.30 during term time in the small woodland area on Sage Road in Tilehurst near Brookfields School (postcode RG31 6GG). Take a look at our location below (the entrance gate is just inside the main access gates of Brookfields School).
We meet to play, explore the nature on site, grow, read a story, cook (some weeks) and sing by the fire side. There are various invitations to play setup, but our group is otherwise very free and unstructured; your child can dip into what they want, with no expectations from us. We usually end with a story or song by the fire side. Sessions always include tea and fresh coffee for grown ups and some biscuits. It is up to you and your child if you choose to join in the planned activities or enjoy exploring the woods and making your own discoveries. However, the child/ren remain/s the responsibility of their accompanying adult at all times whilst they are in the woods.
The small nature reserve is used by both Brookfields and Westwood Farm schools throughout the week, so our profits go towards improving and maintaining the site for all of it's users. The site has a copse area, a nature pond, mud kitchen and our long awaited shelter which is new this year. We are always improving the site and open to new ideas and helpers from the community.
We suggest you book ahead to avoid disappointment and get the best value for money.
Facilities on site and Accessibility
We do not have access to the local school for use of their toileting facilities so we suggest you go before you come. We do have a basic 'toilet shed' with a camping toilet in, contact us if you would like more information about our toileting policy.
The site is accessible by wheelchair and buggy however some parts of the site can on occasion get very muddy or uneven in wet weather.
There is free parking on surrounding residential roads, however we ask all our play group visitors to be considerate of local residents and Brookfields School when choosing where to park. Please do not park on yellow lines, grass verges or blocking driveways and allow yourself good time to park, get your little ones out and waterproofed up. There is no fixed start that you will miss to activities, so don't panic if you arrive 30 minutes 'late'!
We suggest you book ahead to avoid disappointment and get the best value for money. We offer booking in half term blocks; contact us through the contact tab to book with a form and bank transfer.
Spring and Summer Term Dates for 2020
Term 4:
February - 26th
March - 4th, 11th, 18th, 25th
April - 1st,
Term 5:
April - 22nd, 29th (No sessions on 8th or 15th April as we break for Easter)
May - 6th, 13th, 20th (No session on 27th as we break for Half Term)
Term 6:
June - 3rd, 10th, 17th, 24th
July - 1st, 8th, 15th
We will commence again after the summer holidays.
Prices
We are currently offering FREE taster sessions to everyone.
Following the taster session, prices are as follows:
£6 for the first child per session (£5 when paying for the term in advance).
£3 per additional child per session (£2.50 when paying for the term in advance).
Adults and Children under 1 are free!
Payment can be made by bank transfer (preferably) with a booking form, by email or in person at the group.
After running costs (insurance, staff etc), materials and refreshments, profits are reinvested in improving the site for all its users.
For a booking form, to pay for the term ahead or if you have any questions, please get in touch through the contact tab. Alternatively pick up a booking form at a taster session.
Finding us
The site is listed on Google Maps (see below). Please ensure you follow directions to Sage Road RG31 6GG (not Westwood Farm School) and look for our sign which will be out on the day. Westwood Farm School and Brookfields School do not have any involvement in the administration of this group and won't be able to help with any queries.
The group is NOT accessible from Westwood Farm School, so if you arrive there you will need to walk around the entire site to access the entrance; google maps estimates this takes about 9 minutes on foot via the footpath if you follow directions to Westwood Farm Wild Woods, Sage Road, RG31 6GG .
All enquiries should go through our contact form or instagram @wildcityforestschool.
Keeping up to date
We try to post photos of the work we do on Instagram regularly. You can get a taste of our work by following @wildcityforestschool. Feel free to post photos yourself about our sessions using the hashtag #wildcityforestschool
