The renovation and conversion of what was previously known as ‘The Park Keeper’s Cottage’, to a purposeful outdoor Nature School in Wingate Welfare Park is now complete!
This beautiful little Cottage which stands at the gateway to the Parish Council owned woodland, now offers us a permanent base, enabling all our children the benefit of several weeks at a time to do extended working and learning in nature. Alongside knowledgeable educators, children will be making meaning of what they encounter, reflecting on the rich possibilities and challenges to their thinking through the seasons throughout the year. Here, children and adults will be able to push themselves right to the edge of their capabilities through the risks and challenges that nature so beautifully offers.
We believe that an emotional and physical connection to the planet at a young age may well be the foundation for the love and protection of our Earth at a later stage in life.
Nichola, our senior lead teacher will be based at the Cottage, welcoming and working alongside each family group and key person for a block of 4-6 weeks, where together they will be exploring and learning with nature, all day long. We refer to this as being in residence.
Parents/carers will receive a timetable detailing the dates of their child’s time in the Nursery building, the Allotm
ent Garden and the Cottage. This will enable families to know which site to drop off and collect their children from. We are really excited about the hundreds of possibilities that our Outdoor Nature School will bring and know our children will flourish. We are also delighted to be able to offer our parents, carers and grandparents the chance to join us on a Friday, when together we make a ‘pack up’ (lunch) and go on a Family Hike. This is a challenging walk, covering quite a distance, uphill and down dale, in whatever the weather offers us and we’re thrilled to say that it is proving to be very popular, with parents giving lovely feedback about how much their children are loving their time at the little ‘cottage in the woods’ – so long may it continue.
