Schools & Outdoor Learning
450+
SESSIONS DELIVERED
5,000+
ATTENDANCES BY YOUNG PEOPLE
7
YEARS ESTABLISHED
Year on Year
REPEAT SCHOOL COMMISSIONS
Sessions and attendances cover our youth and children's work over the last two years.
New government policy, February 2026:
The DfE white paper Every Child Achieving and Thriving establishes "nature, outdoor and adventure" as part of a new enrichment entitlement every school must provide. Ofsted's updated inspection framework, effective September 2026, will assess this under personal development — and is for the first time grading inclusion separately.
WHO WE WORK WITH
Every phase. Every need.
We work with mainstream and specialist settings across Liverpool City Region and Cheshire West — from primary through to post-16 transition. A number of schools commission us year on year.
Primary Schools
Forest School sessions, outdoor curriculum support, staff CPD and INSET, and Level 3 Forest School Leader training. We work with whole classes, year groups and smaller groups including nurture provision.
Secondary, SEND & SEMH
We have particular experience with neurodiverse learners and young people with SEMH needs — whole year groups, intervention groups and, where funding allows, 1:1 work.
We have delivered funded programmes for young people on CAMHS waiting lists and through alternative education providers.
Alternative Provision & Post-16
We work as a delivery partner alongside AEPs — not as a registered AEP ourselves — and offer structured outdoor programmes for 16–18 year olds not yet ready for college or training.
WHO DELIVERS OUR WORK
Experienced practitioners.
Real outdoor educators.
Our school programmes are led by Jim Loftus, supported by a team of experienced practitioners. Every session has two Grow staff working alongside your school team.
Jim Loftus
Forest School and training lead.
Jim has 30 years of teaching experience across NHS settings, secondary and primary schools, early years, higher and further education, and Forest School — the last ten exclusively outdoors.
He has particular expertise in outdoor learning for neurodiverse learners and SEMH, and is involved in research partnerships with Liverpool John Moores University and Edge Hill University.
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Jim is an AIM-accredited Level 3 Forest School Leader and has delivered the L3 qualification to practitioners for over ten years.
OUR TEAM
Alongside Jim, our delivery team includes experienced practitioners with backgrounds in teaching, community work, therapeutic practice and outdoor skills.
All session leads hold Level 3 Forest School Leader qualifications.
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Meet the team →​​
A COMMUNITY INTEREST COMPANY
Grow Wellbeing is a not-for-profit Community Interest Company based on the Wirral. Fees from our schools work are reinvested into community programmes for children, families and adults across the Wirral and Liverpool City Region..
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Established 2018 · UKPRN: 10091738 · Company No. 11490513
​All staff hold enhanced DBS clearance. We carry public liability insurance and work within a robust safeguarding policy.​
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About Grow Wellbeing →
WHAT WE OFFER
Four distinct offers.
One joined-up approach.
Forest School, outdoor curriculum support, staff training and post-16 transition work are different things — and we're clear about that distinction. Schools can commission any of these independently or in combination.
01
Forest School
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Rooted in FSA principles, Forest School is child-led, nature-based and focused on the process of learning rather than outcomes. Regular sessions in a natural outdoor setting build wellbeing, confidence, resilience and nature connection over time. It is not curriculum delivery — that is a feature, not a gap.
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Particularly effective for children with SEND, SEMH needs and neurodivergent profiles. Sessions typically involve fire lighting, tool use, shelter building, natural crafts and Kelly kettle use — activities that engage children who often find the classroom difficult.
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All sessions are led by AIM-accredited Level 3 practitioners, with two Grow staff per session alongside school support.
02
Outdoor Curriculum Support
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This is a distinct offer from Forest School. It means taking the National Curriculum outside — identifying subjects and topics that translate naturally to outdoor settings, and supporting staff to plan and deliver them confidently.
We work with staff teams to find the curriculum connections that already exist — science, geography, PSHE, oracy, maths — and help them take those sessions outdoors with purpose and structure.
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Referenced against the LOtC framework and IOL High Quality Outdoor Learning guidance.
03
Training & CPD
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We offer the AIM-accredited Level 3 Forest School Leader qualification — the nationally recognised, Ofqual-regulated credential for Forest School practitioners. For schools, we offer a hybrid model combining online sessions with face-to-face woodland training days and an in-school assessment.
We also deliver other AIM awards, Outdoor First Aid, and bespoke INSET and CPD for teaching and support staff. Get in touch to discuss what would suit your setting.
04
Post-16 & Transitions
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For 16–18 year olds not yet ready for college, training or an apprenticeship, structured outdoor sessions offer practical activity, small groups, time in nature, and a gradual building of the regulation, confidence and direction that makes a next step possible.
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We work as a delivery partner alongside AEPs, schools and local authorities — not as a registered AEP ourselves. We have delivered funded post-16 programmes with the Family Toolbox Alliance and Career Connect.
Get in touch to discuss current availability.
HOW WE WORK TOGETHER
A collaborative journey.
At your pace.
Some schools start at Stage 1 and work through to Stage 4. Others come in at a different point. There is no fixed route and no pressure to go further than makes sense for your setting.
Getting to know each other
STAGE 1
We come to you, getting to know your setting, what you already do, and what your outdoor space can offer.
Building knowledge and skills
STAGE 2
CPD and INSET deepens your staff's understanding of outdoor learning — the evidence, practical skills, risk-benefit thinking and curriculum connections — so they can lead sessions themselves.
Developing your own expertise
STAGE 3
Where schools want to go further, we support staff through the AIM-accredited Level 3 Forest School Leader qualification. Your school develops its own qualified practitioner — someone rooted in your setting, your pupils and your community. That expertise belongs to you.
Making it yours
STAGE 4
The goal throughout is that outdoor learning becomes genuinely part of who your school is — something your staff lead, your site supports and your pupils experience regularly.
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We offer site visits, development advice and equipment guidance. You don't need an established woodland — we work with a range of spaces, and where your grounds are limited we can deliver at Bentinck Street Community Garden, Bidston Hill Woodland or suitable local parks.
THE EVIDENCE BASE
Why it works.
Time in natural environments stabilises heart rate, reduces cortisol and activates the body's rest and recovery state — supporting attention, reducing anxiety and improving mood. For children who are dysregulated or struggling, these effects are not incidental — they are what makes learning possible.
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Forest School produces significantly higher physical activity levels than even an active school day, with girls' activity equal to boys'. Greater nature connectedness is associated with reduced hyperactivity, fewer behavioural difficulties and improved prosocial behaviour. Spending at least 120 minutes per week in nature is associated with good health and wellbeing.
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Ofsted's 2008 report Learning Outside the Classroom — how far should you go? found overwhelming evidence that LOtC contributes significantly to raising standards — and is most effective when planned, integrated and progressive across the curriculum.
Research & Policy References
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Lovell (2009) — Physical activity and Forest School
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Austin, Knowles & Sayers, Mersey Forest (2013) — Forest School Evaluation
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Sobko et al. (2018) — Nature connectedness and child behaviour
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White et al. (2019) — Nature contact and mental wellbeing
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Ofsted (2008) — Learning Outside the Classroom: how far should you go?
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DfE — Every Child Achieving and Thriving (February 2026)
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WHAT SCHOOLS SAY
In their words.
"It really takes the pressure off what is often the most difficult time of the week… involvement has definitely improved attendance for some of the learners."
SCHOOL STAFF - GROW WELLBEING PARTNER SCHOOL
"Using the Kelly kettles, making fire and sharing food… they have to cooperate… it is good that they have the experience of doing these things for themselves."
SCHOOL STAFF - GROW WELLBEING PARTNER SCHOOL
More testimonials - coming shortly...