Bloor Homes Apprentices Bring Forest School to Parklee Primary School
Students and staff at Parklee Primary School welcomed Bloor Homes apprentices back to see the finished ‘forest school’ they helped build
Students at Parklee Primary School in Atherton will be exploring nature and holding classes outside in their own ‘forest school’ thanks to apprentices from Bloor Homes’ construction team at the developer’s Beefold Meadows development behind the School.
A forest school is an outdoor classroom that allows children to spend time outdoors learning how to work together and have the responsibility of looking after the environment and growing plants. It also gives them the experience of being outside in a safe environment where they can try new things.
Tracy Hall, Higher Level Teaching Assistant and Eco & Sustainability Coordinator at the School, enlisted the help of Bloor Homes after she attended the Youth Climate Summit with two of the students in October 2023. They heard from a school in Leigh how a construction company had helped provide them with a forest school and they liked the idea so much they decided to make one for their students too.
Tracy explains: “We wanted a forest school because some of our children have never experienced the outside other than on the playground. They have never grown their own food, they have never climbed a tree or swung on a tree swing. Children should have the chance to do these things.
“After we attended the summit, we were keen to get the project started and the children, myself and the Headteacher, Dawn Roper, had a discussion and decided to see if we could get someone to help us. I did a bit of research and quickly discovered Bloor Homes is building the new homes behind our school. I thought it would be amazing if they could build us a forest school so I contacted them and the rest is history.”
Bloor Homes immediately enlisted the help of several apprentices who are currently training with the developer in carpentry to create the forest school. They cleared the area, built raised beds and created a bug hotel and hedgehog houses from reclaimed palettes from the construction site. They also made seating and a shelter for the students and dug out a hole for a wildlife pond, which will be used for pond dipping.
Thrilled with the result, Tracy adds: “Bloor Homes has given us the chance to start our outdoor classroom much earlier than we previously thought. I met with the apprentices that did the amazing work and they were brilliant. The bug hotel is absolutely fantastic. The raised beds will be used for planting and we love the seating and shelter. We have now added a canopy, hammocks and swings - Bloor Homes has really provided for us with an amazing place for our children to enjoy.”
Since mid-October the forest school has been used daily by children of all ages under the guidance of Kay Wood, who is leading on the activities.
Tracy adds: “In these times especially since COVID the mental health of our children is always at forefront of what we do. The forest school is a big part of that. I would like to say a really big thank you to Bloor Homes. Without their generous gift of time, expertise and materials needed we would still be working towards our goal. If at all they would like to join with us for further ventures we would be very happy for them to do that. We are always in need of experts like them.”
Andy Ward, Construction Director for Bloor Homes’ North West region, said: “When Tracy Hall approached us we thought the forest school was a marvellous idea. It ties in with our goals of helping the communities we build in and creating new homes which are more energy efficient and have a reduced carbon footprint. With the work the school has now done to make the space we have created fully usable, the forest school looks fantastic. Thank you to our carpentry apprentices Matthew Yates and Morgan Gentle for taking on this additional project under the watchful eye of our Apprenticeship Master, Gary Bergin. They have used the skills they are learning to create something really positive for all the children at the school.”
Three-bedroom homes at Beefold Meadows start at £289,995 and four-bedroom homes start at £384,995. For more information visit: www.bloorhomes.com