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London's first outdoor nursery gets Queen's Award for innovation

Fun in the open: manager Alice O'Reilly with children at Little Forest Folk's nursery on Wimbledon Common: Alex Lentati
Fun in the open: manager Alice O'Reilly with children at Little Forest Folk's nursery on Wimbledon Common: Alex Lentati

London's first fully outdoor nursery where children are kept outside whatever the weather has won a prestigious award for innovation.

Little Forest Folk, based in five different London parks and woods, was given the Queen’s Award to recognise how it has shaken up pre-school education in the capital.

Children from two to five spend all day in the great outdoors, getting dirty, climbing trees and napping under canvas. The nursery has proved a hit with London parents who want their children to experience the physical and mental benefits of nature.

There are just 122 places available between the sites in Barnes, Chiswick, Fulham, Wandsworth and Wimbledon, but the waiting list has 2,000 names. Founder Leanna Barrett, a mother of three from Raynes Park, began the project three years ago. She and her husband James have given up their jobs as civil servants to run it full-time.

The nursery has proved a hit with London parents who want their children to experience the physical and mental benefits of nature (Alex Lentati)
The nursery has proved a hit with London parents who want their children to experience the physical and mental benefits of nature (Alex Lentati)

Mrs Barrett said: “People thought we were insane at first and we had to remortgage our house to raise the finance. We did it to give our children a better life, but it has just exploded. We love living in the city but our children still have a cherubic childhood.”

Youngsters start the day with “circle time” as, dressed in Scandinavian waterproofs, they discuss the three rules of the forest: No “picking and licking”, no running off, and be kind. Then they are free to play, with activities ranging from making mud pies, treasure hunts, bark rubbing, looking at “mini-beasts”, balancing, running, climbing and making bridges and swings.

Youngsters start the day with “circle time” as they discuss the three rules of the forest (Alex Lentati)
Youngsters start the day with “circle time” as they discuss the three rules of the forest (Alex Lentati)

If it rains, the children simply put their hoods up. Mrs Barrett said: “We never say ‘no’ unless something is harmful. We do not put rules in place because something is inconvenient for us, or because it is messy.”

Although there are no physical walls, each day boundary flags are planted in the earth which children are not allowed to pass.

At lunchtime children sit on log stumps to eat together and then nap in special tents with warm sleeping bags. On very rainy days staff erect shelters or tents, and each nursery has a nearby building they can retreat to if conditions worsen, and where parents drop off and collect children.

Children enjoy activities ranging from making mud pies, treasure hunts, bark rubbing, looking at “mini-beasts”, balancing, running, climbing and making bridges and swings (Alex Lentati)
Children enjoy activities ranging from making mud pies, treasure hunts, bark rubbing, looking at “mini-beasts”, balancing, running, climbing and making bridges and swings (Alex Lentati)

Mrs Barrett said: “Children have been raised for generations with a connection to the natural world. This is the first generation to be reared in captivity. It’s not normal to be inside all day, their bodies are not designed for that. Everyone wants their children to be happy, and childhood is so precious and fleeting. We want them to enjoy every moment they can.”

She added: “Children have never minded the rain. They do not see it as any different from a sunny day. They stay warm and dry in their suits.”

Children from two to five spend all day in the great outdoors, getting dirty, climbing trees and napping under canvas (Alex Lentati)
Children from two to five spend all day in the great outdoors, getting dirty, climbing trees and napping under canvas (Alex Lentati)

When children leave the nursery to start primary school they often question why they cannot go outside when it rains, she said. Her eldest child Ella, seven, has now left the nursery, and her youngest children Jack, three, and Indie, two, both still go.

It costs between £70 and £100 a day... “85 per cent of our families pay and we use the profits for others to come free of charge,” Mrs Barrett says.