If someone had told me a few years ago that I’d be working as a Forest School Leader with OutLET, I’m not sure I’d have believed them. Yet here I am... doing something that feels not just like a job, but a calling. My journey into this role has been shaped by children, nature, curiosity and the belief that the outdoors offers something magical that no classroom ever truly can.

Where It Started: Seeing the Difference Outdoors Can Make
Working in schools for over 30 years, I was always drawn to the moments when children stepped outside. It was like watching a different version of them - appearing calmer, more curious, more connected. Children who struggled indoors suddenly found their voice in the woods. Others who couldn’t sit still could focus effortlessly when their hands were in the mud and water or with their feet on the grass - being themselves, being their own cheerleader.

Those experiences planted the seed in me. I knew the outdoors held something important… something healing, grounding and empowering.

Then Came Parenthood - and a Whole New Perspective
Attending OutLET sessions with my son opened my eyes in a whole new way. I got to witness the forest through his experience; the confidence he built, the joy, the freedom to explore and the safety he felt simply by being allowed to be himself. He reflected: "I loved the freedom, warm soup in the winter and making spears and dens with my friends. The river was good fun too; I remember the time we built a dam... it was amazing."

Watching him grow in those sessions didn’t just make me proud as a parent. It made me curious as a practitioner. Something inside me clicked: “This is it. This is what children need. This is what I need to be doing.”

Taking the Leap: Training as a Forest School Leader
Deciding to do my Forest School Leader training was one of the best choices I’ve ever made. The process wasn’t just about learning skills; knots, risk assessments, fire safety, tools, child-led play. It was about understanding children on a deeper level and recognising how nature supports their emotional, social and developmental needs.
I found myself learning just as much about me as I did about Forest School. It gave me confidence, purpose and a sense of belonging; the same things I saw it giving to children.

Joining OutLET: Coming Full Circle
When the opportunity came to work with OutLET, it felt like everything had come full circle. I wasn’t just stepping into a job. I was stepping into a community that had supported my own child, and now I get to give that same support to others.

Every session reminds me why I chose this path. The spark in a child’s eyes when they start a fire for the first time. The pride when they take a safe risk and succeed. The calm that washes over them when they're sitting under the trees. The friendships formed in the mud, rain and sunshine.

Being part of the OutLET team isn’t just employment; it’s being part of something authentic, meaningful - and needed.

Gratitude for the Journey
I’m incredibly grateful to the children I’ve worked with in schools, to my son for showing me the magic of nature through his eyes, and to OutLET for believing in me and giving me the chance to grow in a role I truly love.

Nature has a way of guiding us exactly where we’re meant to be. And right now, I can honestly say: I’m exactly where I should be.

I love this paragraph, from Maria Montessori's 'The Discovery of the Child':

"Let the children be free; encourage them; let them run outside when it is raining; let them remove their shoes when they find a puddle of water; and, when the grass of the meadows is damp with dew, let them run on it and trample it with their bare feet; let them rest peacefully when a tree invites them to sleep beneath it's shade; let them shout and laugh when the sun wakes them in the morning as it wakes every living creature that divides its day between waking and sleeping."