Weather policy

Rationale
 

It is our overall aim to ensure that all involved in Kids Go Wild Forest School have fun learning experiences in a safe and secure environment.  Linked to this, we know that children are outside and in the woods for the whole day and current research has shown that this brings a wide range of benefits to children. However, with us having no use of any indoor space, being outside for much of the day brings with it some minor risks – and in the case of severe weather some more serious risks.

 

Here we set out Kids Go Wild Forest School’s weather policy.

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Appropriate clothing and sustenance to be comfortable in all weathers outside

Most minor risks associated with being outside in all weather can be dealt with by wearing appropriate clothing and taking care of appropriate food and drink.  We recommend to parents that their children come equipped with the following clothing:

 

In all seasons:

• Robust waterproof trousers and top – not just showerproof but able to withstand heavy and persistent rain.

• A full change of clothes.

• A set of crocs/totes wellies

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In the summer:

In the summer to protect against the sun, stings and getting cold we ask that children come with:

 

• Closed-toed shoes or wellies

• Light weight long sleeved tops and bottoms

• A jumper in case the weather turns chilly

• Suntan cream

• Lots of water and fluids to drink

 

In spring, autumn and winter:

In the winter to protect against the wet and cold we suggest:

• Waterproof gloves and a hat

• Warm and waterproof footwear – we strongly suggest snowboots and not wellies and shoes with Velcro rather than laces so children can manage to get their footwear easily

• Lots of layers: in the coldest months as a guide, we suggest: a vest; a thermal top or two; a jumper or two;

• Fleece lined/padded waterproofs/or ski pants/snowsuit/ski-suit

• Warm food or drink in their packed lunch as well as water
   

We recommend Lidl Lupdi waterproofs that come into stock once or twice a year (we usually update you when these are in, usually around the end of August/start of September). Additionally, for the winter kit, we recommend the Decathlon ski range for all your needs and again will update you when they are in stock.

 

Shelters to get warm and dry

Within the bounds of ‘normal’ weather conditions in the UK, children can get very wet in persistent rain, very hot in sunny weather and very cold in snowy, icy weather. Shelters within the wood can help children warm up, cool down and get dry. On our site, we have the following kinds of shelters:

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• Extensive tree canopy covers to protect against sun and light rain (large parachutes)

• Tarps between trees to provide sheltered, dry working areas

• Double Gazebo with Velcro sides.
   

Children who need special attention

 

Over the time of running Kids Go Wild Forest School, it is apparent that some children are strongly resistant to wearing outdoor clothes and/or coming into indoor shelters. Whilst we recommend you do all you can as parents to ensure your child is in the correct clothing kit, there may be some additional needs and sensory issues involved. These children need additional focus from adults when the weather becomes poor – to check they are not becoming too cold or wet and to support them to take action to keep themselves safe, this responsibility lies with our staff team, and we will endeavour to work with you to best support your child.

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What happens when the weather is severe
 

Greater risks of injury and harm can occur if the weather becomes unusually severe. In a woodland environment, the particular weather we would be most concerned about are high winds or lightning – as these can result in trees or branches coming down and injuring someone. In addition, we would be concerned if we couldn’t provide a heated indoor space to ‘warm up in’ on very cold days.
 

Therefore, being unable to provide a heated indoor space, heavy torrential rain, high winds and lightning, as well as extreme heat, are the only instances when we can foresee we might have to cancel Kids Go Wild Forest School running. The following guidelines apply to these situations:
 

• If wind speed is forecast to be at Beaufort Wind scale 7 (average wind speed over or above mph 32 but consideration of gusts also taken into account)  Kids Go Wild Forest School will be cancelled the next day with parents informed the night before.  

 

• If the forecast is for high winds only after 5 pm, the session will go ahead as planned with early pick-up possible if the risk increases during the day.

 

 

• If, whilst on the site staff feel unsafe on any day regardless of the weather forecast, then further discussions would take place within the team and a decision made by consensus as to the action to be taken.  

 

• If the forecast is for high winds but there is not enough information to immediately cancel the next day’s session, then parents will be warned of potential cancellation the evening before and asked to check their phones and emails before setting off for Kids Go Wild Forest School and to be aware that Kids Go Wild may only run for a morning session.

 

• If the forecast is predicted extreme heatwave, with temperatures rising above 30 degrees, staff will assess when on-site on the safety of running the session, it may be that we run half a day, or cancel completely, as it is very difficult to keep the children still due to the nature of our setting, heat exhaustion is a risk.

 

The weather forecast to be relied on to make these decisions will be the Met Office forecast but other forecasts will be considered where appropriate or to put staff on alert.  
 

Emergency evacuation procedures are always possible if necessary.
 

Fees
 

To protect the setting financially, if a session is cancelled, or cut short due to extreme weather, no refund of fees will be provided. Please be assured we will only cancel in extreme circumstances and will endeavour to keep our setting open wherever possible. (please see fees policy for more information). This includes all of our sessions - Nursery, Home-ed, Stay and play, birthday parties and weekend family sessions, the latter three sessions will be rescheduled for another appropriate weather day.