Big Wild Life

🌳 Our first Scottish Junior Forester Award ‘Train the Trainer’ course is complete! ✅

We recently welcomed participants to Wooplaw Community Woodland for Big Wild Life’s first delivery of the Scottish Junior Forester Award Instructor Training.

Over three days, participants explored the main elements of the Award through practical, hands on activities:

🌿 Tree and Plant ID
🌳 Woodland Habitats
⚠️ Managing Risks
🪚 Woodland Management
🐞 Habitat Creation
📣 Forestry Ambassador

We also enriched the programme with some of our own Forest and Outdoor Learning (FOLA) skills, including fire safety and crafty approaches that participants can adapt when working with young people outdoors.

As well as developing skills and sharing practice, we wanted to create space for people to connect. We rounded off the training with an evening social and networking session around the fire, joined by representatives from Wooplaw Community Woodland and MOWL - Midlothian Outdoor and Woodland Learning Group . We cooked food together, shared ideas and experiences, and made new connections across our different areas of expertise. 🔥🍲

A huge thank you to all our participants for bringing so much knowledge, enthusiasm and experience to our first course, and to the Royal Forestry Society - RFS , and MOWL, for their support.

🌱 We’re excited to see our new instructors bring the Scottish Junior Forest Award to young people in their own communities.

Swipe through to see some of what we got up to! 👉

Big Wild Life will be returning to the amazing Vogrie Pogrie Festival next weekend!

Meet our amazing team of Forest School practicioners at the Forest Sensory area. It is a great place to relax and unwind and especially suited to neurodiverse folk who need to retreat and recharge. What better way to do that than in a hammock under the trees. We will have a range of activities including:

🪲 Bug hunts and tree ID
⛺ Den building
🫟 Natural dyes and mud painting
📿 Traditional braiding
🪄 Woodland wand making

Join in on the things you want to or just explore and play. There is no pressure to take part, but if you fancy learning a new skill we have our amazing team of Forest School crew who can share their skills and knowledge. Maybe you can share yours with us too.

Throughout the weekend we will be joined by other artists and workshop leaders. You might catch a tigers tea party or sample a foraged tea from the The Mush Room project. See full program for details.

We look forward to seeing new and familiar faces in the woods this year.🙂🌳

This week we launched the OWL train the trainer course for the Scottish Junior Forester Award 🌳😁

We have a great mix of home educators, community learning and development workers, outdoor educators, beekeepers, support workers and youth workers. Bringing different backgrounds and perspectives together with the aim of providing more outdoor learning opportunities for the children and young people we work with.

This award shows what a career in Forestry might look like and teaches the skills and knowledge to look after local woodlands. As part of the course participants will engage in some forest management and make a positive impact on the environment. All while having fun, being creative and connecting with nature.

Wooplaw Community Woodland our partners and friends have kindly offered to host this course and David and Patrick will join us for lunch next week to share their experience as Foresters.

We are able to offer this for free through funding from the Outdoor Woodland Learning (OWL) network who will be doing more projects in the Borders in future. To find out more or to join your local OWL group visit https://owlscotland.org/.

Fancy a career in the woods? Check out what Newbattle Abbey College has to offer.

We're excited to announce that our ever-popular Forest & Outdoor Learning Award, Leadership Level 8, is now open for applications! Whether you're hoping to run a Forest School or simply want to boost your own skills, this is a fantastic opportunity. Visit our website to learn more and submit your application – we hope to see you join us!

https://www.nac.ac.uk/forest-outdoor-learning-awards/forest-and-outdoor-leadership

This summer, we will be running the Scottish Junior Forester Award train-the-trainer course!

The training is free and generously funded by our partners at Outdoor Woodland Learning (OWL) Scotland and supported by MOWL - Midlothian Outdoor and Woodland Learning Group and Wooplaw Community Woodland.

We will be joined by youth workers, community learning and development staff, teachers and home educators for three fun days in the woods. This will help to build a thriving network that can offer more outdoor opportunities and career paths for people in the Scottish Borders. Who knows where this could lead? Let's find out!

No prior outdoor experience is necessary. You will learn practical woodland skills and how to deliver the award to the groups you work with. The training will be held on:

Tuesdays
4th, 11th, 18th of August
10 am - 3 pm
Wooplaw Community Woodland

Pick-ups can be arranged from Galasheils if needed.

We anticipate this filling up fast. To book, email Donna Strachan at:

[email protected]

If you would like to learn more about the Scottish Junior Forester Award visit:

https://rfs.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Scottish-Junior-Forester-Award-Leader-Handbook-2024-2025-edition.pdf

If you would like to learn more about OWL and join your local group visit:

https://owlscotland.org/your-local-owl-group/

Last Friday we completed the FOLA 5 skills course with a bang, making a real difference and positive impact.

As part of the Forest and Outdoor Learning Award (FOLA) qualification, learners plan and deliver their own project that links with one or more Sustainable Development Goals. They chose Life on Land and Climate Action, with the aim to increase biodiversity at Rullion Green site in the Pentland Hills. They did this by creating habitats and w**d whacking to manage the bracken and save the new saplings and undergrowth.

The site is owned by The University of Edinburgh and being developed in collaboration with the local community. The aim is to regenerate previous grazing land by restoring habitats and collaborating with the community to develop areas that schools, community groups and others can use. The University of Edinburgh has provided the funding to make this happen and we have been working with their Community Ranger to learn practical woodland management skills. Which has been an absolute pleasure.

Alongside the FOLA 5 course we have trained a youth leader and youth worker as Forest and Outdoor Learning Assistants, who will qualify at level 6 (SCQF5 6). This will increase the capacity of the Seeds of Disruption SCIO team. They have been assisting on this course and have also gained experience at other settings like the Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh Community Day in Maggie's Woods and have attended additional training sessions held at Newbattle Abbey College, who kindly allowed us to use one of their sites to develop campfire cooking skills.

By co-creating with local groups, not only do you help wildlife, but you create a community that can support it to thrive. While you are creating that community, you are supporting people to gain industry standard qualifications in outdoor skills and improving their mental and physical health. And the cherry on top....an outdoor learning site is created for more community work, education and fun outdoors.

We will have a video out soon which was created by Kelly, in collaboration with another talented young person on the course. Kelly is an amazing photographer, wood worker and Forest School Assistant, who is doing a work placement with Big Wild Life to achieve her Leadership Award at level 8.

We are looking forward to doing more great work with partners we love working with. Thanks to everyone for making this happen.

Last Friday a youth worker from our partners at Seeds of Disruption, planned and led a 20 minute session. It was a great example of learner-led practice in action. When the instructions are kept to a minimum and there is a wide range of ways you can use resources....you get to witness work that is original and creative. This helps to develop critical thinking and the capacity to creatively solve problems.

The Seeds of Disruption SCIO youth worker and a youth leader are training on the job, assisting at the FOLA 5 (Forest and Outdoor Learning Award - Level 5 Skills) course. They will become a fully qualified Forest and Outdoor Learning Assistants. Developing the capacity for future outdoor and nature based projects.

Next Friday is our last session where we will be working with The University of Edinburgh community ranger to develop the Rullion Green site. Young people have planned their own climate action project to increase biodiversity. Next Friday they will realise this plan!

This project could not happen without funding from the University of Edinburgh, and the partnerships with Seeds of Disruption SCIO, Newbattle Abbey College and Pentlands Regional Park.

We work best when we work together. The intricate web of connection across multiple sectors, organisational structures and fueled with the passion and ideas of young people is a very beautiful thing.

Another two training days in the Pentlands with the amazing Seeds of Disruption SCIO crew. We were joined by Julie the community ranger from The University of Edinburgh to plant wildflowers and identify trees. We absolutely loved working with her and learning from experts in the field (pun not intended).

The two projects that Seeds of Disruption will plan and implement are:

1. Habitat Creation 🦋🐞 - to increase biodiversity

2. W**d whacking 🤺🌱- to protect the newly planted forest.

The group will plan and deliver these actions, linking them to the Strategic Development Goals and through this work will achieve their Forest and Outdoor Learning Award qualification (SCQF- level 5).

This means that while we are delivering on climate action, we are also helping young people gain industry standard qualifications in outdoor skills. This work benefits everyone and develops a space that others can use. We are very grateful to the University of Edinburgh for seeing the value in projects like this.

This initiative has been funded by the University of Edinburgh, in partnership with Seeds of Disruption and delivered by Big Wild Life. It has been a privilege to be part of.

What a pleasure to work with the amazing young people and youth work team at Hawick High School. This project was organised by Newbattle Abbey College and Hawick High School youth work team, with funding support from the Harris Trust.

Outdoor learning and youth work is a very powerful combo that not only can provide alternative qualifications but also inspires stewardship and pro environmental action. Training this group was a pleasure and there is going to be some great work coming out of Hawick....watch this space!