Hawkshead Esthwaite Primary School

Wouldn't it be amazing if all schools had an area dedicated to nature? Thanks to a kind donation, Hawshead Esthwaite Primary School have just that – and they've grown it into a special place where kids can immerse themselves in nature and learn about how to take care of it. Here's more from the school:

'Some thirty years ago, someone had the good sense to donate the sheep field next to Hawkshead Esthwaite Primary School to the school itself.

It was planted up by the kids back then and over the years it has matured into hazel coppice, mixed woodland, a pond, a kitchen garden, a tree nursery, scrub and meadow. It also has a shelter which provides an undercover area for cooking and crafting.

This incredible nature area is called Fletchers Field and the kids just love it. They have boundless enthusiasm for getting out into this special area, whether it is part of a core subject lesson or special time set aside on a Wednesday or Friday to get stuck into an environmental project with our nature education lead, Clare Dyson.

Activities include coppicing areas of the hazel woodland for firewood and den building materials, planting trees, improving the hedgerows, bird box building, pond dipping, cooking on the fire, learning about the species that exist in the field and growing fruit, vegetables and flowers.

The kids gain so much from their experiences, from better mental and physical health to practical skills and a deeper connection with nature. They're also understanding more and more about how ecosystems work and the impact we can have on them - good and bad! It feels so important to have conversations about climate change, as they'll be making the decisions that affect it in future. 

Over the next few months, the kids will be planting more wild flowers, making charcoal from wood they have coppiced, creating more ‘bug hotels’, learning about curlews that nest in nearby fields and will visit a local farm that supports nature in the way it is managed.

All of this sounds wonderful, but in reality it is slightly more chaotic! Originally, there was a committee that helped run Fletchers Field with parents and some staff from the National Trust. Now, we have a dedicated member of staff two days a week to work with the kids, as well as project manage the site.

Occasionally, we have a work party to get extra jobs done with whoever will come and lend a hand and decisions about how the area for wildlife are made with the help of a pupils dad, Richard Tanner from the National Trust. It’s a team effort and the children are very much a part of that team and have a say in what we do.

As one kid said the other day “We are so lucky to have Fletchers Field. I think every school should have a Fletchers Field!” It would certainly be something positive to aim for.
 

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