Nursery World - Outdoor and forest school nurseries expand across London

One of London’s first full-time outdoor nurseries will open two new nomadic settings this year, as demand for the provision soars.

Little Forest Folk operates out of a leased wooded area in Wimbledon – it now has 109 children on its books and a waiting list of 170 families.

The social enterprise is planning to open two more nurseries - Chiswick on 11 April, and Wandsworth, soon after. Both the staff and children will be fully mobile, visiting different outdoor areas everyday, including Royal Botanical Kew Gardens, Chiswick House and Gardens, and Gunnersbury Common.

Little Forest Folk's founder Leanna Barrett said, ‘My husband and I set up the nursery because we both grew up in the countryside playing outside, and from six months we would see our daughter Ella crawling to the door to get out. Obviously we were terrified, but it’s just been a phenomenon. The gamble has worked as we now have 170 families on our waiting list.'

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