From observing the seasons to growing and tending plants, outdoor crafts and creating wildlife habitats, school gardens are a place for learning, contemplation and fun. We speak to three schools about how they manage garden time
Framlingham College
Set within 23 acres of Suffolk countryside, Framlingham College Prep School offers its pupils plenty of freedom to play, explore and learn. The ‘hands, heart, head’ learning approach here recognises how children learn best. Connections are made first through their hands, via play and exploration. Then they make an emotional connection with their discoveries. After that, they use their heads to think creatively and critically. This approach enables children to explore independently and start to make links in their learning.
Throughout the academic year, the curriculum supports learning outside – no matter what subject or age group. From the Year 6 to 8 sessions learning camping skills and woodland crafts in Forest School, to biology lessons at the College Beehives for Year 4 and 5 pupils. Meanwhile, Early Years children begin their learning outdoor journey with insect counts and pond dipping. Framlingham College Prep believes that giving children the opportunity to appreciate nature helps them to grow in confidence and independence and also develop a greater respect and understanding of the world around us.
“Since 2021, Framlingham Prep pupils have planted 420 trees across the school grounds in partnership with the Woodland Trust”
The school’s Junior Duke programme – described as ‘rather like a mini DofE’ – offers opportunities to develop different skills and nurture essential qualities. Skills learnt range from bushcraft and den building to gardening and mapping. Sustainability is a critical element and, since 2021, Framlingham Prep pupils have planted 420 trees across the school grounds in partnership with the Woodland Trust, also creating hedgerows to support habitats for native wildlife – these then become study zones.
The popular gardening club works to support insect and bee populations, and each year young gardeners take a selection of their green-fingered creations to the Suffolk Show, last year winning Highly Commended in the school garden display class. The benefits of gardening and outdoor learning are critical for this age group, says the school, and range from improved motor skills to physical and mental health.
For some young children outdoor learning can be daunting at first, but most pupils show curiosity rather than fear. Being outside brings a feeling of freedom – to ask questions and speak openly without anxiety. Activities such as tending beehives or campfire lighting may bring some apprehension initially, but the school’s approach fosters open-mindedness and risk awareness while embedding valuable academic and life skills.
Framlingham College framlinghamcollege.co.uk
St Christopher’s The Hall
The school garden at St Chrisopher’s The Hall is a happy and tranquil space created by pupils themselves as part of a lunchtime gardening club and in celebration of the Beckenham, south London school’s 130th anniversary. It’s a small but much-loved corner of the school, nurtured by children who have taken real ownership of its upkeep. Over time, it’s become not only a place of planting but a calm retreat where pupils go to sit and read, reflect or simply enjoy nature during class breaks. While the school has access to many beautiful outdoor spaces nearby for nature walks, play and exploration, the garden is unique as a space designed by and for the children here.
St Christopher’s views outdoor time as offering a valuable place to decompress, and the garden is especially valuable for pupils with SEN and those younger children who sometimes become overwhelmed in classroom settings. The sensory experiences of gardening – touching earth, smelling herbs, hearing birdsong – create a calming and grounded environment and pupils report that it helps them feel more focused and relaxed for the rest of the day.
“St Christopher’s The Hall homegrown lavender bags were sold at the summer fair as part of an enterprise project”
The school’s most exciting recent project has been lavender planting across the garden. The children are learning how to care for and nurture the plants throughout the seasons, with the purpose of harvesting the lavender beds to create handmade lavender bags. These are made to be sold at the school’s summer fair as part of an enterprise project, helping children learn about sustainability, small business skills and the full growing cycle from seedling to sale. It’s a practical, purposeful project that has sparked enormous enthusiasm.
Pupils are generally very enthusiastic about gardening – especially when they see real results, such as a flower they planted start to bloom. For new young gardeners, there may be initial reservations about worms and mud, but those vanish quickly once they get stuck in and start to have fun. The gardening club helps to model curiosity and resilience, and children support each other in overcoming initial hesitation or squeamishness.
St Christopher’s The Hall school garden has become a natural extension of the curriculum. From understanding plant biology and lifecycles in science to measurement and data collection in maths or storytelling inspired by nature for English, the outdoor setting provides learning opportunities. In particular, the lavender project ties into both science and enterprise learning, encouraging children to think critically about where things come from, how they grow, and the environmental impact of choices we make.
St Christopher’s The Hall stchristophersthehall.org.uk
Feltonfleet School
Set within 25 acres of green space in Cobham, Surrey, Feltonfleet has an expansive campus offering gardens, woodlands and open skies. This enables learning to spill naturally from classroom into the great outdoors.
Outdoor education is woven into the fabric of daily life. From sowing seeds in gardening club to harvesting vegetables in Forest School, pupils learn how to nurture plants and also care for themselves, each another and the world around is. “The natural environment is a living classroom,” says Forest School teacher Anne Mossop. “It sparks creativity, builds resilience, and cultivates a deep respect for nature.”
Weekly Forest School sessions take place for Pre-Prep pupils in all seasons and weather conditions. Pupils learn how to climb trees, cook over an open fire and develop craft skills using natural materials. This time outside in nature also encourages them to explore the shifting seasons. A recent Year 2 session saw pupils using the Japanese art of Hapa Zome, or leaf bashing, to create colourful mirrored prints. The conversations that followed about symmetry and colour change gave a snapshot of how outdoor learning helps to build core academic understanding.
“Feltonfleet finds that tending to plants encourages empathy – and there’s the joy of tasting a homegrown tomato or strawberry at the end”
Gardening club offers a deeply sensory experience. Pupils dig, plant, water, and wait. In doing so, they develop patience, responsibility and persistence. Feltonfleet finds that tending to plants encourages empathy and collaboration – and there’s the joy of tasting a tomato or strawberry they’ve helped grow at the end of it all.
All pupils benefit from daily access to outdoor space, with the majority of classrooms opening directly onto gardens and play areas. Regular engagement with the outdoors supports gross and fine motor skills development, nurtures confidence, and encourages independence. Whether it’s threading cereal hoops for bird feeders or creating homes for woodland creatures, younger pupils learn through purposeful play. For older pupils, outdoor time offers valuable space to unwind and connect, be it in playing energetic ball games or tackling adventure play areas.
The wider school site is designed to provide outdoor variety, with quiet reading gardens, treehouse hideaways, wildlife ponds and woodland trails among the areas to be explored and enjoyed. This variety means every child can find their favourite spaces and spend valuable time there in activity or quiet reflection. In 2024, Feltonfleet’s ‘Roots for Tomorrow’ tree restoration project was launched to protect and regenerate the school’s green boundary, strengthen biodiversity, and deepen pupils’ environmental awareness. It reflects the school’s belief in sustainability and responsibility – not just for today’s learners, but for future generations.
Feltonfleet School feltonfleet.co.uk
Further reading: WWF call for nature at playtime
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