Llanfaes Primary, Powys

School: Llanfaes Community Primary School

Location: Brecon

LA: Powys

Approximately 200 pupils on roll aged 4 to 11. Shared site with a pre-school assessment unit and a setting for three-year-olds.

At Llanfaes CP School, we are committed to using the outdoor environment to support and enhance learning for all our learners, and recognise the positive impact that the outdoors can have on learners’ health and wellbeing.

As a school, we have developed and enriched the outdoors, implementing new initiatives and developing stimulating and engaging outdoor areas, to further support our pupils’ health and wellbeing. This has been achieved through purchasing new equipment and developing ‘areas’ around the school for all learners to access, at all times, in all weathers. Through effective use of pupil voice, our learners have contributed to rich discussions about how the outdoors can be developed, and were fully involved in decision making, choosing and purchasing new equipment.

The first change we made was to open up all outdoor areas. The school field, forest (Gardd Tawel) and playground became areas which learners could access and explore throughout the school day. Previously, these areas were only used during dry weather or within classroom activities. New areas around the school grounds were introduced, such as designated football areas, quiet spaces, wooden tepees, hobbit houses and outdoor ‘pods.’ New opportunities for learners to play, communicate and socialise were also created, for example, learners practising and developing Cymraeg skills in our outdoor ‘Pod Siarad Cymraeg,’ which can be accessed at all times throughout the school day.

Planned activities

Daily outdoor learning activities are now planned in all classes across the school. Through our whole school ‘integrated day’ approach, learners can experience opportunities to engage in a variety of engaging outdoor activities, through independent and focused teaching challenges. Outdoor learning is planned across all Areas of Learning and Experiences (AoLEs), enabling learning in the outdoors to become a natural part of lessons, as opposed to an additional ‘add on.’ Within younger classes, each class has their own outdoor area. This area is very much part of the classroom, allowing learners to explore, develop and enhance their learning in every lesson. Learners take ownership and responsibility over their outdoor ‘pods,’ planning and creating areas based on their current topic or learning experience. For example, when learning about the story ‘Here and Now’, Year 2 were inspired to independently transform their outdoor pod into a sea role play area – complete with octopus and sand! This use of outdoor classroom areas is something that we would like to further develop across the school, within older classes. This process has begun with the construction of ‘sails’ and log chairs, allowing older learners to independently use and embrace the outdoors to support and enhance their learning.

Within our older classes, outdoor learning has become part of the school day. Within ‘EPIC’ planning, learners independently plan their own outdoor activities for the ‘discovery zone’ within ‘Amser Penigamp’ challenges. Learners lead their own learning, independently planning learning opportunities and experiences, which allow them to practice, consolidate and enhance skills in the outdoors. For example, when learning about homes, climate change, sustainability and equity, learners planned and created global homes made out of natural outdoor resources, which represented homes from an array of environments from around the world. Through the increased use of the outdoors, learners have also developed further creativity, resilience, and risk taking.