Forest School Holiday Club - Emberton

Located at our beautiful outdoor learning site in the village of Emberton, our holiday club is all about fresh air, muddy hands, big smiles and exciting adventures! We offer fun, active childcare for children aged 3–11 during the school holidays, led by our brilliant team of Forest School leaders and outdoor enthusiasts.

At Forest School, children lead the way. We give them the space and freedom to follow their curiosity and enjoy the great outdoors however they choose—whether that’s soaring on the rope swings, pond dipping for curious creatures, hunting for minibeasts, whipping up gooey potions in the mud kitchen or simply swaying gently in a hammock surrounded by the rustling trees.

No two days are ever the same. One session might be fire lighting and campfire cooking; the next could be woodwork, forest crafts, den‑building, or imaginative wild play. There’s always something exciting, hands‑on and joy‑filled for every child to dive into.

Our holiday club is a place where children can be themselves—messy, creative, adventurous and wonderfully free. They’ll meet new friends, grow in confidence and soak up the magic of spending time outdoors. We aim to be as inclusive as possible, ensuring every child feels welcomed, supported and ready for a fantastic woodland adventure.

Activities Include:

• Building and lighting fires
• Cooking on a campfire
• Den building
• Natural Arts and crafts
• Mini-beast hunting and nature tracking
• Tool use
• Scavenger hunts
• Pond dipping
• Outdoor group games
• Mud Kitchen

The children need to bring their own pack lunch and snacks for throughout the day, however, a hot snack (such as crumpets, vegetarian chilli with nachos, vegetable kebabs, s'mores, cheese fondue, damper bread, muffins, pizza wraps, cheese toasties and soup) along with hot chocolate is provided as part of a lovely activity where children can gather around the campfire to help cook their own snack in the company of the other children and our forest school leaders. 

Please ensure that your child is suitably dressed for the session, we suggest long sleeve and trousers and sensible shoes such as old trainers, walking boots or wellies, depending on the weather. Please no open toe shoes.

Other things to pack

• Lots of layers as, it can get very cold. This should include socks, jumper, & waterproofs if you have them.
• If it is a sunny place please provide suncream and a sun hat. If needed our staff can help reapply sun cream.
• Spare clothes
• A filled water bottle - although these can be refilled during the day please supply a larger bottle. If you also want to pack cartons or juice that is no problem.
• A morning snack and a packed lunch (you are more than welcome to pack more snacks than just 2 as they will be welcome to them whenever they are hungry). Please note, our holiday club is nut and Sesame Seed free, so please do not pack anything that contains nuts or sesame seed
• A cup suitable for hot chocolate - camping enamel cups or thick plastic cups (such as those from Ikea) are ideal

To get an idea of what happens at our Forest School Holiday Club, please watch our video that was filmed with the help of our children:

Meet our Outdoor Team

Emily

Emily has been part of Acorn for three years, beginning her journey as an apprentice. During this time, she successfully completed her Level 3 qualification and has since progressed into the role of Lead Practitioner within the Nature Kindergarten. From the very beginning, Emily was drawn to Acorn’s strong commitment to outdoor learning and wanted to be part of a nursery where children are encouraged to explore, connect with nature, and develop confidence through real-life experiences.

One of Emily’s favourite parts of her role is supporting the children with woodworking, using tools safely and creatively to help bring their imaginative ideas to life. She values the child-led approach that Acorn champions, allowing her to follow the children’s interests and guide their learning naturally throughout the day.

For Emily, every day at Nature Kindergarten offers something new and inspiring. She believes that the best way to experience the outdoors is through the eyes of a child. Full of curiosity, enthusiasm, and excitement to explore the world around them.

Eric

Eric joined Acorn Early Years Foundation in August 2022 at the Kents Hill site before moving over to Cold Harbour site in February 2024. Due to relocating he then transferred to Acorn Day Nursery in Emberton which consists of a Nursery and then the Nature Kindergarten and outdoor learning centre. Since joining the company, he has achieved his Level 3 Forest School Qualification which covers a large variety of topics, and he is really keen to complete this qualification and support the other staff members to have the love and passion for Forest Schools and supporting them into understanding how and why we do what we do. 

 Eric's favourite thing to do is taking the children on minibeast hunts, searching for the creepy crawlies, and looking at their habitats using tools, creating pencils and fairy wands with support of peelers, and cooking on the fire, Eric supports the children in lighting the fire as well as cooking their own snack and hot chocolates, YUM!

Amy

Amy joined Acorn Early Years Foundation in 2025 and is the Manager of our Emberton setting. She brings with her an impressive twenty years of experience in childcare, having worked across a range of provisions including schools and, more recently, nursery environments where she led preschool before moving into management.

Throughout her career, Amy has developed a strong passion for creating safe, nurturing, and curiosity-driven environments where children can truly thrive. She values the relationships she builds with both children and their families, believing that strong partnerships are at the heart of high-quality early years education.

Since joining Acorn, Amy has completed her Forest School qualification, which has allowed her to further inspire children to explore the natural world, embrace outdoor learning, and challenge themselves within the unique and inspiring surroundings of Emberton Nursery.

One of Amy’s favourite things about her role is watching the children grow in confidence as they try new experiences outdoors. Whether that’s exploring the site, engaging in hands-on challenges, or simply discovering the joy of learning in nature.

Family Feed Back

" My son has been attending here for a while now and has enjoyed it every time. No matter what time of the year it is, he always comes home with so much to tell me about his day and a big smile, I would always recommend"

Emberton Ofsted Report