“It has been an absolute joy to watch our son at Stomping Grounds. We have seen him develop a trusting bond with the practitioners involved, and a positive relationship with the forest school site. The perceived silence [of the woods] and the sensory overload from the plants has triggered anxieties in the past. However, he has grown to love the woods and now explores confidently without the need for constant check-ins. We have seen our son move back towards the happy engaged little boy we knew before the onset of his mental health difficulties.”

“Our son has been attending 1:1 sessions at Stomping Grounds forest school for a term now. When he began, he had been out of education for a prolonged period due to mental health difficulties attributable to unmet needs within mainstream education. Starting his first session at Stomping Grounds was a very significant milestone for him and for us as his carers. At the time, we were unsure how he would respond to working with new individuals or to being in an environment that he has previously found challenging. From the offset, we were reassured by the professionalism of the Stomping Grounds practitioners; particularly how they managed the communication with us, the local authority, and the multi-disciplinary team working with him to ensure that his EHCP and previous experiences were understood, and their willingness to seek guidance when considering required supports for managing potential challenging behaviours driven by his autism and mental health difficulties. The practitioners have sent regular observations and updated targets for future sessions, which we can share with others involved in his care. Our feedback and observations are also encouraged, and in this way it is transparent how his sessions are structured to meet his needs and in a manner that maximises the experiences and expertise of those working with, and caring for him.

It has been an absolute joy to watch our son at Stomping Grounds. We have seen him develop a trusting bond with the practitioners involved, and a positive relationship with the forest school site. The perceived silence of the woods and the sensory overload from the plants has triggered anxieties in the past. However, he has grown to love the woods and now explores confidently without the need for constant check-ins. We have seen our son move back towards the happy engaged little boy we knew before the onset of his mental health difficulties. He talks excitedly about his achievements with us after each session, and when we return home, he is keen to share these achievements and his experiences with other members of his family. We have also noticed a reduction in his OCD-related behaviours, which were initially prominent during the sessions, and an increase in his willingness to engage in activities independently and with less specific direction, both at forest school and at home.

What is notable about the approach adopted by the practitioners at Stomping Grounds is that they see our son as a capable child, able to learn and accomplish, rather than focusing on disability and the assumed limitations that can come with a diagnosis. It feels that through simple, yet continual, acts that communicate expectation and trust to him, a context has been constructed in which he too holds these expectations of himself, and the consequence of this feels important beyond the boundaries of his forest school experiences. Given the progress that he is making, and the transference of benefit into his everyday life, it was the opinion of his multidisciplinary team that we seek to increase his time at Forest School. We are currently working with the Stomping Ground team and the LA to deliver this over the coming term.”