Nature Nurture began as a project aimed a providing outdoor play and learning opportunities for children from deprived areas of Aberdeen.   Now, working in partnership with Aberdeen City Council, we have funding to give 50 children from the most challenging of backgrounds chance to spend time in the tranquil woodlands in the estates of Camphill School on the outskirts of Aberdeen.  Groups of up to 10 children have  10 week block sessions of one afternoon a week following a programme designed to promote resilience, to raise self esteem and self confidence and develop awareness and appreciation of the natural environment.  Other outcomes have also been apparent, such as developing stamina, increased communication and social skills and a general catch up with developmental delays caused by trauma and hardship.  The feedback from the sessions so far has been heartwarming.  Parents and other professionals have been impressed by the therapeutic influence of natural surroundings, nurturing approaches and being outside no matter what the weather in suitably protective clothing.  The children have had so much fun and made more progress than any of us dared imagine.

Now we turn our sights to expanding our project.  We want to set up nurturing outdoor opportunities for older children from the poorest areas of Aberdeen and/or from deprived backgrounds.  By developing programmes that allow for art, craft, play, and loads of experiential learning in all the key curriculum areas, we hope to give even the most reluctant students an experience of success and belief in themselves as learners, creators, collaborators and custodians of their natural environment.

Our staff are co-workers from Camphill who have collectively over 50 years experience of working with children with a variety of learning challenges.  I'm a trained teacher and  additional suport needs educator, Daniel is a teacher and behaviour management expert and Kahren is a play therapist.  We base our approach on Waldorf Educational principles, A Curriculum for Excellence and Forest school approaches, combined with our years of experience designing therapeutic programmes in Camphill. The team share the firm conviction that it is every child's right to have the opportunity to play safely outdoors in beautiful and peaceful surroundings.  We hope to make our grounds available to every child in Aberdeen and surrounding areas, who would not otherwise have those opportunities.