You’ll find me in the forest…
BFS has a number of STAFF and VOLUNTEERS who assist in running our forest school sessions, planning activities and preparing resources. All BFS staff who lead sessions alone are fully Forest School qualified, DBS checked, First Aid trained and they hold Public Liability Insurance. They include…
ANDY WILSON founded Bristol Forest School in 2004. He trained with the original Forest School cohort from Bridgwater College, and has a wealth of experience from 18 years forest school teaching.
Andy runs regular Forest School sessions and parties at both the BFS woodland and in schools throughout Bristol. He also runs Forest School staff training. As Woodland Manager, Andy has successfully transformed the BFS site into a beautiful and accessible educational space; he monitors our ecological footprint through an environmentally sustainable attitude to Our Woodland.
SOPHIE BUTLER joined Andy in 2011 and together they expanded Bristol Forest School. She is a trained Early Years teacher and qualified as a Level Three Forest School Leader in 2012. Sophie’s passion for nature and sustainability has grown over the years since living off-grid in an eco village in Hawaii.
Sophie established the BFS Pre-Schools, the Saturday Club Minis and Adventurers. She now supports the running of these groups and is responsible for BFS’s policies, website and social media.
V
ERONIKA SIMON studied agricultural engineering before working as a special needs teacher for primary school children with EBD as well as in a nursery for Pre-School children. Veronika enjoys sharing her passion for nature and animals and can often be found in her allotment digging or watching the bees!
Veronika became a qualified Forest School leader in 2018; she started volunteering with Bristol Forest School in 2020 and now runs schools sessions and BFS parties. Contact Veronika directly.
KATE BERRY is an art educator with 16 years’ experience delivering workshops in natural history, conservation, poetry, story creation, art, design and photography. She is passionate about outdoor education and wildlife conservation.
Kate has worked at Bristol Forest School since 2016 and has a Level 3 Forest School qualification.
BESS SPENCER worked as an ‘Access to Nature’ play-worker in inner city London and trained as a Forest School leader in 2018. She now practices and teaches co-counselling and nature-facilitation activities using Tom Brown’s Apache derived techniques.
At Bristol Forest School, Bess assists with our school sessions.
BECCA QUIRK is an artist, craftsperson and outdoor practitioner, with experience in outdoor education and well-being working with all ages from early years to adults. She is passionate about the benefits of nature for health and well-being and loves climbing mountains and cooking over the fire.
Becca is currently training as an Art Psychotherapist and working towards her Level 3 Forest School qualification. At BFS she helps with school sessions and also runs BFS parties.
NIKI SMITH is a former Early Years/KS1 teacher who spent seven years, as a nursery teacher or supporting children with ASD. She became interested in Forest School when she saw first hand at BFS the power of forest school in developing the independence and confidence in the children she was supporting.
Niki is studying for her Level 3 Forest School Leader qualification. She is assisting Veronika in school sessions working with children with special educational needs.