This high school near Leeds has reopened its forest school after a devastating fire

Following a devastating fire that destroyed the incredibly popular Forest School at Upper Batley High School this summer, the official launch of its rebuild took place on October 22, after the school and local community raised vital funds to be able to recreate and reimagine the space.

Mr Linney (Forest School Teacher) and Mr Sherrard (Assistant Headteacher) are leading the launch under the name of Project Phoenix. The event included a ceremonial ribbon-cutting by Batley Multi Academy Trust CEO Ms Vickers and Mr Linney.

This was supported by Mr Sherrard who assured those in attendance – parents, governors, staff, learners and even ex-learners - that the next phase of the Forest School would be bigger, better and more impressive than before.

Speaking previously, headteacher, Aman Singh Kang said “We are a community school and we love what the forest school has given us so we want to turn this disappointment around and make it something very, very positive.

“We’ll get everyone involved in Project Phoenix, including the wider community, in rebuilding it and making it even better”. His thoughts are echoed by the dedicated team of learners and project lead, Mr Linney.”

Before the fire, Upper Batley High School’s Forest School was well-used, very much appreciated by its learners and provided scope for a multitude of learning, relaxation and connection opportunities, as well as somewhere to be quiet and sit in nature.

Ashti, who is a Year 11 learner and Forest School mentor, broke ground to mark the beginning of the rebuild. Ahead of the ceremony, eager to make a start, Mr Linney and a group of learners had been involved in a clean-up operation together with essential planning and preparing the site for action.

They also had some great help and planning expertise from the Trust’s Chief Operations Officer, Mrs Dack. Simon Beverley, Director at Farmac Building Supplies, generously provided the school with timber to create a new and improved seating area next to the fire pit - which has been re-built by Ashti and an enthusiastic group of KS4 learners.

Nelsons (Birstall) Ltd, a local engineering firm, has played a key role in supporting the project. The company has donated £110 toward the Forest School rebuild and has also offered the use of specialist tools, technical expertise, and hands-on support to help construct the new outdoor classroom.

Funds for Project Phoenix have been raised through a number of imaginative ways. A Go Fund Me initiative, raising £1,875 to date, involved the local community and generated fantastic offers of money, skills, manpower and tools. Some of the school’s wonderful parents organised and promoted a successful bake sale during a parents’ evening, raising over £600 – it was a complete sell-out within just one hour of opening.

Ashti (Year 11) said: “We want to build a legacy for future learners of this school,” while Qasim (Year 9) added: “It is great to see our brilliant Forest School back up and running again.”

Going forward, all Year 7 learners will have a double Forest School session each week. They will benefit from: enjoying the outdoors and nature, working together, and taking the opportunity to learn new skills – as well as being part of a special community who are passionate about the space.

The Forest School environment also links to the taught curriculum with points of reference for most subjects including English, maths, PE and science.

The next steps for Project Phoenix are to embark on the ambitious build of the outdoor classroom. This will be followed by a second, smaller outdoor classroom that will be used as campsite. Reflecting its true community spirit, the school intends to share the facility in the future by holding community events and inviting local primary schools and local businesses to make use of it.