Home - Develop Outdoors

We deliver and support education and personal development opportunities

Who are we?

Develop Outdoors is a Community Interest Company. We offer a range of community-based services to combat loneliness and isolation and discover and learn new skills. We work with young people and encourage them to get outside and discover the green spaces around them.

We deliver and support nurturing education and personal development opportunities. We work with children, young people, and families. We deliver accredited training courses for Alternative Education Provision in East Sussex & Brighton & Hove.

This is qualification led provision for very small groups of Key Stage 3 & 4 students on a whole year, 2 or 3 days per week programme. The provision is purchased by schools and agencies. We also provide spot purchased, one day courses & one to one education provision for excluded children.

Through the school holidays and weekends, we provide art and creative activities and Forest Schools for groups of children aged 5 – 14 years.

TESTIMONIALS

Katie Wood

Develop Outdoors has been the difference for a number of the children and young people that I am working with. Many young people with complex needs based around SEMH are not able to attend school full time. Support from Develop Outdoors and the wonderful team means that for some of these young people, they have been able to engage with learning for the first time in a long time and to finally start to hear about their strengths and rediscover what they are good at. For some children and young people, Develop Outdoors is the first reason that they have left the house for a while, and offers something meaningful that they can fully engage with.

Parent

Our daughter is in Year 9 with ASC and ADHD and has attended Develop Outdoors for 9 months as a ‘2 day a week’ alternative provision from her secondary school.

She is on the ‘Room To Bloom’ course and she absolutely loves it! She really enjoys the variety of different activities they do – including an introduction to bushcraft; budgeting and cooking a meal; designing and making a bird feeder and learning about first aid and CPR. Every session is different and the small group setting with a low demand, non-pressurised approach to learning is perfect for her. Functional Maths and English skills are also covered.

She really feels understood, nurtured and liked by the staff there, and we really appreciate the time and effort they take to make her feel as though her contribution is really valued. As a young person who experiences high anxiety and is reluctant to leave her room at times, it is fantastic to see her getting up and ready early each day, keen to be there on time and to know that she will be either out in the community or doing Forest School activities outdoors with other young people.

In addition, she was recently delighted to be presented with a folder full of AQA Unit Award Scheme certificates that she has successfully completed in her time at Develop Outdoors. This was a huge boost to her self-confidence and self-esteem and the certificates evidence the huge breadth of learning covered throughout the year.

She has benefitted so much from her time at Develop Outdoors and has decided to continue onto the ‘Life Course’ for KS4, which will be 3 days a week from September. We are delighted to have found a setting so well suited to our daughter’s needs and would recommend them without hesitation.

Rich & Caroline

Develop Outdoors have engaged and empowered my daughter who was chronically disengaged from education and society, we had hit crisis point. She has worked with them for 3 months and has transitioned into a completely different person, more stable, happy and can see a future. All of the staff we have worked with have gone above and beyond to support us all on this journey.

Head Teacher

“Develop Outdoors has made such a difference to the young people they have worked with. In some cases, this has been a short-term intervention which has supported them at a difficult time, for others it has led to the gaining of qualifications and a pathway into college courses. Develop Outdoors staff care about young people and work beside them to bring out their strengths.”

Lou & Mike

To Yolandi, Not only are you an amazing support mentor coach and friend to our son ( who adores you), you are such an amazing support and friend to us all too! He has come on so much since spending time with you at Develop outdoors. You’ve broadened his mind. He’s talking about the future and has aspirations now, he is so happy and settled. Thank you

Community

FOREST SCHOOL

Forest school s an outdoor education process that allows children to develop themselves through healthy engagement with risk, problem-solving and self-discovery, all within a natural environment in a hands-on and playful manner.

Children will undertake activities in local woodland areas that will develop skills, understanding and knowledge of the environmental issues and gain self-confidence and resilience

Develop Outdoors has four Forest School accredited staff to deliver the programmes there are volunteering opportunities available for parents and members of the community who would like to become involved. It is anticipated that the Forest School hopes to commence in time for our Christmas workshop

We are currently in discussion with local schools about them being able to access this programme as part of their pupil enrichment offer. This service will be funded through paid places, with a number of low-cost or free places being available for residents on low incomes.