Outside Tribe

An orchard, a woodland area and a private path to Treyarnon beach give Outside Tribe a clear identity: outdoor play is the substance of the preschool day. Children spend at least 80% of their day outside, with a wooden cabin offering shelter and quieter activities. This is a choice for families who want nature to shape their child’s everyday learning, rather than feature occasionally in it.

At its May 2022 inspection, Ofsted rated Outside Tribe Outstanding, praising the planning of learning around the seasons and the quality of adults’ interactions with children. That judgement belongs to the inspected provision at that date. The current approach remains hands-on and child-led, with projects emerging from children’s interests and changes in their surroundings.

Outside Tribe has 16 places in total, and its Forest Pre School welcomes children aged 2½ to 5. The site is at The Orchard, Trethias Farm, Padstow, PL28 8JP. Preschool sessions run during term time on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays; a separate parent-and-child group offers a different way for younger children to experience the site.

Learning and Activities

Forest School here means learning through outdoor exploration, practical tasks and play directed by children’s interests. Its concrete ingredients include den-building, cookery, tool use and learning to handle risk. These sit alongside the EYFS, the framework for children’s learning, development and care: counting, conversation, stories, movement and relationships develop through their daily experiences.

The mud kitchen turns mixing and pouring into opportunities to explore quantity and materials. Rope swings give children reasons to negotiate turns while practising balance and coordination. Insect searches bring magnifying glasses, identification cards and books into play, connecting something a child has discovered with a conversation or further investigation. Adults join the activity and help it develop, rather than requiring everyone to follow the same project.

A welcome song and safety check establish a familiar daily rhythm. Snack gathers children at the log circle for conversation, songs and stories; the tool area brings adult help with choosing wood and using equipment safely. Reflection and a goodbye song close the day, giving child-led play a shared structure.

In May 2022, children counted with wooden frames and natural objects, chose books from baskets around the site and read beneath trees. Firepit storytelling used props to encourage participation and retelling. Literacy and mathematics belonged outdoors too.

Outdoor and Community Life

Meadow, native trees, woodland and wetter ground support different kinds of exploration. Shelters, hammocks, swings and a vegetable plot give children places for activity and rest; fire pits and log circles bring them together for cooking, eating and stories.

Treyarnon beach extends that setting beyond the orchard, reached by a private path. Beach outings are opportunities for exploration, with timing and readiness mattering as much as the destination. In November 2023, a beach outing followed a wait until staff knew new children well enough to establish their understanding of safety boundaries; children carried their belongings, and more experienced children helped younger ones along the uneven route. That example shows the practical demands of the outing as well as its appeal.

Wet weather is part of the offer. Preschool children receive waterproof coats and dungarees, with spare clothing available. Shelters include a workshop and art area, while the wooden cabin contains books, creative materials and open-ended toys and is warmed by a woodburning stove. Extreme weather can therefore change where children play, rather than requiring the day to continue outside regardless.

Relationships and Communication

Continuity is an explicit part of the approach: children spend their days with a consistent team rather than a changing staff rota. The emphasis is on familiar adults having time to respond to individual interests. That matters in a setting where children can be absorbed in separate activities across different parts of the site.

The usual preschool staffing is one adult to four children. This is above the minimum of one adult to five children for two-year-olds and one to eight for children aged three and over. It is a staffing arrangement, not a limit on the size of the group. The team brings experience in teaching and Forest School leadership, and continues to develop its practice through training.

Parents receive detailed accounts of children’s activities. In May 2024, feedback to families included accounts of children’s activities and the learning within them, from making beads from wood to investigating tadpoles. Such detail gives parents something concrete to discuss with their child and helps explain a day that may look very different from an indoor preschool routine.

Inclusion and Wellbeing

At the May 2022 inspection, Ofsted found safeguarding effective and reported excellent learning progress for children, including those with special educational needs or disabilities, with additional language support introduced promptly where needed. These are dated findings, rather than a guarantee about an individual child’s experience today.

Families discuss medical, learning, social and emotional needs when joining, and the team includes a SENCO role. Parents designate who may collect their child. Visitors attend by arrangement, recruitment includes references and enhanced DBS checks, and staff hold paediatric first-aid training.

Hammocks and the cabin provide places to nap; stories and conversation under an apple tree offer quieter moments. Compost toilets have a hand basin and baby-changing area, with support for nappies and toilet learning. Outdoor play has everyday care facilities alongside it.

Sessions and Attendance

Forest Pre School sessions run from 9.30am to 2.30pm on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, for 38 term-time weeks following local primary-school holidays. Two weekly sessions are recommended, rather than compulsory. Families need a care arrangement that fits those days.

The separate Toddler / Stay and Play group is for children aged 0 to 5 with their parents or carers. Its Monday sessions run from 9.45am to 11.15am during term time, with a January and February closure. Weekly crafts, songs and outdoor exploration are part of that group, making it a shorter shared activity rather than a preschool place.

Getting There

The address is The Orchard, Trethias Farm, Treyarnon, Padstow, PL28 8JP, and contact is through the enquiry form or telephone. Families are asked to call before travelling to the site. That instruction is useful for a setting reached within a farm location rather than through a conventional street-front entrance.

Funding and Paid Extras

Funded preschool places accept both 15 and 30 hours funding, alongside funded places for eligible two-year-olds. Preschool attendance is term-time, and additional non-funded hours are charged privately. A voluntary contribution is requested for forest school activities; it should be considered separately from the funded entitlement and any private hours. Current prices come in the nursery’s written quotation, with the fees and funding page explaining the charge categories.

Adults and children bring lunch from home and eat together, while children may help prepare snacks such as fruit or bread. Packed lunch is therefore part of the family’s daily preparation, alongside clothing suited to an outdoor day.

• A predominantly outdoor day. At least 80% of the day is spent outside, with waterproofs, shelters and a cabin supporting different weather conditions. During a visit, explore how your child would use the quieter spaces and manage the physical demands of the site.
• A specific weekly timetable. Preschool runs on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays during term time, with two weekly sessions recommended. Consider how that pattern fits work, other care and school-holiday arrangements.
• Personal care and packed lunches. Children can rest in hammocks or the cabin, and lunch comes from home. Ask how your child’s sleep, dietary and changing needs would be handled within that routine.

Outside Tribe suits families who actively want an outdoor, play-led preschool experience. The orchard, practical activities and access to Treyarnon beach give that choice substance, while the cabin and rest arrangements address the less glamorous necessities of a young child’s day.

Its attendance offer serves two different needs: term-time preschool sessions across the middle of the day, and shorter Monday stay-and-play sessions with a parent or carer. The May 2022 Outstanding judgement provides a strong dated assessment. The decision now is whether this particular combination of outdoor learning, family preparation and a defined weekly timetable suits your child.