Forest school qualifications: Levels 1, 2 and 3 explained

The three levels at a glance

Forest school training is built around three qualifications, developed with the Forest School Association (the FSA) and placed on the Regulated Qualifications Framework in 2018. The titles vary a little between awarding bodies, but the shape is the same everywhere.

Level	Who it's for	Learning hours	Typical course fee
Level 1 Award in Forest School Ethos and Principles	Volunteers, managers and anyone who wants a taste. It does not qualify you to run forest school.	About 30	£250 to £325
Level 2 Award for Forest School Assistants	People who help a qualified leader plan and run sessions.	About 60	£365 to £620
Level 3 Certificate for Forest School Leaders	Anyone who wants to set up and lead their own forest school programme.	About 180	£950 to £1,250, with first aid often extra

Learning hours are the FSA's figures and include your own study time, not just days with your trainer. Fees are the range across courses advertised in 2025 and 2026, so treat them as a guide and check the current price with the trainer.

Level 1: an introduction

Level 1 is an introduction to the ethos and the six principles. It suits volunteer helpers, managers who need to understand forest school without practising it, and people who want to try it before committing to more. Courses typically run over two or three days in a wood.

It is a good start, but it is not enough on its own to lead a group or run sessions.

Level 2: forest school assistant

Level 2 trains you to assist. An assistant works alongside a qualified leader, helping to plan sessions and run them, and takes an active part rather than just being an extra adult. Courses are usually around five days, sometimes spread across several months, with coursework in between.

Because the coursework is done alongside real sessions, some trainers ask you to have a named Level 3 leader you can work with before you start. The minimum age varies by trainer, from 16 to 19.

Level 3: forest school leader training

Level 3 is the qualification for a forest school leader, the person who plans a programme, looks after the site and is responsible for the group. It is the one most people mean when they talk about forest school training, and it is the biggest commitment of the three.

Who can start Level 3

Most trainers set a minimum age of 18 to 21, and ask for some experience of working with children or young people, or a relevant qualification. You do not usually need Level 1 or Level 2 first. A few trainers let you top up a recent Level 2 to Level 3.

What you learn

• Practical skills: lighting and managing a fire, cooking on it, using and caring for tools, knots, shelters and play structures.
• Teaching those skills safely to a group.
• How children learn and grow, and how to let them lead their own learning.
• Weighing risk against benefit, and writing it down.
• Woodland plants and animals, and managing a site sustainably so it stays healthy year after year.
• Explaining forest school and its benefits to families, schools and colleagues.

Your site, your group and the observed session

Part of the course is running forest school for real. Trainers typically ask you to plan and deliver a short programme, usually six sessions, with the same group each time. That means you need access to a wooded site and a group to work with, whether that is a class from your school, children at your nursery or a group of adults. Some trainers set a maximum group size, such as 16.

Your trainer visits one of those sessions to watch you lead, give feedback and talk through your safety, your leadership and how the six principles show up in what you do.

The portfolio

Alongside the practical days you build a portfolio of written evidence. Typically that means your plans and reflections from the six sessions, plus the assessment tasks your trainer sets. One course sets 20 tasks, some finished during training days and some written up at home.

First aid

You need a current outdoor first aid certificate to complete Level 3 and before you lead sessions. Most trainers expect a 16-hour course with an outdoor element, often called Level 3 Outdoor First Aid. Many trainers run it as two extra days, often at an extra cost of £140 to £200. Some add paediatric first aid as well, which is worth having if you work with young children.

How long Level 3 takes

Expect around 10 to 12 training days, usually in blocks spread over several months so you can run your sessions in between. Many people finish in 9 to 12 months, and some trainers suggest allowing a year from the start before you have the certificate in your hand.

What Level 3 costs

Course fees we found ranged from about £950 to £1,250, with outdoor first aid sometimes included and sometimes extra. Some fees include a year's FSA membership. A few trainers offer subsidised places or payment by instalments, so ask.

Be wary of a Level 3 delivered entirely online. Since February 2018 the FSA has not accepted a purely online Level 3 for its Recognised Forest School Provider scheme, and the woodland skills are hard to learn from a screen.

Assistant or leader: which do you need?

If you will be helping someone else run sessions, Level 2 is enough. If you want to plan the programme, choose and look after the site, write the risk-benefit assessments and be the person responsible on the day, you need Level 3.

The FSA's Leadership Principle puts it simply: "Forest School is run by qualified Forest School practitioners, who continuously maintain and develop their professional practice." A forest school assistant works alongside that leader, and the leader holds the Level 3.

Who awards forest school qualifications

Your trainer runs the course, but the certificate comes from an awarding body. The FSA supports awarding bodies that offer the whole qualification with all of its requirements. Its current list includes:

• Agored Cymru (Wales)
• AIM Qualifications and Assessment Group
• ITC First
• LASER Awards
• Newbattle Abbey College (Scotland)
• NOCN
• Qualifications Network UK
• Skills and Education Group Awards

Ask your trainer which awarding body they work with. If you or your organisation might apply to become an FSA Recognised Forest School Provider later, check it is on the FSA's list before you book.

The Forest School Association's part

The Forest School Association represents forest school practitioners across the UK. It does not award qualifications itself, but it shapes them, and it runs two schemes worth knowing about.

• Endorsed trainers. An FSA Endorsed Forest School Trainer has been through a three-stage quality assurance process and commits to ongoing professional development. Every endorsed trainer offers a Level 3 the FSA recognises. Trainers part-way through the process are listed as Registered. To train others at all, the FSA expects a trainer to hold their own Level 3, a teaching or training qualification, an assessing qualification and at least two years of running forest school themselves.
• Recognised Forest School Providers. Organisations that run forest school in line with all six principles can apply for recognition. One requirement is at least one Level 3 qualified member of staff, which is why the choice of qualification matters.

Both schemes are built on the six principles, and so is good Level 3 training. A course that keeps coming back to them is a good sign.

How to become a forest school leader

There is no separate forest school teacher qualification. Teachers, nursery practitioners, youth workers and people changing career all take the same Level 3. The usual route looks like this:

1. Spend time in forest school sessions if you can, as a volunteer or on a Level 1 course.
2. Find a site and a group you could run six sessions with during your training.
3. Choose a Level 3 trainer who works with a supported awarding body.
4. Book your outdoor first aid, if it is not part of the course.
5. Complete the training days, the six sessions, the observed visit and your portfolio.
6. Keep learning once you qualify, with refreshers, skills days and time with other leaders.

Schools and nurseries will also ask for an enhanced DBS check, and you will need your own insurance if you go freelance. If that is your plan, have a look at working as a freelance forest school leader.

How to choose a forest school trainer

The FSA points out that the quality of training, the type of qualification and the support afterwards vary a great deal across the UK. It suggests reading a few trainers' websites, then talking to two or three before you decide. Questions worth asking:

• Which awarding body is the certificate from, and does the FSA support it?
• Are you an FSA Endorsed Trainer?
• How many days will we spend in the woods together?
• Is outdoor first aid included, and is paediatric first aid an option?
• How do you support people between training days, and after they qualify?
• Do you still run forest school yourself, and have you worked with groups like mine?
• What do I need to bring, and what is provided?
• Could I talk to someone who finished your Level 3 recently?

The last one tells you most. Ask a recent graduate whether they felt ready to lead at the end, and whether they still feel supported now.

Keeping your training up to date

Qualifying is the start. Outdoor first aid needs renewing, tool and fire skills need practice, and the Leadership Principle asks you to keep developing. The forest school training and CPD diary lists training days run by forest schools for other practitioners, from Level 3 courses to first aid and bushcraft, and you book direct with whoever is running it.

If you keep a record of your own, a free practitioner account holds your qualifications, first aid, DBS and CPD in one place, and goes with you to every school or forest school you work for. If you run training yourself, you can list your courses for forest school trainers in the same diary.

Sources

• Forest School Association, Forest School qualifications: the three levels, learning hours and awarding bodies.
• Forest School Association, Full principles and criteria for good practice: the Leadership Principle quoted above.
• Forest School Association, How to choose a trainer and the trainer quality assurance scheme: endorsed and registered trainers.
• Course fees and formats: published listings from Scotswood Garden, Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust, Suffolk Wildlife Trust and other UK trainers, 2025 to 2026.