Learning through Landscapes Scotland

Find out how we're celebrating 10 years of Local School Nature Grants 🎉 Make sure to apply for a grant before the deadline on 13 March! That's only one week away!

Ten years of giving our Local School Nature Grants - Learning through Landscapes We've given £2.5 million worth of equipment to 4500 schools through LSNG, plus more than 14,000 hours of training! Join us in our celebrations this year.

Join us in Stirling from 21-22 April! 🌱

Looking to take outdoor learning further at your school? Become a Lead Teacher in Outdoor Learning this April!

This two-day training course will equip you with the skills and knowledge you need to embed outdoor learning across the curriculum and the school community.

Book now 👉 https://ltl.org.uk/outdoor-learning-event/lead-teacher-in-outdoor-learning-april-2026/

'The trainers were absolutely brilliant, and made the whole experience one to remember. Their enthusiasm was infectious and gave me a new love of life in the outdoors!'

Want to take your early years practice to the next level? Join us for our upcoming Forest Kindergarten training course this spring!

Book your place 👉 https://ltl.org.uk/outdoor-learning-event/forest-kindergarten-course-stirling-march-2026/

Local School Nature Grants are back for 2026! 🥳 Supported by the People's Postcode Lottery, we're offering:

- Two hours of quality outdoor learning training for your staff;
- £500 worth of outdoor equipment for your school;
- A climate curriculum pack worth £150;
- A climate audit of your site; and more!

This is your chance to tell us how a grant would benefit your school or setting in your own words. Every single application is read by a member of LtL staff who is excited to hear about your site, your cohort, and your experiences, so don't hold back!

Applications are open to schools and early years settings in England, Scotland, and Wales until 13 March. If you've received a Local School Nature Grant in previous years, you're instead eligible for our LSNG XL programme, which offers up to 30 hours of CPD training, alongside equipment and resources!

Don't miss out on this amazing opportunity to embed outdoor learning and play into the school day! Not sure where to begin? Take a look at our advice for writing a winning Local School Nature Grant application, plus a deep dive into the training available through the project. Good luck!

Apply now: https://ltl.org.uk/projects/local-school-nature-grants/

How to write a winning application: https://ltl.org.uk/news/how-to-write-winning-local-school-nature-grant-application/
How the training could benefit you: https://ltl.org.uk/news/local-school-nature-grants-outdoor-learning-training/

Applications for My Nature Play are now open to early years settings in Scotland, England, and Wales! Learn more about the project and find out how to apply 👇

Applications for My Nature Play are now open! 📣

Young children are happier and healthier when they have regular opportunities to play outdoors. That’s why our new My Nature Play project helps young children fall in love with nature by improving their outdoor experiences in their early years settings.

From February 2026, My Nature Play will be delivered across 170 early years settings throughout England, Wales and Scotland. Each participating setting will receive:

🌱 Six in-person training sessions, delivered onsite during the day by an LtL early years specialist
🌱 A high-quality outdoor clothing library for staff and children
🌱 A personalised My Nature Play plan developed during follow-up visits, ensuring that playful outdoor learning becomes an embedded, sustainable part of daily practice
🌱 The confidence to facilitate high-quality outdoor play and make the most of outdoor spaces and local green spaces in all weathers

Applications for My Nature Play are open to early years settings in England, Wales, and Scotland until midnight on 4 January, 2026. Apply now or visit our website to learn more.

Apply 👉 https://forms.office.com/e/AyrqHMuWyD
Learn more 👉 https://ltl.org.uk/projects/my-nature-play/

The Scottish School Grounds Survey Report 2025, written by Professor John H. McKendrick, is now available to read for free on our website.

Published in partnership with Play Scotland and NatureScot, with some input from Sportscotland, the report reflects the positive impact of outdoor learning, play, and nature connection on school communities. It evidences some positive changes in the Scottish school estate since the last survey in 2005, but also reveals there's plenty of work left to do.

Our CEO, Matt Robinson, says: “We're extremely grateful to the teachers who volunteered their valuable time to support the survey. The interest in this huge piece of research, capturing evidence from over one thousand Scottish schools, is an indication of how strongly educators value their school grounds. The survey will inform LtL’s work within the schools grounds sector, supporting schools to get the most from their grounds.”

Visit our website to read the report in full, along with the summary report from earlier in the year and the reports from the 2005 survey.

👉 https://ltl.org.uk/projects/scottish-school-grounds-survey/

Only two weeks left to apply for the Happy By Nature Fund ⏰ Don't miss out on this amazing opportunity to transform your school's outdoor space for nature, learning, and play!

Apply now 👉 https://ltl.org.uk/projects/happy-by-nature/

Apply for the Happy By Nature Fund now! 📣

In partnership with WWF UK, we're excited to offer 10 schools a grant of £10,000 each, plus expert guidance, training, and support from Learning through Landscapes to transform their outdoor spaces for nature, learning, and play. Applications are open to state-funded primary schools across the UK who:

- Identify as having a current lack of quality green outdoor space;
- Demonstrate strong senior leadership support for the project; and
- Show commitment to involving pupils and staff throughout.

Successful schools will implement the project between November 2025 and November 2026. Could yours be one of them?

Visit our website to find everything you need to get started. If you don't want to miss out on this incredible opportunity, make sure to submit your application for the Happy By Nature Fund before 9 November!

Apply 👉 https://ltl.org.uk/projects/happy-by-nature/

As we head into another winter with all the challenges it brings for our school grounds, it's a fantastic time to look back at our Climate Ready School Grounds project, carried out in partnership with Architecture and Design Scotland.

Visit our website to discover resources to help you assess and adapt your school grounds to the impacts of climate change, including activities that involve the whole school in creating Climate Ready School Grounds 🌍

👉 https://ltl.org.uk/projects/climate-ready-school-grounds/

As part of our 20th anniversary, we’re looking back at projects that helped shape Scotland’s response to the climate emergency. The final project we’re spotlighting for is

Climate Ready School Grounds, a year-long collaboration between Architecture and Design Scotland and Learning through Landscapes Scotland

We asked: Can school grounds do more to tackle climate risks while supporting outdoor learning and play?

We worked with three schools across Scotland to explore this question, each representing different communities and landscapes. Through workshops and co-design with pupils, we focused on six key areas:
🌡️ Heat, cold & wind
💧 Water management
🌬️ Air quality
🌿 Biodiversity
🧱 Carbon management
🎒 Learning, play & community

The result is a practical resource full of ideas, case studies and action plans to help schools, communities and local authorities create Climate Ready School Grounds — with benefits for play, biodiversity, health and learning.

🔗 You can explore the resource on our website: https://bit.ly/4nn4b6X

Outdoor Learning Jobs | Work for Learning through Landscapes We're always looking for dedicated people with a passion for environmental education. Join the UK's leading outdoor learning charity now.

Are you joining the celebrations on November 6? 🥳

Outdoor Classroom Day is the global movement to inspire and celebrate outdoor learning and play. Will you help us spread the word by raising children's voices?

Giving children a say about the matters that affect them helps to shape them into more confident, resilient, and capable adults. If you're looking for ways to get involved this November, why not help your pupils to make their voices heard by supporting them to tell local officials and dignitaries why time outdoors during the school day is important to them? With only six weeks to go until the next , it could be a great way to start the countdown as a class!

Sign up for Outdoor Classroom Day now, or read our blog to discover ideas for UK teachers about how to put your class in touch with local representatives 👇

Sign up now: https://outdoorclassroomday.com/
Read the blog: https://outdoorclassroomday.org.uk/2025/09/24/help-children-make-voices-heard-outdoor-classroom-day/

By applying abstract concepts to a real-life context, taking maths outdoors can help children to make sense of tricky ideas, embedding their learning through hands-on experiences 💡

This Maths Week Scotland, discover five of our favourite outdoor maths lessons to try with your pupils!

How to teach numeracy outdoors Make maths come alive for your pupils with 5 ideas for teaching numeracy outdoors from early years to secondary school.