Emotional benefits of Forest School programmes for primary school children

Amid growing concerns about children’s emotional well-being and declining connection to nature, Forest School programmes have attracted considerable interest. Although qualitative studies suggest improvements in emotional and social well-being, quantitative research with primary-aged children remains limited. This study examined the immediate emotional effects of a single Forest School session on children aged 7–9 (N = 102) from three UK primary schools. Using a quasi-experimental, repeated-measures design, participants completed the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule for Children and the Child Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale before and after the session. Positive affect and self-esteem increased significantly, while negative affect decreased significantly. Emotion-specific analyses showed increases in happiness, calmness, alertness, and energy, alongside reductions in loneliness, nervousness, and fear. Exploratory analyses indicated that responses varied depending on affective item wording. These findings offer novel quantitative evidence supporting Forest School participation as a valuable and scalable intervention for promoting emotional well-being in mainstream education.