A SCHOOL in the Dales is appealing for people to vote for it to secure a community funding grant of £5,000.

The Friends of Kettlewell Primary School, on behalf of the Upper Wharfedale Primary Federation, have submitted a bid to the Aviva Community Fund for a £5,000 grant to build an outdoor classroom for Forest School activities.

The school already has an enclosed pond area, willow tunnels and a woodland at the end of the playing field.

Back in 2000, the National Trust donated carved animal benches to help create a rudimentary learning glade but 15 years of Yorkshire weather has taken its toll, the school says.

The school has achieved its bronze award as a Woodland Trust Eco School and one of the teachers has also undergone North Yorkshire County Council Forest School training to lead activities for pupils at Kettlewell Primary School as well as the other Federation schools of Burnsall, Cracoe and Rylstone and Grassington.

Should the bid be successful, the new classroom would allow the Upper Wharfedale Federation  to take the Forest School to the next level and enable more in-depth activities, investigations and experiments, about the natural world, to be available to school  groups, both locally and further afield.

A spokesman for the federation said: “At a time when small rural schools are under intense pressure to underpin their sustainability, assets such as the Forest School highlight their unique benefits that enhance learning, build confidence and develop social skills.

Anyone over 18, with an email address, is entitled to cast up to 10 votes by following the simply steps from this link:  https://www.avivacommunityfund.co.uk/voting/project/view/17-3147. Voting closes at midday on 21st November.