Play Wild

Play Wild, David Tipling, 2020 Vision

Discover your wild life

Wondering where to start when it comes to getting your little ones outdoors? We can help!

We've been working with, Eastern Moors Partnership, Natural England, National Trust, Peak District National Park Authority, Staffordshire Wildlife Trust, Derby University and RSPB to reconnect families with their local green spaces and provide loads of ideas of how to get outside and what to do when you're there. This has all been made possible thanks to a £47,000 grant from The National Lottery Heritage Fund.

We've also created a traffic light code to show you which of our reserves are great for children, we hold hundreds of events each year for your little ones and we've popped some great play ideas below for you - enjoy!

Play Wild logo

Play Wild traffic light code

We've created a traffic light system for our nature reserves to let you know where and when you can play wild. Look out for these signs:

Green logo: Go wild all year round!

Amber logo: Here wildlife may be more sensitive at different times of the year. Take care to find out where and when to play wild.

Red logo: Here wildlife is sensitive all year round. Remain on paths and take extra care.

Play Wild green

Play Wild amber

Play Wild red

Forest School, Diane Davison, Toyota Manufacturing UK

Find your local nature reserve

Let's play wild!

Taking care of nature’s home

Discover new worlds and creatures whilst taking care not to damage and disturb our home. Follow this code to keep these places wild for all of us.

Make sure an adult knows where you are heading on your wild adventures
Look touch and play only take pictures and memories away
Leave footprints or muddy splashes take litter home
Do keep your dog under control and clean up after them
Leave gates as you find them

Wildlife Watch, Emma Bradshaw

Nature activities

Spotting sheets, activity guides and so much more!

Ideas for playing wild

Stuck for ideas on what to do when you get to our sites? Look no further we have wild play ideas that will occupy the kids for 5 minutes or for 50 minutes…the choice is yours

Green sites

• Build a den for everyone to get in.
• Hunt for bugs everywhere!
• Make a mud face: take a lump of mud and squash it onto a tree then turn it into a face using leaves and sticks that have fallen to the ground.
• Tracking and trailing. Divide into two groups and lay tracks for each other to follow: will there be treasure at the end?
• Make a nest: can you build a nest using twigs, leaves, wool or feathers?

Amber sites

• Spot shapes in the trees:What shapes can you see? Are there dragons lurking? Are there snakes or giant beetles? When the sun shines can you see woodland fairies?
• Leaf art: what can you make from the fallen leaves?
• See who can build the tallest stick tower
• Build a fairy den
• Play hide and seek

Red sites

• See who can spot the most colours or sounds
• Look for bugs along the paths
• Imagine, what your journey would look like for a bug…or a bird- imagine the adventure!
• Tell stories using what you see around you
• Pick blackberries as you walk…make something tasty when you get home!
• Make a nature notebook and record what you see on your visit.

Check out our events

Discover other local reserves, green spaces and wild events near you!

Wild events

Most of the partners in the project run family events that are great for getting children outdoors for very little cost. If you would like to find out more visit the following web pages:

derbyshirewildlifetrust.org.uk/whats-on
visit-eastern-moors.org.uk/plan-your-visit/whats-on.html
derbyshires-national-nature-reserves/derbyshires-national-nature-reserves
nationaltrust.org.uk/days-out
peakdistrict.gov.uk/visiting/events
staffs-wildlife.org.uk/whats-on
rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/events-dates-and-inspiration/events/