COTHERSTONE Primary School pupils got to meet some German visitors while joining their parents in activities in their new forest school.
The forest school was built in January with teacher Jennie Lee training as a forest school leader.
She said the children enjoyed a weekly session in nature since January, whatever the weather, in snow or sunshine.
She added: “The children thoroughly enjoy it. We start by singing the forest school song and then we provide activities and the children can do whatever they want from climbing trees to bug hunting.”
Ms Lee said the sessions are aimed at the holistic development of children, including spiritually and socially.
Also enjoying the day were German visitors Connie Delpho and her children Julie and Eleana who had met Ms Lee when they were both children when she would spend time at her parents’ holiday cottage in Holwick.
Mrs Delpho said she was in awe of the education provided in England.
She added: “I am totally impressed, especially their reading which they learn so early. I am also impressed with how polite children are in Britain.”
She added that children in Germany are unable to read when they start school aged six.
![A COUNTY councillor is backing a campaign to get a pedestrian crossing in Staindrop. Frustrated parish councillors in the village summoned their county council representative Cllr George Richardson to their latest meeting to discuss several issues, including the call for a safe way to cross the A688. Earlier this year their request for a crossing was turned down by the county council’s highways officers. Parish council chairman Jonothan Raper described the reasons for the refusal as “spurious” and called on Cllr Richardson to support their campaign. He added: “One of the arguments they made was there is no clear line of desire when they studied the village – well this isn’t a clear line of desire because there isn’t a crossing, people cross whenever they can. “When the lollipop person was there, one of the things I noticed was people would walk all the way down to the lollipop person to cross the road to go to the shop or to go to the school.” He added a problem of parking at the primary school is exacerbated because people are too afraid to walk their children across the road. Cllr Richardson said he had supported previous attempts for a crossing point with the first being made about 15 years ago. He added: “We went fairly well down the road with that and they looked into it. The only recommended place was where the bus stop is and to get the visibility splays, people on the other side of the road would lose their parking. “That didn’t go down well so it just died a death.” Cllr Raper said he suspected the real reason for the officers’ refusal was the cost of installing a crossing. He added that much of the cost could be recovered from savings made on not having to employ a lollipop patrol. Cllr Raper said: “A lollipop person only provides a benefit of crossing for three hours of the day. You are getting 21 extra hours of crossing time [with a pedestrian crossing].” Cllr Richardson said he would raise the issue with the county council’s cabinet member for highways, Cllr John Shuttleworth.](https://teesdalemercury.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/georgeR-120x86.jpg)
