this training is for anyone working with/caring for babies, children or adults who wants to learn basic and essential first aid skills. the course is run by experienced trainers who have been working and playing in the outdoors as both formal and informal educators for the last 30 years, with both children and adults.

award winning trainers, ITC First, has designed and developed this outdoor first aid course to ensure that the content and context is totally integrated with the ‘forest school’ ethos and rationale.

this qualification is a must for all ‘forest school level 3’ practitioners and those supporting ‘level 3’ practitioners. this course includes the 12 hour ‘paediatric first aid’ qualification and covers the statutory requirements for the ‘early years foundation stage’. the course is also suitable for parents/carers who spend time with their children outside, those leading outdoor learning sessions in school grounds, country parks, nature reserves and other outdoor learning environments. the skills learnt are fully applicable to indoor environments too.

the course takes place in an outdoors setting with plenty of opportunities to practice first aid scenarios. assessment is continuous and certification is dependent on successful continuous assessment, there is no final examination. those who complete the course and are deemed to have reached the required standard are awarded a certificate that is valid for three years. the certificate entitles the candidate to be a ‘first aider’ for 3 years from date of issue.

the 16 hour course consists of 2 units:

unit 1: emergency action

unit 2: incident management

on completion of the full 16 hours of training, successful candidates should understand/be able to:

• the role and responsibilities of the forest school first aider.

• assess an emergency situation safely.

• provide first aid for a child or adult who is unresponsive and breathing normally.

• monitor the vital signs of an unresponsive casualty.

• provide first aid for a child or adult who is unresponsive and not breathing normally.

• provide first aid for a child or adult who has a foreign body airway obstruction.

• provide first aid to a child or adult with external bleeding.

• provide first aid to a child or adult who is suffering from shock.

• provide first aid to a child or adult with anaphylaxis.

• administer first aid to a child or adult with injuries to bones, joints and muscles.

• provide first aid to a child or adult with head and spinal injuries.

• administer first aid to a child or adult with conditions affecting the eyes, ears and nose.

• administer emergency first aid to a child or adult with a chronic medical condition or sudden illness.

• administer first aid to a child or adult who is experiencing the effects of extreme heat and cold.

• administer first aid to an infant and a child with burns or scalds.

• administer first aid to an infant and a child who has been poisoned.

• administer first aid to an infant and a child who has been bitten or stung.

• administer first aid to an infant and a child with minor injuries.

• to gain and use casualty history to help with administering first aid.

• to complete records relating to illnesses, injuries and emergencies.

• provide the above first aid in an outdoor context taking account of, and protecting casualties from, environmental conditions