Forest School Workshop at VISUAL Carlow

What to Expect

VISUAL Carlow runs a three-day Forest School Workshop for children aged 5 to 12 across 19, 20 and 21 August, the last full week of the school holidays. Forest School is an outdoor-led approach built on child-directed play and practical skills in a natural setting rather than a classroom, so sessions typically work with what the grounds provide: shelter building, natural materials, tool use appropriate to the age group, and time simply spent outside without a screen.

VISUAL sits in the grounds of Carlow College with green space around the building, and the arts centre programmes children’s activity alongside its gallery work through the year, including the weekly Little VISUAL early years sessions for ages 1 to 4 and the free drop-in DIY Zine Studio that runs through the summer exhibitions. The Forest School run is the older-child counterpart to those, and it is ticketed and booked in advance rather than drop-in. Places are limited by the nature of the format, so booking early matters more here than it does for the free gallery activities.

Good to Know

• Wednesday 19 to Friday 21 August 2026, at VISUAL Centre for Contemporary Art, Old Dublin Road, Carlow Town.
• For children aged 5 to 12.
• Booking required through VISUAL’s Ticketsolve box office. Start times and the price are confirmed at the point of booking.
• Phone the box office on 059 917 2400 or call in person if you would rather book that way.
• Dress children for outdoor weather and mess: boots, a rain jacket and clothes you do not mind ruining.
• Tickets at VISUAL are non-refundable and non-transferable, so tell the box office if you cannot attend and free the place.
• The VISUAL galleries are free to enter during opening hours if you have time before or after.

Getting There

VISUAL is on the Old Dublin Road in the grounds of Carlow College, roughly a ten-minute walk from Tullow Street and the town centre. There is free on-site parking, which is the practical option for a morning drop-off. Carlow railway station on the Dublin Heuston to Waterford line is about fifteen minutes on foot, and town buses stop nearby on the Dublin Road.