Enable Wellbeing in Nature Cirencester

The environment

Learning about who we share the woodland site with - plants, fungi, birds, animals - is an ongoing delight. People of all ages can get closer to nature, make connections and get a greater sense of guardianship. We have carried out some coppicing and woodland ride management this winter, enabled by the new tools and gloves we purchased with the crowdfunder, but only had a small number of volunteers, so some of the work is going to be carried over to next winter. We have created habitat piles for bugs and have many more plans to conserve and enhance the biodiversity of the site which will be an ongoing project.

Volunteering, jobs & education

After the crowdfunder, we have had grants from Cirencester Town Council and Gloucestershire Community Funders to develop our volunteering opportunities, including writing a volunteer handbook and attending a course in managing volunteers. This is still ongoing and we are looking forward to welcoming volunteers once we have all the basics in place. Overall, we have had about six participants in our volunteer work and wellbeing group on a Monday; the group has supported the participants to learn new skills and build confidence, and some of them have gone on to paid work now which is fantastic. Without the tools and equipment bought with the crowdfunding money, this group would certainly not be possible. We also have enough tools and equipment now to offer training opportunities for practitioners. The programme encourages teachers, counsellors and others working with people to take their practice outdoors and to improve their practical skills and confidence in regards to fire lighting, plant knowledge and sharp tools and others. We hope that this will lead to more people of all ages being able to spend time outdoors, playing and learning in nature.

Arts, culture & heritage

We have everything in place now to host sessions promoting heritage skills but for now have prioritised working on our regular groups as well as establishing some other sessions that will hopefully generate an income for our organisation. We have just launched a training programme for outdoor practitioners which includes heritage skills relating to the natural world (woodland/bushcraft skills). We very often include crafts during our sessions as it helps to connect to nature in a creative way. We have also just received a funded place for one of our practitioners to become a qualified Mindful Photography tutor through Look Again Photography.

Activity, health and leisure

Wellbeing is at the heart of what we do. Spending time in nature has a whole range of benefits for our physical and mental health. Participants very often start to feel relaxed shortly after arriving at our site, and sessions are planned according to the Five Ways to Wellbeing as well as the Five Pathways to Nature Connection, actively promoting mental health. Our volunteer work and wellbeing group offers the opportunity for participants to be physically active within the limits of their own abilities. The children in our family groups also enjoy being active exploring and playing in the woods. A study elsewhere has found that children in a Forest School lesson at primary school are more active than in a PE lesson. The kit bought with the crowdfunder has really helped to support all our activities and therefore all our work around wellbeing in nature. We are actively seeking out partner organisations to bring our programmes to marginalised groups, those with mental health challenges and those who experience barriers to nature connection; this work is ongoing and has been enabled through the crowdfunder by having the right equipment in order to offer groups and sessions. The campaign also paid for a food hygiene course. This enabled us to take part in the Holiday Activity and Food programme in the summer and Christmas holidays. As the name suggests, we provided activities and healthy food to children and families, some of which were on free school meals.