Regenerus is a social enterprise and charity, based in Bootle providing a wide range of services to social enterprises and community projects across South Sefton. Promoting collaborative economies, we facilitate networks, linking communities and practitioners to improve health and well-being within our local neighbourhoods.
The community test bed for nature based solutions is a part of Taking Root, these are collective connected activities which are facilitated by Regenerus. Taking Root is a collaborative network of community gardens, growing, cultivation and food projects in South Sefton. Within this network Taking Root incorporates multiple layers of activities which collectively promote and facilitate the sharing economy. It connects and encourages members and volunteers to co-create new and innovative ways of working together whereby local people are involved in the design of their community spaces.
The impacts of Taking Root’s activities are wide ranging, including: improving physical and mental well-being, developing new knowledge and skills, increasing social interaction and reducing social isolation, boosting confidence, self-esteem and a sense of achievement, nurturing fresh produce and learning how to add this to our diets to improve health, combatting air pollution and upgrading the local environment, connecting communities and building civic pride.
Taking Root directly supports its volunteers to establish and maintain community gardens in local neighbourhoods. Help is given to identify and design plots, plan growing, secure resources and encourage greater local community involvement.
However, and most importantly, we also link each of our community gardens together as a network to share resources, knowledge and expertise, connect people across neighbourhoods and engage wider members of our communities.
Through creating spaces where people make new connections, we achieve social and economic impact: bringing together volunteers from different groups, for joint learning, collective activity such as green corridor development or even just for some fun at our events.
