The idea
A series of free festivals designed to foster our connection with the natural world. Starting in Spring 2025 and culminating in a winter festival in December 2025, we invite you to celebrate with us in the gorgeous green spaces of Hawbush Community Gardens.
The celebrations will deepen our connection to the local landscape and wildlife, through activities that interweave the beauty and power of the seasons with the value of being in community, encouraging us to reflect and participate in nature’s shifts throughout the year. Activities suitable for all ages and abilities will be offered ; nature trails, planting and growing, sound baths, nature crafts, and music.
We will explore traditional heritage crafts such as blacksmithing, greenwood work, weaving, fire-bricks and mini chain-making with wire, that connect us to our collective local history.
We will celebrate the beauty and wisdom of nature, cultivate wellbeing, and build a stronger, more cohesive community
What we'll deliver
- Organise and deliver4 festivals from April 2025 to December 2025, celebrating the seasonal changes
- Engage local schools, clubs, and social groups in the design of the celebrations.
- Facilitate workshops on heritage crafts such as blacksmithing, weaving, and greenwood
- Co-create and promote these events widely to ensure community participation and inclusion.
- Ensure inclusive access, health and safety and risk fully managed
- April- activities around renewal, seeds, awake the land, music. Eggs willow weaving, scavenger hunts. community singing
- July- -summer celebration , soundbaths , community singing , heritage craft focus
- Sept; harvest festival, apple juicing, gratitude for harvest. Evening celebrations
- Dec xmas wreaths, blacksmithing jingle bells, cozy acoustic music
- Woodland folk music evenings at every festival
Why it's a great idea
This project will benefit the whole community, including people of all ages and backgrounds and address inclusive access requirements.
Previous celebrations have been well attended and feedback has demonstrated strong support for regular, local, free to access, nature-based festivals to address the lack of opportunities and events locally for families in our area of social deprivation.
Evidence shows that nature connection supports our mental, physical and emotional wellbeing, as well as benefiting the natural world, through encouraging care and consideration of how we live and the impact on wildlife and local greenspaces.
Heritage craft workshops provide a unique and fun educational opportunity to learn traditional skills, fostering creativity and a lived sense of local history and the work of local ancestors.
Each festival will offer new, fun filled, enriching experiences for local people, enhancing their wellbeing and connection to each other and care for the local environment.
Steps to get it done
- 28th February 2025: Finalise event schedules and secure facilitators
- Feb/March 2025: Launch promotional campaign and engage local schools, clubs, and social groups.
- April 2025 : Kick off with the Spring celebration
- May 2025-December 2025: Host 3 more festivals, culminating in Winter gathering
- December 2025 : Review and report on the project’s impact, sharing successes with the community and backers.
Ekho Collective CIC has successfully secured a variety of grants previously for projects in social prescribing, children's and young people's wellbeing, and innovative heritage and social arts projects. While doing so, we enhance and improve the land as we empower our community to thrive. Through nature-centric initiatives, we aim to improve mental and physical health, reduce stress, and enhance community cohesion by fostering a deeper connection with each other and to the natural world. We believe that a healthier planet leads to healthier individuals and communities. This additional funding will widen access to our work for all local people, as requested through community consultations.
