The idea
This project will transform the underused grassy area at the front of our local outdoor education centre into a vibrant art and nature space that welcomes wildlife, schools, and the wider community. By collaborating with local volunteers over five community days, we aim to craft artistic installations like sculptural bug houses and growing spaces that support biodiversity. The site will become more engaging and purposeful, serving as a hub for education and connection. Our goal is to foster a lasting relationship with the community, inspiring ongoing support and nurturing a love for nature and creativity.
What we'll deliver
- 100 sculptural art homes for nature
- 2 new beds for growing edibles and inspiring humans
- 2 new beds for rewilding/mini meadows
Why it's a great idea
The area has potential to be a really good co-manged space between the outdoor centre and the wider community, sitting between the public footpath and the front of the centre. It is currently just a grassed area with little biodiversity and is rarely used by people. Our project will provide 5 day visits for children and older community members to come together and start to transform the space. The activities will create spaces for nature and be inspiring to humans. Past Working Title Artists Collective projects have included making a sculptural bug hotel which utlised recycled wood and materials and included school childrens bug drawings pyrographed onto the hotel. This work provided a home for bugs and a focal point for humans in a Northwich Park. We will monitor the bioversity net gain through the project using the open access statutory biodiversity metric tools. We will utilise these tools within sessions so that participants see how they apply to their own projects.
Steps to get it done
- Sign up 5 diverse community groups to the project
- Sign up at least 5 community volunteers to the project
- Work with groups and volunteers to develop a ground plan for the area
- Install the 2 veg growing beds
- Install the two beds for nature
- Plant the 2 veg growing beds
- Plant the 2 beds for nature
- Engage artists to work on the sculptural nature houses
- Run 5 x nature houses workshops
- Install the nature houses
- Use crops within a meal at the centre
- Note changes in the fauna and flora in the area with the BNG tools
- Complete 5 John Muir Awards with volunteers
- Asses the products created during the project and create an action plan for social enterprise products
