Posted on: May 1, 2012
Orchard Planting Weston Super Mare
The Natural Connections project has been working with a group in Weston Super Mare, from the Healthy Living Centre, who are involving the local community to develop an allotment site. To encourage more local people to get involved and raise awareness of this excellent project the Forest of Avon Trust worked in partnership with Avon Wildlife Trust to engage local families in a day of planting and making bug homes to improve the allotment for both people and wildlife.
A dozen apple trees were planted around the plot with some companion planting of herbs and lavender to attract pollinators and benefit the trees. Despite the ground being a bit heavy going all the planting was completed on the day and a high level of interest was generated in the wider project with many of those involved committed to coming out again. Everyone stayed out for the whole session and a family, with two boys who had not been to the site before, were keen to start preparing ground on the rest of the site for future planting. The boys said ‘This is so much better than being indoors and being bored!’.
Posted on: March 15, 2012
Enjoying a well earned break after a day of planting & mulching
The sound of the Suburb’s Church, Cadbury Heath has recently included skips being filled. Pastor Michael Williams and members of the Church have transformed a green area and on the 6th March, the Trust helped them apply the finishing touches.
Michael, Nathan Duggan and Liam Thomas (and Jon Clark!) planted 180 native shrubs and barrowed numerous loads of mulch to keep the weeds down. The Trust co-ordinated the planting, with funding coming from a grant from Oldland Parish Council and free mulch from South Glos Council.
It’s a great project and demonstrates the Trust’s role in delivering more trees, more action.
Posted on: December 13, 2011
The Forest of Avon Trust has worked with local farmer Mr Clapp to help him secure grants from the Forestry Commission for improving his community woodland: Meadow Wood. Grants have helped pay for a new sign welcoming people in to the woodland and waymarkers and posts. A grant will also contribute towards annual management costs for five years.
Meadow Wood is a fantastic developing woodland in the Avon Valley, adjacent to the Monarch’s Way between Keynsham and Bitton. Walkers are welcome. General location here.
The Forest of Avon Trust is advising a number of woodland owners about the grants which are available for woodland management and public access, (as well as new planting). If you have a woodland, please contact Jon Clark on (0117) 963 3383 to discuss further and arrange a free site visit.
Posted on: October 25, 2011
The following activity guides have been developed by Rachel Tomlinson for the Forest of Avon Trust to help groups and families to use their senses to explore and discover natural spaces that have trees growing in them. Whether it is a woodland, park or an open space with a few trees growing these activities can be used during a walk, picnic or as a more formal education session to learn about the natural world.
The first two activities relate to Kingsweston Estate in Northwest Bristol and are set out to be part of a walk to explore some the area around the house. However the spaces to play and explore guide has activities that could be used elsewhere. For more information about Kingsweston Estate, a public park based around a private house that has a cafe and hosts weddings and conferences, there is a new community website being developed.
Kingsweston Estate Activity Guides
Tree Treasure Hunt at Kingsweston Estate
Spaces to play and explore around Kingsweston Estate
Exploring and Discovering sensory games and activity guides
Woodland Collecting Game
Woodland Bingo – Natural Textures – page1
Woodland Bingo – Natural textures – page2
Woodland Bingo – Natural Shapes – page1
Woodland Bingo – Natural Shapes – page2
Woodland Bingo – Looking – page1
Woodland Bingo – Looking – page2
Woodland Bingo – Listening – page1
Woodland Bingo – Listening – page2
Posted on: October 18, 2011
Some quiet time to reflect.
Children playing outdoors and groups being taken in to natural spaces is nothing new. Forest School in the UK has been developed over the last 15 years through influences from Scandinavia but also from a long history in the UK of groups playing and learning outside.
What is starting to develop now is a wealth of both informal and formal observations and case studies of the benefits of supporting groups of all ages to access nature. Anyone who has come across Richard Louv’s book Last Child in the Woods will be more than convinced by the need to get children out in to green spaces. Over the last 10 years Forest Research, which is part of the Forestry Commission, has expanded its research to explore in detail the ways in which trees benefit wider society. The breadth of evidence presented by Forest Research of spending time in woodlands along with books such as Sara Knight’s Forest School for All helps to establish the importance of these experiences for all of us.
Common themes emerge from Richard Louv’s overview of global research and of the work of Sara Knight and researchers at Forest Research. Experiences in nature, particularly but not exclusively for children, have the potential to provide the following key benefits: Increased confidence; Increased social skills; Improved language and communication; Improved motivation and concentration; Improved physical fitness and ability and increased levels of interest in and concern for nature. An important point as highlighted by Richard Louv is that if society does value the benefits of spending time in the natural world then it is important that children develop a lasting and caring relationship for it as they will be its future stewards.
Locally the work of the Natural Connections project, at the Forest of Avon Trust, and Rowena Kenny, of Forest Foundations, have explored these themes through case study projects in the Bristol area.
Rowena’s in depth Exploratory Case Study of Forest School in the Early Years Foundation Stage and her wider work can be found online here.
Jon Attwood’s case study project in partnership with Twerton First Steps Nursery in B&NES can be downloaded here.
Posted on: October 14, 2011
Exploring natural colours in the woods and creating a Natures Palette
Sessions run by Natural Connections to work with Adults with Learning Disabilities are being further developed through a new project ‘Into the Woods’. The development of a new partnership with the Silvanus Trust and the Faculty of Education at the University of Plymouth has made it possible to extend this work and explore in more detail the potential benefits. The project is being developed and run by Nicola Ramsden and Rachel Tomlinson for the Forest of Avon Trust and has three main aims:
- To explore what people think and feel about their involvement in woodland activities and how their experiences contribute to their personal and social wellbeing;
- To help people providing these activities to establish the benefit they have;
- To share the results and any lessons for best practice, with other people who provide woodland activities, as well as funders and researchers.
Information and feedback will be collected before, during and after the six sessions being run with the groups, from Shirelink day care centre and City of Bristol College. A report will be produced evaluating ‘Into the Woods’ and findings will be used to inform best practice.
