Grants totalling more than £10,000 have been awarded by Dorset Community Foundation to 12 grass roots groups and charities using nature to improve people’s quality of life
The Nature Heals Seed Fund was launched in partnership with Dorset High Sheriff Sibyl Fine King, who has made promoting the healing power of the natural world one of the themes of her shrieval year.
The fund is aimed at small projects using nature to benefit people…
The Big Yellow Bus Garden Project community garden at Shillingstone, near Sturminster Newton, has been awarded £1,000 for adaptive tools, as well as items like kneelers and portable sunshades, to help older people and those with disabilities take part in horticultural activities.
The four-acre site has a community orchard, growing space and formal gardens and is used by young people, older people, refugees and adults with disabilities. A third of the food grown goes to Sturminster Foodbank, a third to Blandford Foodbank and the rest taken home by gardeners.
Founder Paul Williams said: “The grant will help us make the garden more accessible, so we are very pleased. We want as many people as possible to be out enjoying working in the garden.
“People get real satisfaction and a feeling of wellbeing from knowing they are helping to grow produce that is feeding people. When you plant a seed and nurture it, seeing it grow actually feeds you back and when people see they have produced a crop of potatoes or carrots, the feeling of self-worth in them is palpable.”
Dorset Community Foundation director Grant Robson said he is proud to have connected so many worthwhile projects with a donor who cares so much about using nature as a healing tool. “We are very thankful for Sybil’s support for this fund and delighted that her generosity will fuel so much good work.
“These are all small projects but they are having a huge impact.”
Find out more about the work of Dorset Community Foundation at dorsetcommunityfoundation.org.