Let’s Go Outside and Learn CIC was established in 2015 and over the last four years has developed a strong ethos of working with vulnerable groups to encourage access to outdoor environments to benefit their health and wellbeing, to provide opportunities to socialise and to break down barriers to accessing parks and open spaces in the London Boroughs of Hounslow and Richmond. Target groups are vulnerable adults, children and young people particularly those who are at risk of isolation. Outdoor activities teach people about their natural environment, allow people to socialise, get exercise, enhance mental wellbeing and learn new skills. The design of these activities is done partly by the experts that run them, but the participants and volunteers themselves have a lot of input into what happens.
The Freshwater Foundation was able to supply funds to develop a course of sessions for a newly-identified group, younger families. There were 6 sessions, running in the school holidays, which focused on opportunities for learning about the natural environment, nature-based craft activities, gardening and environmental stewardship. During the application process, we were also able to help them examine more closely the aims of the project and how they were going to meet the needs of their target audience.