Homelessness charity Emmanuel House Support Centre in Nottingham has received over £22,000 from the Severn Trent Community Fund, The Nineveh Charitable Trust, The GreenSpace Green Grant, The B&Q Foundation and The Country Land and Business Association. The money will be used for green activities including the allotment project, which is based at Nottingham’s historic Hungerhill Allotment Site in St Ann’s, and will enable homeless and vulnerable people to participate in gardening sessions and outdoor activities.
Following successful grant applications, the project began on 22nd April 2022 and will run for 35 weeks. Emmanuel House’s allotment has been running between April and November for over 10 years, supporting a total of 88 individuals since 2016. The Covid-19 pandemic put the project on hold and volunteers and Emmanuel House staff have been maintaining the allotment throughout the fallow years. The charity has been running group volunteering sessions to prepare the plot for the new project.
This year, the charity hopes that 55 beneficiaries will engage with the project and aims to improve mental and physical health, reduce alcohol and substance use, social isolation and offending behaviour.
Alastair Paylor, Centre Manager at Emmanuel House, said: “We’re incredibly grateful to the numerous supporters for enabling this project to go ahead for another year. In previous years, the sessions have had significant mental and physical health benefits for our beneficiaries, providing them with a sense of responsibility as they care for the land and plants through safe access to nature and the outdoors.”
Sue Heyes, Community Fund Officer at Severn Trent, said: “We’re full of admiration for Emmanuel House and the fantastic support it offers to vulnerable people in Nottingham. We’re particularly impressed with the allotment project they run to help improve people’s mental health and physical wellbeing. It’s exactly the type of scheme we want to support through our Community Fund. With this extra help, we’re looking forward to seeing this great initiative go from strength-to-strength.”
Peter*, an Emmanuel House beneficiary, said: “I saw the allotment as therapy as it got me out of the house. I enjoy learning about new things and I am able to get away from bad situations.”
As well as the allotment, Emmanuel House will be running Green Activity sessions including arts, crafts, walks, building a compost toilet and outdoor cooking.
The allotment sessions will be delivered in partnership with Growing Forward, a community interest company that supports people to improve their mental and physical wellbeing through social and therapeutic horticulture. These sessions will offer group allotment gardening and one-to-one counselling to help alleviate anxiety and trauma.
Paylor added: “Being able to work on the allotment improves the mental health of our service users through building a sense of purpose and achievement as they see the fruits of their labour. This in turn helps to build confidence and self-esteem and the first steps towards integration into the wider community. We are now a GreenSpace Trusted Provider and are able to take referrals from social prescribers. This means that we are able to support more people with their mental and physical health, whilst helping them reach their full potential by developing the skills and knowledge required for gardening and maintenance.”
Volunteer at Emmanuel House’s allotment
Supporters can get involved in the allotment project by applying to become a volunteer. There are a variety of roles available, including a ‘Green Activities Reminderer’, a ‘Transport Companion’, a ‘Green Mentor’ and an ‘Activity Supporter’.
Those interested can read full role descriptions and download the application form on the Emmanuel House website: https://www.emmanuelhouse.org.uk/volunteering/
Interview opportunities
To set up an interview with Emmanuel House CEO Denis Tully or to ask any questions about the allotment project, please get in touch with Rosie Needham-Smith at [email protected].