This summer, Our GHTV beneficiaries have been actively engaged in a community-led research project that sought to understand the impact of nature and healthy eating habits on mental health and wellbeing.

Earlier this year we were successful in securing a grant that allowed our beneficiaries to learn new skills, build their confidence and produce an interesting piece of community research on the importance of good nutrition for mental health and wellbeing. The scheme, run by The Ideas Fund (part of the British Science Association – BSA) and funded by Wellcome, offered our beneficiaries a unique opportunity to run their own research project and present the findings in an interesting and engaging way.

Our beneficiaries discovered that there is often a deep emotional attachment to diet and eating, with long-standing habits passed down through generations. The response to questions about food and nutrition varied by gender, highlighting the need for tailored approaches. The interviews also unveiled the challenges faced by many, particularly those on a tight budget, in pursuing a healthy diet.

An unexpected but wonderful revelation was that more people were interested in gardening and had access to gardens than had previously been expected by the research team!

Thanks to the project grant, beneficiaries also had the opportunity to take part in expert-led nutrition sessions to enhance their own understanding of how good nutrition impacts specific health conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity. Importantly, they learned that dietary changes could lead to reduced reliance on certain medications, complimenting the view of the charity, which maintains a holistic approach to health and wellbeing, recognising the importance of both nutrition and medication.

In the final stage of the project, our beneficiaries actively participated in creating a video that succinctly captures GHTV’s work. So successful was the outcome, that the video has proven to be an effective promotional tool for the future, capturing the essence of the charity, our aims and our impact.

This community-led research project served as a testing phase for a larger endeavour. Successful projects in the scheme will have the opportunity to bid for a larger grant, extending their research to a wider audience… and we hope to be part of that second phase.

GHTV is immensely proud of the dedication and enthusiasm our beneficiaries have displayed throughout this project. Their contributions have added depth to our understanding of the relationship between nature, nutrition, and mental wellbeing. We look forward to sharing further updates as this exciting journey unfolds.

If you’d like to see the video, take a look at our ‘what we do‘ page on the website.

We’d like to say a huge thank you to the team from PepsiCo Reading who kindly gave up their afternoon to join us today and offer some very welcome support in our garden!

Everyone worked incredibly hard despite the warm weather, and we achieved so much in such a short space of time! The garden is now looking beautiful and the irrigation system is in place which will help us in the warm weather in the coming months, we couldn’t be more grateful. It means our horticultural therapy team can focus their time and efforts on the important mental health and wellbeing work with our beneficiaries.

It was also wonderful to hear how relaxing and positive all the volunteers found the experience! A big thank you again to everyone and we hope you enjoyed those well-deserved ice creams!

If you or anyone you know would like to volunteer for GHTV, whether to carry out general garden maintenance or a specific garden project, as PepsiCo did, please do get in touch – working in our gardens can be a great opportunity for team building, learning and boosting wellbeing for all involved.

On 11th May, Staff, clients, and supporters of Green Health Thames Valley gathered in the in the gardens to celebrate the opening of a much-needed new building. Joining us to cut the ribbon was long term supporter of the charity Councillor Rachel Eden, attending in one of her final duties as Mayor of Reading.

The new garden building will help the charity deliver important therapy services throughout the year and in all weathers, maintaining consistent support to those who need it most. It will offer shelter and shade whilst still feeling very much part of the outdoors and facilitate a wider programme of nature-based therapy sessions and life-skills classes, that will help the charity meet the needs of its clients now, and in the future.

Speaking about the new building, Sara Kopp, Horticultural Therapist at GHTV said:

“The new garden building at GHTV is an incredibly welcome addition to our charity. Each year we support people from within the local community who are suffering with a variety of mental health and well-being challenges.

Some arrive with us at risk of self-harm or suicide, so providing a consistent level of support throughout the year, particularly in winter months when things can feel most bleak, is incredibly important. Being in the garden in extreme weather conditions isn’t always feasible, however the new building will enable us to deliver our services all year round and ensure our clients remain supported when they need us most.”

To date, the charity has supported over 100 people to overcome, or better manage, their mental health challenges, leading them to a brighter future.

The new garden building, which was funded, built and furnished thanks to the kind support of a number of local businesses including Ikea, Screwfix, B&Q, ERL Landscaping, Connect Reading and Brothers Office Furniture, will play an important role in the ongoing provision of GHTV’s horticultural therapy programme to those in need.