Fairbridge Go Wild (2011)
A longer-term Getting Out There partnership programme for NEETs
Our Go Wild programme in partnership with Fairbridge West introduced Getting Out There to their individually- tailored personal development programme which combines one-to-one support and group activities. The Go Wild project was a 6 month programme for 26 young people aged 16-24 not in education, employment or training (NEET). Once a month they visited a variety of natural environments to learn about the environment and sustainability including Slimbridge Wetlands Park, Ogmore beach, Radford Mill Farm, Tyntesfield National Trust and a two day residential at Coed Hills Rural Artspace.
Skills and experiences gained included: Bird watching in bird sanctuaries, bird box building, willow weaving, beach art, landscaping/ making slow worm habitats, deer feeding, farm visits, wild food and mushroom foraging, bushcraft/ survival skills on residential at a sustainability visitor centre, organic goat herding through woodlands, hedgerow and coastal biodiversity surveying, tree identification and leaf rubbing, vine clearing, wild berry jam making, organic vegetable and fruit farming.
The majority of the participants chose to complete a two credit ASDAN award in Environmental Awareness.
All of the participants stated that they were more confident in nature and that the activities were improving their mental and physical health and have requested that Go Wild continues to be programmed into their calendar.
Comment from Antonia Salter, Development Tutor, Fairbridge Programme, Prince's Trust:
“Go Wild has improved their physical wellbeing, which in turn we believe is directly linked to a positive state of mental health. We have witnessed an improvement in certain participants’ mental state whilst engaging in these environmental courses.
Because it was such a successful course, it has raised the number of participants on our courses and the hours of young people’s engagement. Some of the participants were very inspired to work in the environmental sector, and made inquiries into working on organic farms (WOOFing), volunteering and doing work placements on farms and woodlands (such as Lowerstock Farm and Radford Mill Farm) This would be an ideal way for the young people to improve their skill set, life focus and employment options within an ever more difficult to access jobs market. It could also help young people with substandard housing and accommodation situations by finding them placements away from their current (negative) situations."