Reach Learning Disability
Category: Environment & Climate Change
Year Awarded: 2021
Amount: £87,582
Connecting with nature
Reach exists to offer people with learning disabilities in Nottinghamshire the tools and opportunities they need to lead more fulfilled lives.
They do this by supporting people from 18 to 60+ years, with a wide range of needs. Reach strive to offer a person-centred approach to support, whether people are living independently in supported accommodation or at home with family.
In April, the Foundation Team visited Reach Learning Disability’s Flower Pod Southwell to see the difference its funding had made. The Samworth Foundation’s grant supported Reach to develop its Green Citizens work. With the funding, Reach has transformed its two Flower Pod sites in Nottinghamshire, encouraging more wildlife to the gardens, whilst also training Flower Pod clients (adults with learning disabilities) to be ‘green mentors’, enabling them to share their environmental knowledge across Reach and with other organisations.
Clients built confidence in working with nature by gaining new green skills and participating in the creation of wonderful new wildlife areas. The project challenged negative perceptions, demonstrating that with the right support people with learning disabilities can be active green citizens, ready to play a range of roles in environmental initiatives