Regenerating confidence with green fingers
Learn more about The North East Autism Society, recent beneficiary of a CLA Charitable Trust Grant to acquire a polytunnel and irrigation system as part of their ‘no-dig’ horticulture programme to support their service users.Based in Chester-le-Street, County Durham, the North East Autism Society is the leading provider of care and education for autistic and neurodivergent children, young people and adults in the North East of England.
The Society is focused on delivering highly personalised support for autistic people and their families with workshops, advice and information. In addition, they work with businesses and organisations to advocate better understanding, service improvements and opportunities for autistic and neurodivergent people in the region.
The charity facilitates a lot of their work at the 78-acre New Warlands Farm in County Durham, home to their purpose-built vocational training centre. The latter’s location on a working farm mean trainees can take part in a wide variety of activities, like making juice and cider from apples grown in their orchard, or horticultural activities in their polytunnels.
The Society successfully applied for a £5,000 grant to the CLA Charitable Trust (CLACT) to purchase a polytunnel, an irrigation system, and associated equipment to establish a plant propagation facility. This will support their ‘no-dig’ horticulture programme, with the end-goal of moving learners into meaningful employment.
The polytunnel has been purchased but will only be installed once ground conditions are ideal. However, the charity has established their ‘no-dig’ growing area where they are up-skilling young people (16 years +) in regenerative farming practices.
Thus far they have engaged with 23 young learners in weekly practical exercises and embedded learning which took in: propagation techniques (planting pumpkin, garlic and bulbs); no-dig gardening (installing no-dig veg beds, orchard maintenance, timber shed construction); and regenerative principles such as tree planting and staking, hedge planting, mulching trees with wood chip, animal husbandry and much more.
These activities greatly enhance skills on a practical and social level, making participants more confident in their own abilities and skills, enabling their employability at a later stage.
Kevin Meikle, fundraising manager, and CLA member, said: “Applying for the grant was easy and the overall service and support from the CLA Charitable Trust was brilliant. What stood out was the excellent communications we received through-out before and after applying for the grant.”
“All those involved in project placements are keen to continue attending site and learning more about regenerative farming. There is particular interest and excitement about our future livestock plans for goats and pigs and growing vegetables in the established growing area.”
The charity was established in 1980 when a group of parents re-mortgaged their homes to set up a school for their autistic children, dedicating their work in helping them to fulfil their potential in life.
The Society runs 60 sites from Northumberland to Teesside, including four schools, a college, a vocational training farm, employment services, short breaks lodges, residential and supported living homes, adult day services, and family support. In future, the charity is working towards opening a farm shop for which they already have planning approval.
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