A Lancaster-based youth charity has appointed a new outdoor learning officer to share the wonders and benefits of nature with young people.
Helen Leece, who founded Gathering Fields Wellbeing Centre near Abbeystead 12 years ago, has recently taken on the new role for Lancashire Youth Challenge.
Helen helped to design the charity’s Time to Breathe programme which takes place in urban spaces in and around Lancaster as well as on her working farm and provides opportunities for young people to build confidence, learn new skills and a respect for the natural world and each other.
“I believe my role offers endless opportunities to open sensitive discussions that would sometimes be difficult in school or home,” said Helen.
“We look at the issues young people face and the challenges to their wellbeing through the lenses of natural cycles in nature and the movements of wildlife.”
Young people have chances to grow, preserve and cook their own food, learn to put up tents and basic survival skills and create sustainable art such as pottery using clay from the land.
They also learn small animal care and conservation and have explored herbal first aid and native plant folklore alongside mindfulness. They’ve even entered a local horticultural show with their jam and chutneys.
Time to Breathe is a seasonal programme with summer focused on outdoor cooking and sharing food together around a fire.
During autumn there’s time to reflect on the harvest and the successes, failures and celebration all the young people have experienced.
As winter approaches, sessions move indoors for themed dedicated Youth Cafes in Lancaster at the Cornerstone where LYC is based.
During her role so far, Helen has seen that working with nature has improved young people’s sense of their surroundings, their awareness of food production and care for wildlife.
“I have seen communication improve and watched young people that once refused to eat or speak in front of others start to try new foods, cook them together and share it.”
The young people’s basic life skills and their ability to safely navigate open spaces has also improved as has their stamina.
Helen grew up on a farm and has always had a passion for nature. After having two children and training in Indian holistic medicine and western herbalism for 20 years, she established Gathering Fields where the focus was regenerative farming practices including wildflower meadow restoration.
“In this time I embarked on the Forest School training and started to work more with young people’s health and wellbeing. As I became aware of the impact on their mental health and wellbeing since Covid in 2020, it was a natural progression for me to bring back some of those life skills for our next generation.”
Helen’s new role at LYC has been made possible thanks to an investment by The Ernest Cook Trust.
LYC, which is based in Lancaster, run a year-round programme of active movement and emotional wellbeing programmes, creative arts activities, nature-based projects and outdoor expeditions for young people. The charity received the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service in 2021.
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