The Orchard Project is creating the UK’s first schools programme to nurture future orchard leaders.
Engaging children and young people with the natural world is more important than ever. Now, thanks to a new grant from the Julia Rausing Trust, we’ll be stepping up our work in this field over the next three years.
It’s widely recognised that early access to nature can help children’s mental health, but those living in disadvantaged areas have far less access to outdoor greenspace than their wealthier peers. Schools in deprived areas also often lack resources to improve their grounds, or support ongoing nature-based education.
“This grant represents a transformational moment for us as a charity, enabling us to deliver our most ambitious youth-focused initiative yet,” said Kath Rosen, CEO. “Engaging children and young people with nature, and equipping them with hands-on environmental skills, can help create a lifelong connection to green spaces and open up pathways into environmental careers.
“By embedding orchard skills within the school curriculum, we can empower thousands of young people and help them reimagine their school grounds as thriving, nature-rich spaces.”
The £225,000 grant will build upon our existing work over the past 15 years designing, planting and maintaining orchards in school grounds, alongside running workshops and training sessions for staff and students.
There will be four elements to this three-year pilot project:
- Orchard careers pathways – designed in collaboration with schools and colleges, piloting accredited orchard training for young people (secondary and FE), building their skills and confidence and addressing barriers to participation. On completion, students will have the option to join a paid orchard aftercare programme – the first UK schools initiative to nurture future orchard leaders in this way.
- National digital resource – in consultation with other environmental organisations and teachers we will review existing materials and develop new, curriculum-linked digital resources.
- Create new school orchards – transform school grounds selected through a competitive application process, following our established co-design model.
- Orchard aftercare support – ensure long-term sustainability for existing school orchards
We’ve found that our partnerships with schools are increasingly going beyond one-off activities, embedding orchard-based learning into the curriculum to ensure long-term engagement. This deeper focus aligns with our own work around regeneration and biodiversity, and is empowering children and young people to act on climate change.
“There is an urgent need to prepare future generations for environmental challenges,” added Miss Rosen. “Despite a growing interest in environmental careers, the horticulture and landscape industry faces a significant skills gap.
“Young people are eager to gain practical experience in environmental stewardship, but opportunities to do so remain limited. Addressing this will offer young people employable skills, as well as helping to foster a generation equipped to protect and enhance the natural world.”
If you are involved with a school in one of our urban centres (Edinburgh, Glasgow, London, Manchester or Swansea) and you think the school would be interested in being part of this project, please email stephanie (at) theorchardproject.org.uk.