The Nature of Scotland – Autumn 2011 – Issue 13

3
Exploring disabled
access at Gartmorn
Dam Country Park.
4
For many people,
having someone to go
with can be vital to
their enjoying the
outdoors.
4
Woodland working
In the grounds of Argyll and Bute Hospital in Lochgilphead,
Blarbuie Woodland supports the health and recovery of
patients with mental health issues through walking and
working in the woodland. Previous research had shown
benefits, so Blarbuie used their new research to explore
what stopped more people in the wider community who
experience ill health or disability from visiting the woodland
and being involved in activities there.
A survey distributed through local support services
revealed that the key factors were difficulty in finding
information, transport issues, confidence and the need for
carer support. “Our research has shown the importance
of company in getting people to the wood – not just for
support and transport, but also in building confidence,”
highlighted Hugh Fife. “We’ve seen that many people value
health walks at set times. The research has brought us into
contact with new groups and has prompted us to work with
the hospital service bus to promote this vital connection to
the woodland.”
Finally, Neilston Development Trust (NDT) in East
Renfrewshire have been championing community-led
regeneration since 2006. As the first in Scotland's
Renaissance Town Initiative, the community published a
town charter that identified the Cowden Hall former mill
estate on the edge of the village as an undeveloped asset
in terms of heritage and natural environment. NDT used
their research to find out how the Cowden Hall estate was
currently used and valued by the community and how it
might be used in the future.
The research featured community-wide surveys as
well as a storytelling project across the generations.
This demonstrated the importance of the site’s history in
engaging older and younger members of the community.
“The research uncovered a deep vein of interest about
Cowden Hall that spans the generations,” commented the
trust’s Laura Carswell. “We got lots of feedback on what
improvements would make people more likely to visit and
this will help us in our aim to make Cowden Hall a valued
resource again for enjoying the outdoors.”
Across the five groups, common themes emerged on
the importance of people and of place in engaging people
with nature. A wealth of comments were captured too on the
health and well-being benefits that people get from nature.
This ‘first hand’ evidence will support the groups as they
develop their own work and will help SNH encourage wider
participation in enjoying the outdoors.
You'll be able to view the ‘People and nature: learning
through doing’ action research reports when they're
published on the SNH website in October.
www.snh.gov.uk 17