Recovery Through Nature - Shipley Park Project

Recovery Through Nature - Shipley Park Project 

Phoenix Futures’ Recovery through Nature (RtN) is a highly effective therapeutic programme that engages teams of people who use our services in a range of practical conservation and horticultural projects to aid their recovery. 

The concept of encouraging team-working in 'the outdoors' and producing positive and tangible results has proved to be an extremely powerful relapse prevention tool. Our statistics show a dramatic improvement in the successful treatment completion rates for those regularly involved in RtN.  The key to the success of Recovery through Nature is simply creating enjoyable and safe learning environments.

Recovery through Nature’s strength lies in its capacity to enhance participants' belief in their ability to change, supporting their self-esteem, confidence and mental well-being through a combination of three 'catalysts for change':

1. The Activity – As Peter from our Sheffield-based Residential Service described it, “…the manual work isn’t there just for the sake of it, it’s not like we have been put onto a plot of land and we are just putting up fences for the sake of it … we are conserving an area of land … There is a purpose…”
2. The Environment – the power of being in and producing something with the natural environment is often under-valued. A recent evaluation of the programme stated, “RtN has taken eco-therapy to the next level; progressing from simply being outside and spiritually interacting with nature, to physically engaging with it. This innovative premise takes the recognised benefit from being amongst nature to looking at what can be done physically to develop, save or improve it.”
3. The Communication – RtN encourages genuine bonding and team-working with peers in real life/work settings. Positive change is bought about by people listening and sharing their stories and experiences, and learning from and supporting one another.

The wellbeing of participants is enhanced through time engaged in a constructive activity that offers what our service users term as ‘head space’ - time to think and reflect, compounded by it being an enjoyable break from the intensity of their everyday therapeutic programme. 

The exact location of the project is below (the white box on the picture below). Park at Mapperley Reservoir car park and walk up Shipley Lane to access the project. The W3W (What 3 Words address) of the project is ///broadcast.destined.craters.

Find What 3 Words at the following address: https://what3words.com/