This report shares learning and highlights from the Children and Nature programme. It can be used to inform work that aims to benefit children through engaging them with nature, and is intended for those working in the environment, education and health sectors. It draws on delivery and other reports on the processes, outcomes and learning from the three different Children and Nature projects.
The Children and Nature Programme (2019-2022) successfully achieved the aims of first, supporting schools in disadvantaged areas to bring children closer to nature and secondly, supporting an expansion of care farming, but at a significantly reduced scale due to the decreased levels of funding and delivery challenges arising from the Covid-19 pandemic.
Working in disadvantaged areas and with disadvantaged groups, the school-based projects Nature Friendly Schools and Community Forest and Woodland Outreach engaged approximately 53,000 children and young people with outdoor learning in 270 schools. Providers and teachers cited a range of positive outcomes for pupils from the school-based projects.
The Growing Care Farming project raised the profile of care farming, increased levels of knowledge and understanding of the sector and supported the increase of available annual care farming places in England from approximately 438,600 to approximately 675,000. The project brought momentum to the care farming sector by raising awareness of care farming among national and regional organisations and supporting farmers at all stages of the process of engaging with care farming.