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Can parks be the answer to happiness? A local charity thinks so.
For this year’s This Love Parks Week (29 July to 5 August) Your Park Bristol and Bath, the charity behind College Green’s wildflower meadows, shares some striking evidence for how Bristol and Bath’s parks can benefit us all.
NHS mental health referrals reached a record 4.3 million last year and 1.4 million people are waiting for treatment . Now, rising costs are driving more people into poverty and poorer mental health – the British Medical Journal said “…the cost of living crisis is deepening severe financial hardship and the social security system is not adequate to withstand this. ”
With an increasingly stretched NHS, charities like Your Park Bristol and Bath are stepping-in through services like Roots to Wellbeing which provides a six-week course of therapy in Bristol’s parks for people struggling with mental health.
GPs are referring patients but anybody feeling low, anxious or isolated can register via the charity’s website too. They have so far supported refugees, people living with diagnosed disorders such as PTSD and people dealing with grief.
Charlee Bennett, CEO of Your Park Bristol and Bath says “The sessions are all about trying something new be-it planting, pruning, nature photography or mindful activities like body mapping and meditation. Most people join us having never even considered taking part in something like this. Trying something different really helps build confidence and the activities have a calming effect.”
If you think this sounds unlikely, look at the results. After completing the six-week course, 100% of people say they feel happier, 75% feel less isolated, more active and confident. Two thirds are continuing what they have learned at home too.
“My blood pressure is always high. The nurse asked me to think of my happy place so I pictured these sessions. My blood pressure went down. I am happiest here. These sessions have been a lifesaver."
The benefits come as no surprise to the charity because the approach is backed by evidence. Defra estimates that the NHS could save £2.1 billion per year if everyone had regular access to parks and mindfulness is recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence as a way to prevent depression in people who have had three or more bouts of depression in the past. What’s more, a six-week course for one person costs the charity just £250, one fifth of the cost of a 12 week CBT course to the NHS.
Your Park Bristol and Bath is inviting people to become a Park Companion (www.yourpark.org.uk/love-parks-week) so they can continue their work at this crucial time.