Educational charity The Ernest Cook Trust is piloting a new grant scheme.
Its aim is to help organisations provide opportunities for young people to enjoy the outdoors and connect with nature.
The Communities Grant, aimed at charities and non-profit organisations, runs along the same lines as the Trust’s popular Outdoor Essentials Grant, which is offered to schools.
Under the pilot, the Communities Grant is currently only being offered to organisations located in the Trust’s Gloucestershire hub area Swindon, Gloucestershire and Bristol.
Suzie Paton, the Trust’s Director of Learning, Grants & Partnerships, said: “We are very excited to launch our new Communities Grant.
"We believe it gives us another opportunity to reach young people, in the same way that our Outdoor Essentials Grant has been so successful in giving schoolchildren living in underserved communities the opportunity to connect with nature and experience the benefits of Outdoor Learning.”
Successful applicants will be awarded £500, to put towards travel costs to get to natural open spaces or to pay for kit like wellies and waterproofs for young people to wear.
Lack of equipment and the cost of transport have been identified as barriers to young people getting outdoors.
The grant can also be used to enhance or create nature areas in the local community, like ponds, raised beds or sensory gardens, or to buy resources to help young people engage in the outdoors, like bird boxes or craft materials.
The goal of the scheme is to encourage young people aged from 11 to 19 - or up to 25 years old for special educational needs and disabilities - from under-served communities to enjoy the outdoors and connect with nature.
The charity says evidence shows that from around 11 years of age, children’s connection with nature can begin to decline.
For more information about The Communities Grant, people can visit https://ernestcooktrust.org.uk/what-we-do/everything-outdoors/communities-grant/
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