Wild Ways Well for NHS Staff

In partnership with The Conservation Volunteers (TCV), we are offering weekly sessions to support staff at St John’s Hospital in Livingston. The sessions will support you to access and experience the natural spaces, species and activities that are around the hospital grounds.

• Date & Time: Wednesdays (or speak to us about organising a taster session for a group or regular sessions)
• Meeting place: St John’s Hospital, Livingston

These sessions will:

Provide a safe, supported setting for people to actively discover local greenspaces and to move between and within them.
Connect people with the natural world through simple actions like watching wildlife or trying out nature crafts.
Create opportunities to learn new skills like how to identify flowers and trees, or survey for bumblebees and listen for birdcalls.
Share what we have learned about local history, natural folklore and traditional outdoor skills.

Who is it for?

These sessions are suitable for any NHS Lothian staff or voluntary sector partners.

Sessions are structured around the internationally recognised ‘Five Ways to Wellbeing’ and are continuously evolving, running in harmony with the seasons and nature’s cycle. They include health and nature walks, conservation gardening, wildlife surveys, nature art and photography. We are keen that sessions are participant-led wherever possible, responding to the interests of the people who come along.

Example activities include learning about wildlife, how to identify plants and animals, and the traditional stories associated with them. Take part in sensory experiences such as listening to bird songs or smelling and touching plants we have grown in our raised beds. Express yourself creatively by taking photographs or using natural materials like clay and stone to make art. Take practical action for conservation, planting and looking after trees and wildflowers, and conducting Citizen Science projects such as monitoring butterfly and bumblebee populations.

Every session includes time to socialise, chat and share stories and experiences with a hot drink in a safe, supported way.