The Nature Connection- A 6 Week Course

Join us for six weekly sessions designed to support your wellbeing and work-readiness, one step at a time

A 6-Week Nature-Based Programme Supporting Mental Health and Return to Work.
Returning to work while managing mental health challenges can feel overwhelming — but you don’t have to do it alone. This is a supportive 6-week nature-based programme designed to help you gently rebuild confidence, reduce anxiety, and restore a sense of balance as you prepare to re-enter the workplace.


Through guided outdoor sessions, mindful activities, and peer connection, you’ll find space to breathe, reflect, and move forward at your own pace — all within the healing environment of nature.

Join us for six weekly sessions designed to support your wellbeing and work-readiness, one step at a time. Next course information below:

When is this taking place?

Wednesday afternoons at various venues around Bristol including Trinity Centre and Boiling Wells. Timings may differ depending on the venue but around 2pm-4pm. The programme runs for 6 weeks and we do need you to commit to every session.

Upcoming Course 

Date: Wednesdays from August 6th to September 10th

Time: Afternoons (tbc)

Location: Boiling Wells, St Werburghs City Farm,St Werburghs, Bristol, BS2 9YJ

What 3 Words: beam.pays.assume

Walk to the end of Mina Road going through the graffiti tunnel, turn right onto Boiling Wells Lane go through the 2nd tunnel and see the metal gate with the chicken, on your right come in and walk down to the fire pit.

See map and directions here:

Directions & Opening Hours

How do I sign up and take part?

This 6 week course is free. To sign up you will need to sign up with workwell via their referral form (form coming soon) 

If you are already a changes member you can send an expression of interest to service@changesbristol.org.uk 

To be eligible for this course you will be either:

  • Out-of-work and need health-related support to return to work
  • or employed and either absent through sickness or struggling in the workplace due to a health condition.

You must also meet the following criteria:

  • Your home address OR address of your GP/local Jobcentre Plus falls within the WorkWell Service, which is Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire.
  • You are over 18
  • You have the right to work in the UK

Signing up to workwell will give you access to a work and health coach and other support. Find out more about workwell here 

What will we be doing?

Gentle, mindful practices to improve wellbeing, reduce stress and anxiety and resource you physically and mentally to prepare to return to work

We will combine nature connection and wellbeing practices, mindfulness, creative nature based art and celebrating the seasons of the year. Sessions will be based around the 5 pathways to nature connection:

  1. Contact
    The act of engaging with nature through the senses for pleasure e.g. listening to birdsong, smelling wild flowers, watching the sunset.
  2. Beauty
    Engagement with the aesthetic qualities of nature, e.g. appreciating natural scenery or engaging with nature through the arts.
  3. Meaning
    Using nature or natural symbolism (e.g. language and metaphors) to represent an idea, thinking about the meaning of nature and signs of nature, e.g. the first swallow of summer.
  4. Emotion
    An emotional bond with, and love for nature e.g. talking about, and reflecting on your feelings about nature.
  5. Compassion
    Extending the self to include nature, leading to a moral and ethical concern for nature e.g. making ethical product choices, being concerned with animal welfare.

We will combine these pathways together with the 5 ways to wellbeing, find out more about this set of ideas to make improvements on your life here.

Through connecting with nature, some benefits to your wellbeing may include reducing stress, improving creativity, reducing anxiety, better sleep, growing food, learning simple wellbeing practices and connecting with others.

Things to be mindful of when joining sessions
  • Consider inclusive, non-discriminatory language when talking to staff and other members
  • Give space to others and distance if they request it
  • Please do not take photographs of participants 
  • Refrain from attending sessions under the influence of alcohol and other substances
  • Please keep information shared within the group confidential
  • Be patient with others

Please be mindful that we will be gathering outdoors in a variety of conditions. Ensure that you are dressed suitably for the sessions, take responsibility for your own physical wellbeing and always advise us if you have any mobility/access needs.

Contact

Our 6 week Nature-based Programme is run by our Lead Nature Facilitator – Jen Witts.

Email – growing@changesbristol.org.uk

Telephone – 0117 941 1123

Jen – Lead Nature Facilitator – You may have seen Jen at one of our peer support groups or at our weekly Walk & Talks. She has many years experience facilitating groups outside, focussed on promoting wellbeing and connecting with nature. Jen believes passionately in the ability of nature to transform our connection to ourselves, our land and our communities in a physical, emotional and spiritual sense. She finds many different ways to explore all of the ways to connect together and with nature with this group! One of her passions is to follow the Wheel of the Year – the traditional celebrations to mark the changing seasons.