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  • About us
    • Privacy Statement
    • Trustees
    • Our research
  • Services
    • COVID-19 advice & helpful resources
      • Resources for adults
      • Resources for children, parents & carers
      • Suffolk Night Owls – Emotional Support Line
      • Useful Links
    • Our introduction to mental health training – Suffolk’s Needs Met
    • Counselling
    • Eating Recovery Group
    • GreenCare
    • Mums Matter
    • Open Spaces
    • Personality Disorder Service – Waves
    • Suffolk Night Owls – Emotional Support Line
    • Suffolk Work Well
    • Supported housing
    • The Norfolk and Suffolk COVID-19 support service
  • Workplaces
    • I want to support my team’s wellbeing
    • I want my managers to have the confidence and skills to support their teams
    • I want my team to have the confidence and practical skills to support others
    • I want to support Suffolk Mind through fundraising in our workplace
    • Contact our Workplace Wellbeing team
  • Schools
  • Get involved
    • Job vacancies
      • Project Manager
      • Support Worker (Saxmundham)
      • Management Accountant
      • Case Worker (Suffolk Work Well)
      • Support Worker – Cambridge
      • Support Workers (Woodbridge)
      • Care Worker
      • Relief Support Workers
      • Relief Care Worker
      • Employee benefits at Suffolk Mind
    • Volunteer
    • Friends
    • Suffolk PenPals
  • Support us
    • Donate
      • Why regular donations matter
    • Leave a gift
    • Events & challenges
      • 100 Miles for Suffolk Mind
      • 100 Miles for Suffolk Mind t-shirts
    • Corporate Fundraising
    • Giving Pages
    • In memory
    • Greencare – support our Greencare team
    • Sammy the Sea Squirt
      • Purchase the Sammy the Sea Squirt book
      • Sammy the Sea Squirt resources for schools
    • FAQ’s
  • More help
    • Emergency Contacts
    • Emotional Needs & Resources
    • General FAQs
    • Useful Links
    • Support Groups
    • Videos: understanding self-harm and suicide
    • Video: reflective listening
  • Contact
  • Resources
    • News
    • Blog
    • LGBT+ Mental Health
    • Ukraine: Supporting Your Mental Health
    • 20Zz Sleep Better, Be Better
    • Support guide for children and young people
    • EARLY Minds resource cards
    • Emotional Needs and Resources cards
    • Suffolk’s Needs Met course manual
    • Suffolk’s Needs Met course manual & Emotional Needs and Resources cards set
    • The Qur’an & Emotional Health: An Introduction

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Suffolk Mind allotment project changes the life of volunteer

A project run by Suffolk Mind has changed the life of a volunteer who’s suffered from depression for the last nine years.  

Mike Bourne who’s 52, began volunteering for Suffolk Mind four years ago at one of its ecotherapy allotment projects which are based across the county. Since then, he’s gained more confidence, “I was just sitting at home 24 hours a day not doing anything but watching TV. One day I woke up and thought I need to get out and start doing something, so that’s when I joined the allotment project.

 “I joined as a volunteer because, as well as helping myself, I wanted to help others who are going through what I did. You meet friends, and learn how to grow things. From growing something from a little seed to putting it on your dinner plate is incredible; it’s a real achievement when you’ve looked after it for so long.

Mike continued, “The ecotherapy project is just fantastic and it’s changed my life completely. I now go out more, and am more confident in every way”.

Suffolk Mind has allotment projects in Hadleigh, Haverhill, Bury St Edmunds and Ipswich. Each site offers people the opportunity to learn about gardening and contribute to the creation of a thriving growing space that benefits everyone. People can also make new friends and get support from other group members.

Sarah Manton-Roseblade, Ecotherapy Manager said: “Getting outdoors into the fresh air, gently increasing activity and working alongside others is great for your physical and mental wellbeing. It helps people to meet some of their emotional needs like feeling part of a community, achieving something new and having meaning and purpose in their life.

“At Suffolk Mind, we want to make Suffolk the best place in the world for taking about and taking care of mental health, and this project helps us to work towards achieving our mission”.

Suffolk Mind is currently looking for people to volunteer at each allotment project across Suffolk. For more details, email [email protected] or call 0300 111 6000.

Author: Ellie Winch
Posted on: 17th October 2018

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