Growing a community with e50K
After spending many years developing long standing friendships and a solid support network around myself and my husband, I longed to be involved in a wider community project –ideally to ‘grow’ one; and yet, my journey with e50k
began unexpectedly. By chance, I came across a Community Engagement Survey for e50K, advertised on social media and through welfare contact emails. The survey posed the question “Do you have a small business or are interested in starting one?” – I had! Through working as a Home Economics teacher and qualified nutritionist I have seen first- hand the importance of understanding our food provenance and had often considered setting up a ‘farm to fork’ venture. Having always been interested in growing, I have cultivated crops in a variety of places over the years – from tending allotments, through running Rural Skills courses (as part of teaching) and even planting seasonal vegetables in a chest of drawers at my rented house.
After completing the survey and sharing my interest in participating in community consultation sessions I took part in a focus group and visited a site of interest for e50K in Bramble Woods (and its adjacent meadows). I saw the potential of the site immediately – this was a place where I could make a positive contribution to the area my husband and I lived in and gain the sense of community I had been looking for. As Agricultural and Environmental Officer for the initiative taking place at Bramble Woods, I have been able to curate the site (by learning a heritage craft method of scything, to maintain the wildflower meadow), create plans for the ‘no-dig’ allotment beds (to be run organically as
an intergenerational space) which will allow a ‘sow, grow, eat’ concept to develop, whereby as a community that comes together to plant, grow crops, harvest and reap the harvest, the crops produced are shared by the community through cooking together - as “an Army marches on its stomach”- Napoleon Bonaparte.
At all times I have sought expert advice from ecologists (through to the Woodland Trust) and formed partnerships with experts to ensure the maintenance of the veteran woodlands and support the regeneration of the woodlands for years to come.
I have also been fortunate to be involved in events on the site and within the wider community which have involved Summer School Foresting activities, Halloween campfire crafts and Christmas Fest; all of which have allowed me to hear the voice of my community and their needs.
Slowly, over the past year, I have begun to realise my potential and feel empowered to act upon it with the support and guidance of the e50K team.
I am proud to be part of e50K and the community we are building through initiatives like this one – I look forward to sympathetically developing the site further at Bramble Woods, as one of many, with the support of e50K and the partnerships I have already forged.
e50K allows my voice and the voice of many others to be heard and so I ask you – are you being heard?
Anna is a former Home Economics teacher and supply teacher for North Yorkshire. A qualified nutritionist, she has agricultural experience heading allotment sites and a keen interest in outdoor pursuits such as hillwalking and kayaking. Anna shares a passion for empowering the others to shape their community.
