All of TCV’s activities are designed to help people feel good whilst doing something positive for the environment. And, some TCV groups have a particular health focus, using nature-based activities to improve peoples’ physical and mental wellbeing.
Green Gyms
Green Gyms provide:
- Outdoor environmental activities providing a breath of fresh air and moderate exercise
- A friendly, group setting in the company of like-minded individuals
- Opportunities for training and developing new skills
TCV currently runs Green Gyms in Ayr, Clackmannanshire, Coatbridge and Stirling.
When you go to a Green Gym you won’t be squaring up to a rowing machine or lifting weights. One day you might be cutting back invasive plants, the next planting trees or wildflowers, repairing steps on a public path or maybe clearing out an overgrown pond. Or you might learn how to make bird and bat boxes.
And more
In addition to Green Gyms, TCV runs other nature-based activities to improve peoples’ health and wellbeing. Currently these include Ayr Greenspace Walk, Get Moving Health Walk (Irvine), and Livingston Wild Ways Well projects. Further details are listed on our homepage project location map
Greenspaces for Mental Health
There is a wealth of evidence that Green Gyms and other nature-based programmes provide proven benefits in improving peoples’ health and wellbeing, but what are the key components that make such schemes effective? These components are considered in a short guide, ‘Greenspaces for Mental Health’, which outlines seven prime research findings on the topic, with ideas on how these might translate into practice. Alongside the research results are ‘practitioner perspectives’ provided by TCV staff who have organised green health programmes, and who were well placed to consider the principal factors for their success. The guide was produced in 2021 by TCV, the University of Stirling and Dundee Green Health Partnership.
Download the guide here