CVNI : Green Gym : History of Green Gym

 

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History of Green Gym

Victoria Centre Green Gym participantsThe first Green Gym in Northern Ireland was run as a partnership between Conservation Volunteers Northern Ireland, South & East Belfast Health & Social Care Trust and Victoria Day Care Centre.

In 1999 the Health Trust recommended the Green Gym to its clients as a means of increasing their physical activity levels outside of their daily settings while completing purposeful tasks. One of the aims of the project was to create a Green Gym group who work together as a team, learning new skills, building on motivation and self-esteem to achieve set goals.

With a retention rate of over 90% the Victoria Green Gym team are still going strong today. Taking part every Thursday since 1999, this team has successfully completed a wide range of projects, learning new practical skills within their own garden and on Conservation Volunteers sites.

Victoria Day Centre gardenDuring the first two years of this Green Gym a major challenge was to assist in the creation of a wildlife garden adjacent to their Centre, converting waste ground into an area useable by the Day Care Centre clients and wider community involved many working partnerships. The area is now a maturing garden with colourful shrub, herb and wildflower beds attracting plenty of birds and insect life to it. The Green Gym team completed a number of environmental based mosaics, which not only bring all year round colour but added interest to the garden.

The Victoria Green Gym team, having received full training, now takes on the management and maintenance of the garden. Continually developing new ideas and incorporating individuals interests they have recently added a composting area and a very productive vegetable patch to their garden. Wider centre users and the local community regularly enjoy the Garden for BBQ’s and relaxing.

 
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