Why does this project matter now?

It matters for BTO because:

• We are aiming to become more inclusive by 2030, so we need to engage a broader range of people to have a bigger impact for birds.
• We want to increase our impact for people.
• We have identified that community engagement can help us address our lack of diversity and create more accessible opportunities for all.
• We felt that our building and grounds could be a valuable asset for the local community to use.

It matters for Thetford because:

• There are many barriers preventing Thetford residents from engaging with BTO (income deprivation, health inequality, social isolation).
• People are unclear about BTO’s purpose and unaware that it owns the grounds and reserve that everyone should be able to enjoy.
• Thetford residents suffer from a range of health and wellbeing issues which can be helped by supporting regular access to nature and the outdoors.
• Community organisations are facing many challenges (lack of resources and venues).

Civil Society Consulting supported us in finding four partner organisations to trial activities with. We used a bottom up approach in order to understand what these groups’ needs were, what they were already providing for the community, and how we could support them. This led us to build on the work our partners were already doing (e.g. adding focus on nature and birds, giving out free goodies, providing a space for activities and introduction to BTO’s work etc.). Staff from across BTO departments got involved with the sessions.

This project really helped to establish the demand and potential for us to contribute to our local community by confirming we have a genuinely valuable offer for local groups and people.

Our 4 partner organisations

Sound and Ground: Provided a series of free and accessible forest bathing, sound healing and therapy sessions for local people at the Nunnery. 

Bush Adventures: Provided six-day courses on team building, leadership and outdoor education to young participants from a range of different backgrounds.

The Charles Burrell Centre: We worked together to add value to Charles Burrell Centre’s community and volunteer led activities. BTO provided funding support for community meals, attended meals to give out free bird seeds/feeders and staff ran bird-themed craft sessions for a Meet up Monday group.

Catch 22: BTO staff joined Catch 22 to deliver a session around careers at BTO and in nature for young people enrolled at their Thetford College.

Next steps

We have more free sound and forest bathing sessions planned for Thetford residents with Sound and Ground during the Spring and Summer of 2025. We are running a series of workshops for the Meet Up Monday group for participants to learn more about birds and how to engage with our BTO surveys. We’ll be inspiring local schoolchildren with bird-themed assemblies to get them ready for a nature-based theatre show and in-school workshops delivered in partnership with The Children’s Bookshow. In addition to an online launch of the report from our project, we are collaborating with Civil Society Consulting to deliver a special nature-themed version of their very successful Loneliness Reduction Training at our base in Thetford, for local groups, organisations and individuals.

This pilot enabled us to determine the foundations needed for a successful community project engaging with people who don’t usually have the opportunity to engage with nature and BTO. Our aspiration is to offer similar opportunities for our local community over the longer-term and to explore scaling our approach out to a wider geographical area and more partners.