Recovery Pathways - Nesting Box & Bug House Project
One of our Recovery Pathway tutors talked to us about a Nesting Box & Bug House Project with our service users!
The project was devised within lockdown 2021 as a way of continuing to engage Benchmark service users in meaningful activity as part of their journey with Recovery Pathways. The sessions were goal focused and designed to benefit participants wellbeing by following instructions, making decisions and using creative talents to construct & decorate wildlife habitats. As their woodwork tutor, I put together packs of materials/kits and delivered to people’s homes.
This gave the opportunity to meet face to face (socially distanced) to go through any finer points of the construction process that might be lost through the medium of online delivery. We then constructed the kits together in online sessions in small achievable steps. The participants involved said that they liked regular activities, making things, and keeping busy.
This helped to keep people well and distracted from other symptoms they may be experiencing. As regular sessions could not go ahead, this project helped people to continue to work on their individual goals that had been established at the beginning of their time with Benchmark.
What was the outcome of the project?
The project concluded successfully, with the easing of lockdown restrictions and a spell of warm sunny weather which enabled us to have socially distanced sessions in the participants gardens. We put the finishing touches to the nesting boxes & bug houses, added brackets to the back of the boxes and then installed them in place.
Quotes from participants – service users and carers
What, if anything, did you enjoy or find beneficial about the session?
“Being creative. Social contact and humour. A sense of achievement.
We really enjoyed every moment and John was brilliant.”
“Both client and carer being able to work together. Being able to carry on through lockdown, when such activities are particularly important.
Not needing to travel.”
“The staff where I live were impressed with what I had made, they said they would buy something like that, this made me feel proud of what I had done.”
“Kept me busy, and kept me well. Kept me occupied from other voices. Made me feel proud.”
“Liked being in my own home especially when feelings of paranoia.”
Links to local/national policies
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Increased mental wellbeing |
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Reduce social isolation |
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Employability |
NHS Five Year Forward View (Department of Health, 2014) Taking Charge of our Health and Social Care in Greater Manchester (GMCA, 2015) |
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Helping people aspire and succeed |
Research & Evidence base
Wilson, N.J. and Cordier, R. (2013) A narrative review of Men’s Sheds literature: reducing social isolation and promoting men’s health and well‐being. Health & Social Care in the Community, 21: 451-463. https://doi.org/10.1111/hsc.12019
MILLIGAN, CHRISTINE, et al. (2016) Older Men and Social Activity: a Scoping Review of Men's Sheds and Other Gendered Interventions. Ageing and Society. 36(5) pp. 895–923., doi:10.1017/S0144686X14001524.
Reinie Cordier, Nathan J. Wilson. (2014) Community-based Men's Sheds: promoting male health, wellbeing and social inclusion in an international context, Health Promotion International , 29(3) pp. 483–493.
Olivier Vardakoulias (2013) The Economic Benefits of Ecominds: A case study approach
