GETTING closer to nature will be on the agenda this autumn.

Connection with nature is known to have significant health and wellbeing benefits, and this summer and autumn Shropshire Council is providing outdoor nature-based activities for disadvantaged young people and people recovering from mental ill health.

The whittling workshops are designed to encourage the participants to spend time exploring the woodland and sourcing the materials they need from the woods to create their own handmade product, be it a whittled spoon, shrink pot, milking stool or rustic broom.

Led by a green woodworking expert, the participants are guided through the process of making something with the materials they have gathered using hand tools. The workshops are about encouraging people to spend time outdoors in nature whilst learning a craft skill and producing something that they can keep.

Shropshire Council is working with health and social care organisations, green social prescribing and youth workers to promote the workshops. This project is funded by the UK Government through the Vibrant Shropshire: a Cultural Compact Grant Scheme as part of the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.

For more information please contact Joe Penfold, Engagement Ranger, email joe.penfold@shropshire.gov.uk