Grow Organic - Youth

Aim: Programme workers support directly local food growing, gardening and healthy eating by schools and youth groups, with the aim of helping to reduce the health inequality gap. This builds on our recognised good practice in food growing with children over the last 5 years in Manningham and enables settings throughout Bradford District to access this service. Requests for this service have been constant throughout this time.

BCEP programmes have been used as a model of best practice by several national organisations including the Women’s Environment Network, BTCV and the Black Environment Network.

We reduce inequalities by:

1) Weekly school/youth group gardening sessions in areas of most need, growing food and taking part in outdoor, physical and associated activities (in school grounds or on BCEP community allotment plots). A year round programme to share skills in horticulture and the growing of food crops, led by experienced and trained staff and with practical support and appropriate resources.

2) Stimulating interest and responding to requests from schools/young people to offer taster and /or occasional sessions in physical, outdoor food growing and associated activities. Taster sessions are an effective method to engage schools and demonstrate to them the value of a gardening club. BCEP and the Cellar Project can offer a complete package to help schools establish year round gardening club facilities.

3) Provision of fresh organic produce for regular groups to take home, with information on its healthy preparation.

4) Cook and eat/tasting sessions using seasonally available produce and own produce when available, supporting the 5-a-day message. Trained and experienced nutrition education staff will deliver on-site sessions, teaching children to take produce from the ground and preparing it ready for the plate.

5) Providing activities at community events promoting growing/taking exercise/healthy eating among children/young people.

6) Providing expert advice training and materials support to establish “Hot Bed” gardening in school settings, extending the growing season and range of crops which can be produced. This is particularly important for schools as they are closed through the summer months. Using Hot Beds, the growing season can be brought forward from March to January. The Cellar Project staff have perfected practical techniques and together with BCEP’s network support are looking to share these traditional skills.

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