Natural Habitat (2023–2026)

 

Founding and Leading Natural Habitat

At the end of 2022, I began work to co-founded Natural Habitat and served as Executive Director until June 2026. Natural Habitat is an environmental education charity that uses creative and collaborative approaches to reconnect people with the landscapes that sustain them, building hope, belonging and support for biodiversity.

From the outset, the organisation was designed to bridge divides with nature: between people and land, communities and food systems, and the farmers, ecologists, educators, artists and practitioners who rarely have opportunities to learn alongside one another. Drawing on more than a decade of experience working across diverse communities, I developed accessible programmes that could engage people of all ages and backgrounds, working across schools, farming landscapes, community settings and large-scale landscape recovery projects.

At the heart of my approach was the role of the weaver - recognising that meaningful change happens through relationships. My work focused on connecting people, knowledge, resources and opportunities across sectors, bringing together farmers, educators, artists, ecologists, community organisations and residents to create new possibilities for both people and landscapes.

Key Achievements

Between 2022 and 2026, I led Natural Habitat from concept to a recognised regional charity, building partnerships, securing funding and creating innovative programmes that connected people, food systems and landscapes.

  • Secured more than £110,000 in funding within the charity's first 2.5 years, growing the organisation from a start-up idea into a respected regional voice.

  • Engaged more than 1,000 people through environmental education, community events and landscape recovery initiatives.

  • - Delivered 57 sessions for schools and diverse communities, connecting participants with food, farming, biodiversity and the local landscape.

  • Delivered 4 continuing professional development programmes for farmers, growers, artists and nature-based practitioners.

  • Facilitated 2 public convening events, bringing together stakeholders to inform landscape recovery work and strengthen cross-sector collaboration.

  • Increased access to land-based experiences for children and regional refugee communities by 75%.

  • Achieved 100% participant-reported increases in skills and knowledge, with 98% reporting feelings of joy and wellbeing through participation.

  • Delivered programmes across 11 farms, 3 market gardens and 2 community gardens, creating meaningful opportunities for people to engage directly with working landscapes.

Building Partnerships and Creating Change

A significant part of Natural Habitat's success came through the partnerships I developed, nurtured and sustained. I built relationships across the environmental, education, farming and community sectors, creating collaborations that enabled knowledge, resources and opportunities to flow between organisations that would not otherwise have worked together.

Key partnerships included Barleybird CIC, Wakelyns Agroforesty, The Blyth Valley Farm Cluster, Connecting Constable & Gainsborough Country Landscape Recovery Project, Suffolk Refugee Support, ASSET Education and its 16 schools, Bramfield House School, Kelsale Primary School, Blyth Community Conservation Network, Suffolk Libraries, Suffolk Wildlife Trust and Step CIC.

Working alongside Barleybird CIC, I helped shape and deliver the Diverse Communities, Diverse Crops project, exploring the relationship between cultural diversity, food systems and crop research. Through close collaboration with The Blyth Valley Farm Cluster, we established the farming foundation of our weaving school and community programmes, creating opportunities for people to engage deeply and directly with the rural landscape.

Our partnership with Suffolk Refugee Support evolved into a genuine co-delivery model. Clients not only engaged with programmes but helped co-design and lead activities alongside diverse practitioners, including a global bread workshop delivered in schools, enriching conversations about food, culture and diversity.

I also developed a strategic partnership with Wakelyns, helping this pioneering agroforestry site share its knowledge, practices and facilities with schools and diverse communities in new and accessible ways. Alongside this, I worked closely with ASSET Education as a flagship education partner, supporting both the development of school farm programmes and the evolution of a progressive in-house catering strategy.

A New Model for Connecting People and Landscapes

Over three and a half years, I led the strategic development of the charity, growing it from an idea into a respected organisation with a reputation for bringing together people, knowledge and practice across sectors.

The organisation became known not simply for the programmes it delivered, but for its ability to connect communities with landscapes, schools with farms, and people with the systems that sustain them. It acted as a "weaving organisation" - creating relationships, fostering collaboration and helping innovative ideas take root.

As founder and Executive Director, I was responsible for shaping the organisation's vision, securing funding, building partnerships, designing programmes, leading delivery, managing stakeholders and creating the conditions for long-term collaboration and impact.

Through this work, I developed and demonstrated a model of environmental engagement that is creative, participatory and deeply place-based - one that recognises that thriving landscapes and thriving communities depend on one another.

 

You can read more about Natural Habitat here.