"The Green Gym grows on you"

The aim of the BTCV Blaenau Gwent Healthy Foods and Green Gym Project is to encourage interest in the local environment through light exercise, seeking to promote healthy lifestyles and eating. With support from Lloyds TSB Foundation the Evaluation Trust tried to engage volunteers and members of groups working with BTCV in capturing the value of their work for themselves and the commuunity. To their delight their stories are now published as a case study in a BTCV book - "Changed Places, Changed Lives - The social impacts of environmental action". The evaluation and publication have been a real opportunity to recognise and celebrate their work.

Blaenau Gwent Green Gym has a unique team with a range of ages and abilities/disabilities that is very open to others to join in. The group includes people who are potentially isolated by:

• Being older - over 70
• Having learning disabilities
• Having a range of physical disabilities - hearing, mobility
• Experiencing ill health - diabetes, heart conditions
• Having mental health issues - depression, manic depression
• being on low income and/or unemployed
• Having previous or current caring responsibilities

This makes their attendance levels and commitment to the group to turn out remarkable, despite for some considerable personal discomfort. What is much more important is that they engaged with the Green Gym without labels and stereotypes.

Probably of most interest to other evaluation workers are the processes used to capture the effect of the Green Gym. The BTCV worker builds opportunities for work in partnership, through the local community egnaging different people in different activities as opportunities arise. Evaluation was built into the activities over several months, developing organically.

• Working with the key volunteer and the paid worker to define the questions they wished to get answered; then devising a question framework for both groups and organisations and for volunteers with the Green Gym.
• Using the question framework, the key volunteer was interviewed for his perspective; and then together over time this volunteer and the Trust worker interviewed 3 others with the key volunteer taking a lead role and the Trust worker supporting and recording.
• A focus group discussion was held, with three further volunteers the key volunteer asked the questions and the trust worker recorded the lively debate.
• The Trust worker did practical work with an evaluation volunteer alongside the group reconstructing a willow snake (an old Garden Festival feature running down the hillside that children are able to run through) observing how the group works together and how the paid worker effectively organises the group.
• The key volunteer and the Trust worker interviewed the volunteer who manages and runs a local Owl Sanctuary with whom the Green Gym has worked. They have run activities with families and children making bird nesting boxes and fat balls for bird feeding for children to take home to encourage interest in birds in family gardens. Also interviewed was a young volunteer (14) who was keen to talk with them, who feels his life and direction has been transformed and enriched through his volunteering with the Owl Sanctuary.
• The Green Gym has organised Art Projects for children and adults in 6 locations around the theme of 'What the environment means to us'. The design winners were invited to work with a community artist to produce their work on canvasses. Volunteers who enjoy art supported the activities and worked alongside the children. The canvasses were displayed at Bryn Bach Park and the Green Gym organised an event bringing the children, their families and all volunteers to view the canvasses and to take part in a range of outdoor activities. Another volunteer and her daughter offered to interview the children and their parents to ascertain what the activity had meant to the children and families. They gained interviews with families informally during the morning.
• The Green Gym wanted to get the views of a local community. The key volunteer and the Trust worker attended a Healthy Living Day in Six Bells organised by Communities First to celebrate 2 successful years of the food co-op. Other groups promoting healthy living had stalls to engage the local community. The Green Gym took along photographs of their activities and engaged most attendees in talking about the Green Gym. The aim was to find out what they knew about it and what they thought, and also to promote interest to those who were unaware of its activities. The key volunteer collated the data from this activity.
• The volunteer team has been actively engaged with a local primary school for more than two years, setting up an allotment, growing food with the children that has been used in school meals, running smoothie demonstrations at school events. With the Head Teacher's enthusiasm and support, the key volunteer and the Trust worker spent an afternoon at the school running group discussions with the 10 children on the school Eco Committee and with 5 representatives from different classes who have participated in some detail in the activity. They also interviewed the caretaker who has given considerable voluntary support, a classroom teacher and the assistant head to gain the different perspectives on the effect the Green Gym work has had on the children, their families, the classes, the school and the wider community.
• Telephone and face to face interviews with some local community groups and organisations who have worked with the Green Gym to gain their views.
• The paid worker gave his perspective in response to questions.

The result is a rich and heart-warming picture of the work and its profound effect on those who have engaged. If you would like to read the full report please contact the Trust.