Celebrating Circle of Life Rediscovery CIC’s Community Impact in 2025
We wanted to pause and celebrate the achievements of Circle of Life Rediscovery CIC and give thanks to our funding partners. Our work sits at the intersection of research, professional training and applied nature-based practice across health, education and social care.
Funded Nature-based Practice Training and Research
16 Sussex NHS staff graduated from our ITC Level 3 Certificate in Nature-based Practice, funded by Natural England.
This training brings together best practice and theory from nature connection, eco-psychology, embodiment, resilience and neuroscience to enable trainees to gain the skills and confidence to take their patients or NHS service users outdoors.
“This course has been brilliant. Really informative and fulfilling. It has helped me to reconnect with the therapeutic component of nature and how to use it with my service users – it has been amazing to see the impact that these interventions have had on my service users!”
— Andrea – Sussex Partnership Perinatal Mental Health Service, Certificate in Nature-based Practice participant
16,000+ words written on the power of Green Interventions by Daniel Ford PhD.
Alongside this training, we commissioned an in-depth research report by Daniel Ford PhD, focused on how Sussex NHS Trust staff trained in Nature-based Practice access their professional green sites to provide mental health and physical health outcomes that fully embrace nature and the outdoors alongside the public they serve. This research contributes to the growing evidence base for embedding nature-based practice within public healthcare systems.
50+ people attended our free event, Integrating Nature-based Interventions into Sussex NHS, funded by Natural England.
We gathered in the woods to hear from Natural England representatives and local keynote speakers working in healthcare. We shared our Sussex-based research presented by Dr Dan Ford, and heard from Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust practitioners and stakeholders about their ongoing work in connecting patients and clients to nature.
With thanks to our funding partners, Natural England.
We’re offering our ITC Level 3 Certificate in Nature-based Practice again in June 2026, with bursaries available. This course is designed to equip health professionals, educators and social care workers with the skills needed to embed nature-based approaches into their daily work.
Above: Watch highlights from our May celebration event
“Nature is not an addition that we need to bring into healthcare, it is a necessity.”
Embedding Nature-Based Practice and Nature Recovery Strategies into Public Healthcare
The Woodland Project continues into 2026
At the end of 2024, The Woodland Project won Gold and Silver Awards in the Sussex Partnership NHS Positive Practice Awards. In 2025, eight Woodland Family days with four families coming to each session were held at the Circle of Life Rediscovery site in Laughton Greenwood as well as nine Woodland Wellbeing Parent days.
Eight Woodland Family days
Nine Woodland Wellbeing Parent days
Our collaborations with Brighton and Hove Children in Care Emotional Well-being Service and Partners in Change; the East Sussex Children and Adolescent Mental Health Learning Disability Family Intensive Support Service team; as well as Grove Park School and others enabled dozens of children, young people, their families and carers to enjoy our woodland site, learn new skills, choose activities whilst being in nature, reflect, and cook and eat together safely around a fire.
“We have been coming here for over a year and it’s one of the few places where we can come together and get away from the world.”
Woodland Wellbeing Parent Day attendee
Recent projects include:
Our project continues into 2026 with thanks to our funding partners.
Since Spring 2025, these days are made possible with support from players of The National Lottery, funding awarded by Postcode Society Trust and raised by players of People’s Postcode Lottery, as well as Life More Ordinary – Short Breaks for Disabled Young People, Chalkcliff Trust, Glynde Place and Enjoolata Foundation.
The Woodland Project continues to demonstrate how long-term, relational, nature-based practice can support family wellbeing within NHS partnership contexts.
To engage with our green interventions projects and partnership opportunities, contact Alana via [email protected]