WOODLAND ACTIVITY AND WELLBEING. Val Morrison & Heli Gittins, Bangor University Jo Cooper, Coed Lleol /Actif Woods Wales

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1 WOODLAND ACTIVITY AND WELLBEING Val Morrison & Heli Gittins, Bangor University Jo Cooper, Coed Lleol /Actif Woods Wales

2 Getting Healthy the Woodland Way Actif Woods Wales Helping people develop learn woodland skills Jo Cooper Coed Lleol

3 Why Actif Woods Wales? Diverse landscape and woodlands Opportunity to learn new knowledge skills Deprivation Health inequalities Employment and skills inequalities

4 Project Locations Previous Actif Woods areas 2010 Aberystwyth Treherbert + in Neath Port Talbot Wrexham Anglesey Active Inclusion areas: (7 of 9 original areas) Aberystwyth, Treherbert, Neath, Anglesey, Gwynedd, Merthyr, Swansea + in Gwynedd Flintshire Merthyr Tydfil Swansea +Future Llynfi Valley (Bridgend)

5 Improving physical mental and social and wellbeing Increasing skills and capacity of leaders, partners & volunteers Helping woodlands be better accessed, maintained, valued Increasing knowledge of the benefits of woodlands for health

6 Self-defined health concerns: Smoking Fibromyalgia/pain Memory loss Depression and anxiety Pain Anaemia Joint problems Back problems Schizophrenia Hip replacement Blood pressure Heart problems Stress Visual impairment Depression Side-effects of medication Allergies Anxiety Recovery from operation Cancer treatment Alcohol abuse Self-harming Dementia Diverticular disease Rheumatoid arthritis Want to lose weight Don t sleep well Stable angina Ageing Diabetes Poor diet Autistic Problems concentrating/attention span Nerves Asthma Plantar fasciitis Lack of energy, stamina, strength Post-pregnancy Inactivity Mental wellbeing Learning disability Lack of confidence ADHD No health problems Just wanting to keep active, get fit

7 Coppicing (Level 1 OCN) Increasing skills and capacity of leaders, partners & volunteers Continue to offer training to leaders and partners Additionally add training to 12 week programme for participants Offer OCN accredited training to participants Woodland Management (Level 1 OR 3 OCN) Wildlife and Habitats (Level 1 OCN) Using Hand Tools (Level 1 OCN) Coppice Products (Level 1 OR 2 OCN) Green Woodwork (Level 1 OCN) Habitat Management (Level 1 OCN) Hedge laying (Level 1 OCN) Species Identification (Level 1 OCN) Social Forestry OR Mindfulness (Level 3 OCN)

8 Woodland walks

9 Woodland Gym

10 Health by Stealth Conservation & Woodland improvement

11 Woodland Skills & Learning

12 Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015 Social Services and Wellbeing (Wales) Act 2014

13 Referrals, signposting, partners Support groups: ME, Stroke Associatio n, Visually impaired Self referrals G.P., occupational therapists, signposting Mental health care homes Physical and Learning disability day centers

14 Getting Healthy the Woodland Way Actif Woods Wales Helping people develop learn woodland skills Jo Cooper Coed Lleol

15 Actif Woods; Pilot evaluation of change in wellbeing, activity and general health Holly Eick, Fatema Sultana, Val Morrison Between April 2014 and October 2015, 966 individuals completed registration form: (409 gave no gender, 227 male, 330 females). 462 completed a follow-up form (mean age 46.9 years, wide range) Target measures: Reasons for, expectations of attendance; General Health; Days of activity; Impact of issues; Wellbeing(WMWBS)

16 Mean number of expectation given Reasons for attending Actif Woods (n=422) Expectation

17 Change over time* (N only 72-74) General health increased an average of 0.23 Impact of issues decreased on average.42* These are not significant, however Days exercise significantly increased by an average of 1.16 days per week Wellbeing increased on average 2.39 points, highly significant* On all components- optimism, usefulness, relaxation, coping, clarity, closeness & decisiveness *females issues decreased, and wellbeing increased more than males *time not standardised

18 Conclusions Actif Woods benefits activity and wellbeing Actif Woods appears to benefit those most in need (arrive in poorer general health, less active, lower wellbeing, greater impacted by issues) Care farms report positive & developing benefits to wellbeing in relation to length of attendance (eg Leck, Upton, Evans, 2015, West Midlands). NB N=216 and 137 followedup Need bigger & even more persuasive datasets Both above use Warwick Edinburgh Wellbeing Scale, but one 14-item, one 7-item

19 Where next Helping people take part in activities that increase personal skills, social confidence & health and wellbeing is a strategic national goal Believing you can, even in the face of some barriers, is about self-efficacy i.e. learning from one s successes and those of similar others We need better understanding of barriers and facilitators of outdoor activity Need regular repeated data collection from 1 st event with standardised timed repeats e.g. monthly/6 monthly Focussed assessments, short validated versions e.g. self-rated health, global wellbeing, activity levels, self confidence, self-efficacy Independent evaluation is more robust than internal, but either is necessary to justify investment

20 KESS2 Evaluating the Impact of Woodland Activities on Personal Wellbeing Heli Gittins, Dr Sophie Wynne-Jones, Professor Val Morrison A collaboration between the School of Environment, Natural Resources and Geography and the School of Psychology in partnership with: The Woodland Trust Actif Woods Wales

21 Introduction Physical health problems arising from sedentary lifestyles are rising 1 There is a long term upward trend in common mental disorders such as anxiety and depression 2 Mounting evidence demonstrates physical and mental health benefits of contact with nature, in particular woodland environments 3-6 Less is known about how benefits are effected, who benefits most and lifestyle changes over time

22 AIMS Evaluate the personal well-being benefits of the Actif Woods Wales Programme longitudinally Examine the psychosocial-geographic dimensions of woodland use - the personal and perceived barriers and factors for success of sustainable outdoor activity

23 Methods Phase 1: Literature review and development of methods Phase 2: Questionnaires with Actif Woods Wales participants at baseline, end of course and 3 month follow up Phase 3: Focus groups and semi-structured interviews with Actif Woods Wales participants

24 Measures Self-reported health (SF-12v2) 7 day Physical Activity Recall Warwick and Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale Generalised Self-efficacy Scale Social Capital question Factors affecting frequency and use of woodlands

25 Any Questions?

26 References and Measures 1. World Health Organisation, (Updated February 2017) Physical Activity Fact Sheet, Retrieved from 2. McManus et al., (2014) Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey 3. Bragg & Atkins (2014) A Review of Nature-Based interventions for Mental Health Care 4. Coon et al., (2011) Does Participating in Physical Activity In Outdoor Natural Environments Have A Greater Effect On Physical And Mental Wellbeing Than Physical Activity Indoors? 5. Morris et al., (2011) Access for All? Barriers to Accessing Woodlands and Forests in Britain 6. Hartig et al., (2014) Nature and Health. Annual Review of Public Health 7. Optum Inc (2017) SF-12-v2 8. Stewart & Janmohamed (2008) Short Warwick and Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale 9. Rosenberg (1965) Self Esteem Scale 10. Schwarzer & Jereusalem (1995) Generalised Self-Efficacy Scale