STORY: Green Community Hubs – Paul
If it wasn’t for Groundwork’s Green Community Hub project at Maryport’s The Settlement, Paul would most likely be in his house all day, every day.
However, he’s become a regular attendee, an active member of the steering group, and proud custodian of the shed – all while being someone who, in his own words, “hated gardening”!
He heard about the project through his health and wellbeing coach, who also accompanied him on his first visit.
Speaking of his involvement, Paul said:
“I suffer from severe mental health issues and don’t really come out of the house, so coming to this Green Community Hub has been a godsend for me. I have trust issues with people, so meeting new people and the volunteers is really good for me – it’s putting trust back in.
“Getting out into the fresh air, learning about gardening, planting vegetables, and learning new skills – it really is good and I enjoy coming. It helps with my mental health and I’ve got a lot more confidence.
“My job’s being in charge of the shed and maintaining things, then also helping with the growing and ground clearance. The shed was an absolute bomb site when we started and I got some racking and I’ve got all the tools hanging up. I’m proud of that.”
When Groundwork project lead, Shayla Johnston, put out the call for people to join the steering group, Paul decided to go for it.
“I’ve never actually been on anything like a steering group before, so I thought let’s have a go. You do struggle sometimes to get your voice heard but I’ve learned to stand up and get more assertive.
“I’m proud of myself for getting here. It’s an achievement for me, a really big achievement. But you know, it’s the other volunteers as well – we all get on and we have a laugh. If somebody’s having a bad day, we’ll sit down and have a chat and help each other. There are a few people I can trust and really open up to.
“It’s just great: the atmosphere, the fresh air, everything about it, it’s just a joy to be here. Getting out here takes my mind off things.”
If he’s not sharing ideas in the steering group or tending to the shed, you might just find Paul at the vegetable patch admiring the carrots:
Shayla asked me one day to put some carrot seeds in seed trays, and everybody said: ‘they won’t grow in there’. But they did – I proved them wrong because they grew in the greenhouse and then we planted them in the patch and the stalks are now huge. I’m very proud of my carrots!