Belfast Hills project helping young people with anxiety
It comes as more than a quarter of parents or guardians across the UK have said their child has struggled with anxiety, with access to nature and green spaces hoped to help.
In a survey of more than 2,000 parents of children aged four to 17, conducted by Ipsos for the National Lottery Heritage Fund, over a quarter (30%) said their child struggled with anxiety or panic attacks in the past 12 months.
Just under a quarter (23%) said their child struggled with stress and 18% said their child dealt with low self-esteem, while 22% of parents with a child as young as seven say their child struggled with anxiety over the past 12 months.
Just over a third of parents said spending more time in nature would help their child's mental health, and more than a quarter (28%) felt being able to access green spaces, such as parks, would also help.
In the Ipsos UK-wide survey, parents said their child seemed worried about a range of issues in the last year, the top three being judged by others (27%), body image (21%) and safety (18%). Just under one in 10 (9%) mentioned climate change.
The findings were released on World Environment Day by The National Lottery Community Fund, which wants to encourage as many people as possible to get involved in projects linked to nature and green spaces.
In the last year, The National Lottery Community Fund has supported more than 50 environmental projects in Northern Ireland to protect and restore nature, encourage recycling and save energy, thanks to over £2 million of funding generated by National Lottery players.
It is offering millions of pounds of funding over the next 10 years to projects and charities across the UK specifically focused on restoring and regenerating nature.
People across Northern Ireland can apply for National Lottery Awards for All grants of between £300 and £20,000 for environmental projects, through The National Lottery Community Fund's website.
Belfast Hills Partnership is one of the projects in Northern Ireland that is supporting the mental health of young people, including 19-year-old Kai who has found getting out in nature life-changing.
Kai is taking part in the National Lottery funded Trainee Ranger scheme at Belfast Hills Partnership.
'Growing up, my experience of being in a green space was in a football pitch. I didn't know the whole world of foraging and conservation existed. When having a rough time, I gave Belfast Hills Partnership's yearlong Trainee Ranger scheme a go,' he said.
'I got to explore different parks and forests and learnt loads of new skills, like foraging for food and then cooking it outside, hiking in the Belfast hills and protecting animals and local habitats. We had full days of learning about bats and types of birds, which I was really interested in.
'The positive effect on my mental health was instant. Being out in the fresh air and having a purpose really changed my life. Meeting like-minded people my age and having something practical to look forward to, helped me start a better path, one I never dreamed I'd be on.
'I got my strimming licence through the project, and I'm now working as a gardener, as well as being a Volunteer Ranger for Colin Glen Forest Park. My days are all about being in nature and I love it.'
John Rose, environment lead at The National Lottery Community Fund, said mental health is a complex area.
'While there is no one single solution, parents are telling us that access to green spaces and nature could play a part in helping their child's mental health and we know this is backed up by other research,' he said.
'At The National Lottery Community Fund, we know people are increasingly concerned about the environment but we can empower them to take action to improve it as we provide funding, from £300 for small grassroot organisations to hundreds of thousands of pounds for more established organisations.'
He added: 'If you have an idea for a project that will restore or improve your local environment, whether that's a tree-planting project, a community garden or a recycling scheme we're urging you to get in touch and apply for a grant at https://bit.ly/Environmentfunding.'
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