MAV UK: Nature SMILES Project Progress and Community Impact

Engaging Our Community

MAV UK is thrilled with the progress made in our Nature SMILES project. The engagement from young people and their families has been encouraging. We are currently at the halfway stage of the project. Our young participants have come from local schools, including Trinity and Chorlton High School in Manchester. We have also included community groups that regularly use or hire the Hulme Centre.

The project has collaborated with Neighbours Who Grow CIC, a newly formed community interest company that helped deliver our Nature SMILES garden lawn area at the Hulme Centre. Young people used their creative skills, with the help of AI, to generate designs that would make our outdoor area more welcoming. It was also agreed that part of the lawn would serve as a tribute to our founder, Patsy McKie, who passed away a few months before the project started.

Involvement of Families

The last six months of the project have not only focused on children and young people but have also allowed parents and grandparents to become involved. We have encouraged the development of their own outdoor areas, including gardens, balconies, and communal spaces. The Nature SMILES project provided free soil, plants, seeds, and hanging flower beds to help young people and their families spend more time outdoors and improve their natural environment.

It was important for us at MAV UK to set an example. As part of the renovation of the Hulme Centre’s toilets and entrance area, we ensured that our outdoor spaces were made more accessible, creating an environment where nature can thrive. Nature SMILES has helped our community come together and enjoy the outdoor space. The sunny weather experienced in May, June, and July across the UK made it easier to engage local people with the project.

Mental Wellbeing Benefits

Our young people have shown that the Nature SMILES project has helped lower stress levels by supporting relaxation, emotional regulation, and positive routines. This aligns with wider UK evidence showing that access to green and blue spaces is linked with improved mental wellbeing. These spaces create opportunities to exercise, socialise, notice nature, and recover from everyday pressures.

Research indicates that children and young people can benefit from time in nature through improved confidence, teamwork, attention, self-regulation, and social skills. Being outdoors while developing our green space, and enjoying nearby blue spaces, has helped reduce anxiety and depressive symptoms linked to school exams. It has also increased feelings of calm, confidence, and happiness. Even small interactions, such as planting seeds, watering plants, and noticing daily growth, can be beneficial. They give young people a sense of responsibility, achievement, and connection with the natural world.

Encouraging Physical Activity

Nature SMILES is also encouraging physical activity, which supports mental health by helping young people move more, build healthier routines, and release endorphins that can improve mood and sleep. Exposure to natural light and fresh air can support overall health by encouraging outdoor movement, reducing time indoors, and providing families with safe reasons to spend time together outside.

The project reflects the principles of green social prescribing, recognised by NHS England as a way of supporting people to engage in nature-based activities. These include community gardening, walking groups, conservation projects, and outdoor arts to improve mental and physical health. Evidence from green social prescribing programmes shows that nature-based activities can enhance wellbeing, reduce loneliness, and strengthen community connections. For us at MAV UK, this has been especially important because the project has brought children, parents, grandparents, schools, and local community partners together around a shared purpose.

Enhancing Our Outdoor Spaces

The improvements at the Hulme Centre are significant. Research increasingly shows that the quality and diversity of nature can influence wellbeing. Spaces with trees, plants, birds, flowers, and water provide stronger wellbeing benefits than plain or poorly maintained outdoor areas. This supports our decision to make the Nature SMILES garden more welcoming, accessible, and meaningful.

By creating a tribute to Patsy McKie within the outdoor area, the project has combined environmental improvement with remembrance, community pride, and emotional connection. This has helped young people understand that green spaces are not only about plants and soil; they are also about identity, belonging, memory, and care for one another.

Looking Ahead: Summer Activities

As we start the summer holiday period, we will be taking trips outdoors using public transport. This will include a day trip to London to explore the capital and encourage young people to experience wider green, cultural, and public spaces beyond their local area.

We will also deliver Nature SMILES gardening workshops, helping young people and families build practical gardening skills. These skills include planting, watering, caring for flowers, growing food, designing small outdoor areas, and creatively using balconies or communal spaces. These activities will continue to support confidence, independence, cooperation, and emotional wellbeing.

They will also help families make better use of their own outdoor spaces and encourage young people to see nature as something they can protect, enjoy, and shape for the benefit of the wider community.

In conclusion, the Nature SMILES project is more than just a gardening initiative. It’s a movement that fosters community spirit, nurtures mental health, and empowers families. Together, we are creating a greener, more connected Greater Manchester.

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