NATURE SMILES project Underway

The NATURE SMILES project is supported through funding from the National Lottery.

Nature SMILES Supported by National Lottery Community Fund

It is a fundamental component of our SMILES Intervention service. SMILES is a youth-driven project with six key objectives: to provide Support, Motivate young people, make a positive Impact on their lives, empower them to Lead, Educate them, and Safeguard them from any form of violence prevalent in our community, including knife and gun crime.

Trinity High School Manchester

Nature SMILES is a project that's specifically dedicated to identifying and implementing practical solutions for enhancing our local environment, ultimately benefiting everyone in our community. The project is thoughtfully designed with the aim of empowering young people to cultivate their creativity and develop innovative ideas that contribute towards a healthier and more sustainable environment. We have initiated conversations and have successfully held several engaging workshop sessions specifically designed for young people. These sessions commenced in November 2025. Furthermore, these activities are being conducted in close collaboration with some well-established groups operating across Manchester. These include schools in the local area such as Trinity High School Manchester. Young people produced work to help develop areas outdoors in our local community, they will be implementing some of these ideas in the Summer Holiday in August 2026.

Nature SMILES Started with Improved Outdoor Areas

The Nature SMILES project, in partnership with The Phoenix Way Project, has developed engaging activity sessions that incorporate elements like music, dance, and food preparation. These sessions are designed to empower young people to generate ideas that will have a positive impact on our local environment. We're currently pleased to announce that we've recently installed an improved car charger at our local community hall. Young people have said travel for the project should be done by walking, cycling and electric car travel. In addition Nature SMILES has recently invested in larger bins, which now allow us to recycle all of our rubbish across the entire building site. This improved recycling system is helping us to make a clearer impact on the environment.

Fly-tipping issues addressed with City Council

Our younger community members have recently met with our local Neighbourhood Representative to discuss potential strategies for the charity to effectively report fly-tipping incidents that are negatively impacting the accessibility of our community hall pathway. Young people have made contact by email and developed an account which gives them an ability to report incidents directly to the council to ensure fly-tipping rubbish is removed within 48 hours. Young people have also encouraged Nature SMILES intervention to include our own rubbish collections activities to ensure a clean tidy area around Hulme Centre Hall.

Winter Sessions started in November 2025

The NATURE SMILES winter sessions allowed young people to use different forms of our natural environment to communicate and develop ideas that provide opportunities for people to learn about their local environment and how better to improve access to outside areas. The young people have developed some amazing ideas. Making plant based meals. Then learning to grow their ingredients. Making music from our natural environment. There are future plans to use this music in outdoors mindfulness sessions, helping improve mental health and wellbeing. Our young people have also agreed to develop protected areas outside for our older community. This will allow our older citizens access to outside areas without fear of damage to their flowers and ball games impacting on their grassed and bench seated areas. It will also allow young people to have access to separate play areas outside.

MAV UK Setting an Example with Nature SMILES

Nature SMILES also created opportunities for our

staff and the local community to better understand our natural environment, while seeking ways to improve Hulme Hall’s outdoor space and engage with our local council. The two key outcomes. To improve the skills of volunteers and staff with access to training, which helps support, motivate, and educate them in areas that help safeguard young people and their families. Helping staff and volunteers improve how we better connect to our natural environment while continuing to deliver current services.