The Areti Trust recently made a grant of £23,396 to LESS for their “Where the Wildings Are“. This is a project working with local schools to grow food, and to encourage wildlife and increase biodiversity in their grounds.
News
Updates
- Between June 2021 and March 2022, 875 schoolchildren from 12 local primary schools visited RSPB Leighton Moss, class by class, enjoying a day of discovering and learning about birds, minibeasts and what lurks beneath the surface of ponds. The Areti Trust is grateful to the Learning Team at Leighton Moss for connecting children with nature again after lockdown with such enthusiasm and heart.
- Junior members of the Lancaster Boys’ and Girls’ Club had outdoor day visits during half term. As is the tradition, it did rain, but that didn’t stop the enjoyment.
- The Areti Trust recently awarded £2,750 to Skerton Community Association for 50 young people to go on a summer residential trip to an outdoor activity centre for a week.
Working with schoolchildren at Leighton Moss
There is an interesting online article on the Leighton Moss blog about starling murmurations and the work of the Learning Officer, Carol, on connecting children with nature.
New applications
Although things are still far from normal, it was heartening to receive applications for grants from organisations both old and new at the end of 2021. The trustees have decided on the following grants:
- £4,000 to CEEP for outdoor activities during summer 2022
- £8,100 to Lancashire Youth Challenge for outdoor workshops and challenges in spring and winter 2022
- £5,320 to Arnside & Silverdale AONB for a half-term of outdoor activities with youngsters from a pupil referral unit
- £2,500 to CancerCare for outdoor activities with teenagers affected by cancer or loss
- £2,991 to Lakeland Arts for primary schoolchildren to visit Windermere
- £2,720 to Stomping Group CIC to support a small number of children with extra needs to attend forest school.
The Wyrm of Trowbarrow
One of this year’s projects came to a close with primary schoolchildren parading the “Wyrm of Trowbarrow” through the city centre as part of Light Up Lancaster. This was organised by Arnside and Silverdale AONB, working with artists Anna Read and Shane Johnstone.
More events
Lancashire Youth Challenge successfully completed their “Highest, Longest, Deepest, Darkest & Wildest Challenge” in August: canoeing the length of Windermere, climbing Scafell Pike, abseiling into the caves of Cathedral Quarry, a night of wild camping in a gale, and scrambling through the Yordas Cave.
Arnside & Silverdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty are taking children from four primary schools to Silverhelme Scout Camp and Trowbarrow Quarry and working with them to produce a “serpent” of lanterns for the Light Up Lancaster event in November.
Ludus has completed a project with primary school children, taking them outdoors to look carefully at and learn about the plants and creatures around them. Back in school, the children’s creativity was developed by using art and physical movement to inspire a respect for the natural world.
Primary school visits to RSPB Leighton Moss
During the last weeks of the summer term the Areti Trust has been funding visits to Leighton Moss for over 300 primary school pupils. It has been a pleasure to enable children to get out into the natural world again after the straitjacket of the last 18 months.
Grant to Heron Corn Mill
With the disruption to children’s education and social lives over the last 15 months, the Areti Trust is, exceptionally, stretching its criteria for awards at present. We are pleased to make a grant of £2,400 to Heron Corn Mill for summer projects for children and young people.
Autumn leaves Ryelands Primary School dancing
One of the projects that The Areti Trust funded last year (and which had to be adapted to comply with Covid regulations) was a project combining the natural world and dance. A team from Ludus Dance worked with children from Ryelands Primary School to create an activity about autumn and the changing colours of the trees and landscape. The children took part in a walk around the local park, where they were shown how to identify different types of trees and explored their qualities and potential.
The project also highlighted the importance of preserving and looking after our local wildlife, and the topics of plastic pollution, pollinator decline and local walks for the children came up in all sessions.
For the Areti trustees it was a pleasure to watch a video clip of the children dancing as trees or as butterflies and to sense their delight in the project. The project resumes with Ryelands next month; Ludus will also be working with North Road Community Primary School in Carnforth this spring.
Grant awarded to Lancashire Youth Challenge
The Areti Trust is pleased to award a grant of £8,820 to Lancashire Youth Challenge for their summer activity: the “Highest, Longest, Deepest, Wildest Challenge”. This will see young people taking on the following:
- The ascent of Scafell Pike, the highest mountain in England
- Canoeing the length of Windermere, the longest lake in England
- An abseil into Longchurn Caves, some of the deepest caves in England
- A night of ‘wild camping’ atop of the fells.
The Areti Charitable Trust 