8 Annual Review 2026 9 Woodland Wellbeing at Leslands It’s a little piece of heaven. It’s magical. It’s a hug. Helen is one of the volunteers at Woodland Wellbeing at Leslands, and it’s hard to disagree with her description of this innovative Barrow project. Tucked away on farmland, Woodland Wellbeing is a social enterprise aiming to boost emotional, physical, and mental health. Small groups of adults and volunteers meet once a week to grow produce, upcycle furniture, and take part in other activities such as arts and crafts. Debbie is a regular attendee but had her doubts when she was first invited. “I hadn’t left the house for two years so I was a bit dubious. But now I love coming here. If I’ve had a stressful time at home with my children, coming here is my de-stress. I can rant at Helen and Elaine. They’re good listeners and give me some good advice.” With a renewed focus on her health Debbie added. “I’ve got COPD and people kept saying to me, ‘you’ve got to stop smoking’ but I get annoyed when people tell me I’ve got to do something. “Since coming here, I’ve really cut down. I’m down to less than 10 a day, from 30 a day. And I’ve lost weight.” The project was the brainchild of Elaine Carter, who previously worked in adult mental health and children’s services for 30 years. “I wanted to do something that really made a difference, taking into account what people said they needed and wanted,” she explained Participants are offered transport to and from the site and given lunch. The project received £6,932 from the People Helping People Fund, the participatory grantmaking element of the Barrow Social Impact Fund, provided by Team Barrow and managed by Cumbria Community Foundation. The grant contributes towards staff and volunteer costs. Elaine explained: “Our goal is to create a safe, inclusive, and sustainable community space where individuals can develop confidence, resilience, and transferable skills to lead fulfilling, independent lives. We’re all really passionate about it.” Claire, a former heroin addict and group member said,“I come here because I’ve got mental health problems and I’ve got a lot going on, but I can talk to Elaine. I’m clean now, and this helps me with that. Some names have been changed at the request of those featured. IMPROVING HEALTH Helping people live healthier, happier lives People Helping People Fund The People Helping People Fund represented a new way of working for Cumbria Community Foundation: participatory grant making. The funding – £85,000 – was provided by the UK Government and Team Barrow’s Delivery Board through a grant from the Social Impact Fund, aiming to make Barrow a better place to live, work, study, visit, and invest in. But all of the decisions about what shape the fund would take were made by ordinary Barrow folk. A community panel was formed in the summer of 2025; residents were invited to sign up and go along to workshops, armed with local knowledge and ideas. The panel decided what the money should fund; who should be eligible to apply; even what the fund should be called. Drop-in sessions were held for potential applicants to ask questions and once the applications were in, the panel decided which projects to fund. Panel member Verity Gardner explained why she got involved. “I’d just moved back to Barrow, having lived away, and I was really keen to build up my network and get to know what’s going on. I was struggling to get involved in the community, a bit isolated and didn’t have many friends. Being on the panel was really empowering for me. Meeting all sorts of people opened my eyes in terms of what’s needed in Barrow. I learned so much. I’ve worked for charities and completed funding applications, but looking at it from the other side was really interesting. Projects funded included wellbeing walks, community gardens and food projects. The scheme returned in 2026, this time named the Barrow Helping Barrow Fund, with a whole new raft of volunteers giving up their time to back their town. Verity said she would encourage anyone given the chance to be involved in participatory grant making in the future to go for it. What a great opportunity it is to have your say on the future of Barrow, and where quite a big chunk of money goes, it's such a good idea. Members of the People Helping People Fund panel Elaine Carter founder of Woodland Wellbeing
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