A unique new project to help people with their mental health is looking for people who can make a difference.
Four new jobs at a new mental health and horticulture project opening at Tebay Services are available.
Kendal-based organic farm and mental health charity Growing Well is opening a second site thanks to a unique partnership with Tebay Services owners the Westmorland Family, and the National Lottery Community Fund.
Growing Well at Tebay Services aims to help 100 people a year in Eden and north Cumbria recover from mental health difficulties by volunteering there one day a week for up to a year.
Under the supervision of experienced therapeutic growers and mental health support staff, volunteers, who can be referred by GPs, other health services, or themselves, can rebuild confidence, learn new skills, benefit from peer support and be helped to achieve their goals, such as returning to employment or education.
Unique opportunities at Growing Well
Volunteers will work in Growing Well’s new market garden enterprise at Tebay Services, which will supply salads and other leafy vegetables fresh every day to the Tebay Services Farmshop & Kitchen, where they will be cooked and served to customers just a few hundred metres from where they are grown.
The four new full-time permanent posts – for a general manager, a therapeutic grower, a volunteer support co-ordinator and an office co-ordinator – have been supported by the National Lottery Community Fund.
The project will be at Tebay Services Northbound on the southern side of the Tebay Services Caravan Park. It will fully open to its first horticulture volunteers in January 2023, but it is hoped there will be some opportunities to work on the site build and first planting of crops from October.
To find out more about the roles and apply, visit www.growingwell.co.uk/vacancies
The closing date for applications for all posts is Friday July 29, with interviews taking place the following week. The roles are expected to start in October with full training and induction at Growing Well’s Low Sizergh Farm, near Kendal, from which is has operated successfully for 18 years, and at Tebay as the site begins to take shape.
Growing Well chief executive Mary Smith said: “This an exciting time to be joining us and our new team will be able to make a real difference to people’s lives and their community by bringing our much-needed mental health service to the people of Eden and north Cumbria.
“We are delighted to be recruiting for these vital, varied, and truly rewarding roles as part of our very first replication project.
“We are looking for a hands-on team leader to run the site and its activities day-to-day, and to launch the site alongside our group leaders in horticulture, business development and therapeutic service.
“We need a therapeutic grower who needs to be a skilled organic grower with the experience or ambition to work with people experiencing mental ill health, and a multi-skilled office co-ordinator who will support all aspects of our work with volunteers, our commercial contact with Tebay Services, and community engagement and fundraising.
“A key post is our volunteer support co-ordinator, whose role is to support all our beneficiaries to make the most of their time at Growing Well, helping them set their individual goals on their personal journey, monitoring progress, providing mental health support, and helping volunteers connect with other services and opportunities that will help with their recovery.”
Duncan Nicholson, head of funding for the North East and Cumbria region at The National Lottery Community Fund, said: “We are thrilled to be supporting the expansion of Growing Well’s mental health services in Cumbria.
“Thanks to National Lottery players, the project will provide those affected by ill mental health with the help and support needed to get back into education and employment, enabling them to prosper and thrive. We are excited to see the impact of the project on people’s lives and the benefits it will bring to the local community.”
Full details of the roles are at www.growingwell.co.uk/vacancies
Growing Well will also be recruiting volunteers, who support the staff working with beneficiaries, plus volunteer minibus drivers and volunteer community fundraisers.
To find out more about getting involved in any way, or referring people to Growing Well, email info@growingwell.co.uk
