Over the past five years, Northern Roots, a charity, has been developing this once industrial land, running community programmes including a Natural Health<\/a> Service.<\/p>\n On 19 September a new facility will open to the public, featuring a cafe, shop, production kitchen, performance space, forestry skills centre, outdoor play areas and an urban farm. The charity\u2019s ambition is to turn what was once a \u201cburden\u201d into the UK\u2019s largest urban farm and eco-park.<\/p>\n Visitors to the cafe and shop will be able to enjoy and buy fresh seasonal produce grown on site, helping strengthen connections between local communities, sustainable food production and healthy living. Photograph: Darren Robinson Photography<\/p>\n The idea began with Oldham council, which wanted to explore green space as an asset. Today the council works in a unique partnership with Northern Roots.<\/p>\n \u201cWe wanted to look at what this land could do for Oldham, rather than simply seeing it as land that needed maintaining,\u201d said Anna da Silva, the founder and chief executive of Northern Roots.<\/p>\n The charity\u2019s seven activity programmes, which include farming and food, arts and culture, sports, business and learning, have been designed to appeal widely.<\/p>\n \u201cThe hardest part is getting people \u2026 physically and psychologically out of their house, down to the site, meeting people where they are on that journey,\u201d said da Silva.<\/p>\n Once they are through the doors, the aim is to encourage continued engagement so they can unlock the environmental, economic and social benefits \u2013 a challenge that led to the creation of \u201cparticipation pathways\u201d.<\/p>\n This philosophy is perhaps best demonstrated by Faiza Awan and Louise Gibbs, who both grew up in the area and became involved with Northern Roots as community champions. Awan said: \u201cIt\u2019s really important to have something for everyone.\u201d<\/p>\n Gibbs added: \u201cThere\u2019s just so many doors to come in through Northern Roots, and then to continue development.\u201d<\/p>\n Both now have roles as Natural Health Service guardians. Unlike green social prescribing<\/a> programmes that are centred on exercise or gardening, Northern Roots\u2019 Natural Health Service<\/a> focuses on intentional connection with nature. In doing so, it embodies the wider aims of creating opportunities for people who might not otherwise come together.<\/p>\n The pioneering project spans 65 hectares of former industrial land in Oldham. Photograph: Darren Robinson Photography<\/p>\n The site sits between two different and historically divided communities, and its outdoor setting helps to make it a space where people feel able to participate. \u201cIt\u2019s a very welcoming, inviting environment,\u201d said Gibbs. \u201cWith it being outside, people automatically feel comfort.\u201d<\/p>\n Awan said: \u201cThere\u2019s something really levelling and very democratic about doing things outside in nature,\u201d adding that it could create a sense of belonging that might be harder to achieve in other settings.<\/p>\n The importance of connection is reflected in the relationship between the community and the site. Gibbs said: \u201cBecause [people] are local they feel more connected to the space \u2026 it\u2019s giving the ownership to the community.\u201d<\/p>\n The Natural Health Service was commissioned through Northern Roots by NHS England. It launched in 2023 as a six-month pilot with patients from the Hill Top GP surgery in Fitton Hill. It now works with healthcare providers to support people experiencing mental health challenges.<\/p>\n A session may involve foraging, bushcraft, making something from natural materials or simply noticing what is around you. The principle is that being outside, in an environment without the clinical associations of a healthcare setting, can create room to slow down.<\/p>\n
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