Natural England
Natural England
2025
In-between Green
Seedcorn funding support to experiment with ways to enhance new surveying methods and promotion that captures qualitative and quantitative insights on the wellbeing impact of small nature interventions on housing estates.
Aewell
Purpose
As received Seedcorn funding from Natural England to develop a toolkit and guidance for measuring the subjective benefits of small and informal urban nature projects on Clarion Housing estates. Working across estates in Bow, East London with approximately 4,000 residents, we recognised that small, informal nature interventions are difficult to measure, making it hard to demonstrate their positive impact to funders and policymakers. Our project directly addresses this challenge by creating practical tools and methods that capture the real-world wellbeing benefits residents experience.
Approach
Applied our Make My City Thrive impact assessment framework covering 7 key assessment areas: Health & Wellbeing, Habitat, Landscape, Environmental Quality, Access to Nature, Use & Behaviour, and Inclusivity
Designed a three-stage resident engagement approach comprising wider resident surveys, seasonal resident panel surveys with self-guided Walk Packs, and event-specific surveys
Developed online, mobile-friendly digital Walk Packs as a complement to physical packs, making nature engagement more accessible
Introduced micro-journaling exercises to capture sensory experiences and personal connections to local nature
Provided multi-language survey options in English and Bengali to ensure inclusive participation
Coordinated closely with Clarion's landscaping, community relations and biodiversity teams
Results
We created a replicable toolkit that demonstrates even small urban nature interventions produce measurable wellbeing benefits. The physical interventions transformed the estates, with 28 new trees planted, 372 metres of new hedges, 2,251 square metres of beds planted, and 2,318 square metres of community orchard created. We implemented 152 biodiversity interventions, including 40 bird, bat and insect homes.
The impact on residents was significant and measurable:
47% of participants felt happier, and 53% felt more relaxed after nature events
13% increase in happiness and 17% increase in relaxation following nature walks
25% increase in emotional connectedness to nature
21% increase in knowledge of local wildlife in Bow
Online Walk Packs achieved an increase in engagement compared to physical packs alone
93% of participants enjoyed workshops and said they would attend future events
26% reported being more willing to care for local green space after engagement
Quotes
"I feel like I would not have discovered this without this walk"
Resident, Walk Pack