Jo Brooks, Eden-Rose Coppice Trust Charity Manager, will be giving one of our Winter Illustrated Talks on the 19 December 2018 at 7.30pm to describe the charity’s aims and their woodland retreats at Brickmakers Wood in Ipswich and Eden-Rose Coppice in Sudbury.

Eden-Rose Coppice Trust was founded in 2007 with the purpose of providing a safe and highly beneficial natural urban green space, with essential facilities, for people with a life-limiting illness such as cancer and for the development and skill acquisition of young people with disabilities.

The positive health effects of green spaces, and more specifically woodlands, have been observed on longevity, people's self-reported general well-being and recovery from illness.

In making the case for therapeutic use of outdoor spaces, the evidence base is important and proven. Many people see healthcare as an art as well as a science and encourage access to outdoor spaces. This approach is not often practised; however, the Trust has been doing this successfully since 2007.

As an adjunct to the Charity’s main aim of palliative care and to enhance the woodland management of their sites, it provides vulnerable young people, the unemployed, elderly and the disabled, with skill-based educational training based on outdoor learning, dramatically increasing their self-confidence and providing an enrichment of life and companionship for those who may feel socially isolated for a variety of reasons.

The charity’s Ipswich site, Brickmakers Wood, was subject to a number of crimes over the last year and, as a result of this, security measures have increased. A substantial fence has recently been installed, with 24-hour security surveillance, around the perimeter of the wood and a wheelchair-friendly pathway is currently being laid, along with wildlife habitats and benches.

Join us on the 19 December to hear Eden-Rose Coppice Trust’s story, the charity’s retreats restoration stories and the highs and lows of running a charity.

Members of the Ipswich Society Executive Committee are shown around Brickmakers Wood by Rob and Jo Brooks in the heat of the 2018 summer. The recently established wildlife pond is in the foreground; the newly turfed performance/meeting area is behind.