Places for Nature
Andrea Harvey – Managing Director
The challenge we tackle is: Social isolation
Mission: We want to help communities connect with nature and each other, by creating, improving, maintaining and preserving places for wildlife in gardens and communal spaces. From new housing developments to long established villages, towns and cities, we want to help and support people to come together to help nature and in doing so, improve the health and wellbeing of all involved.
What inspired you to set up a social business?
A few years ago, I moved to a new build site. There were only a handful of other residents living there and from what I could see, very few signs of wildlife. There was no warm welcome when we moved in – just waste ground and empty and unfinished houses.
Thankfully, things didn’t stay that way for long. As more residents moved in, new neighbours became new friends. Before we knew it, a friendly, welcoming and supportive community was formed, however, the wildlife was a little slow to join us. Having moved from a house where the garden was a hotspot for birds, bees, butterflies, badgers and more, it became my mission to turn my empty garden into a place that enabled the wildlife to thrive in our shared space.
Knowing how to encourage wildlife into your garden, can be an overwhelming, time consuming and expensive experience if you don’t know where to begin. I’ve heard this story from many neighbours, friends and acquaintances so I began sharing my experiences on how to get started online. Being outdoors and working with nature is my retreat when I am having a difficult day. Best of all is the reward of seeing my garden filled with birds, pollinators and prickly friends, but also the feeling of our community coming together to help nature. What had originally started as a mission to help nature in my back garden, has rippled out into the wider community and that kickstarted the idea for my social enterprise.