Help Us To Fundraise
SisterWood provides young people the support they need to form a solid foundation for their mental wellbeing, and your donations keep our programmes running.
You can support us and Gift Aid your donation through our Just Giving Page, meaning we can collect an extra 25% on top of your contribution, at no extra cost to you!
Ways you can contribute through our current funding avenues:
To donate direct to our bank account, use the details below –
Name on Account: SisterWood
Sort Code: 089299
Account Number: 67263055
Young people are struggling with their mental wellbeing now more than ever before: social media increasing fear about the changing climate and, particularly for young women, creating a desire to attain unrealistic images of physical ‘perfection’. A woodland environment is the perfect antidote to this – away from screens and learning practical hands on skills that help support a healthy mindset, connected to the body in real, tangible ways.
A big thank you to all our incredible donors who continue to support SisterWood!
Funding from the organisations listed above, and the many individuals who have given so generously, has meant we have been able to run two highly impactful pilot programmes and changed the course of life for a number of young people. We're now gearing up to run full time from September, and any help you can give goes a really long way!
Together we can create a foundation for young people's mental wellbeing that lasts.
Donate Outdoor Clothing
Not everyone has decent clothing to be out in all weathers. Perhaps you have some spare, that once belonged to you or your daughter but have now outgrown? With our pilots on the horizon, soon we’ll be needing some decent spare clothing to keep everyone warm and cosy throughout the year, and handy on site for anyone who turns up in unsuitable clothing. The types of things we’ll be looking for include:
- Wellie boots, all sizes
- Waterproof trousers, to fit teenagers aged between 12-16
- Waterproof jackets, sizes as above
- Thick socks, sizes as above
- Warm jumpers/fleeces, sizes as above
- Gloves
- Hats
- Scarves
If you think you may have some to donate, then please do get in touch – your support is hugely appreciated, whether it’s one item or more!
How We Fund Our Programme
A key motivation for us has been about increasing access to the outdoors for young people who come from lower socio-economic backgrounds, or perhaps just wouldn’t be able to come along for whatever reason. Therefore, we use grant funding to ensure places are fully funded, boosting access for those who may otherwise not be able to attend.
What the costs cover
Each place on the SisterWood programme includes bespoke delivery tailored to the young person’s needs, the food we cook together, staff and volunteer costs, rental of the land as well as materials and equipment to run the sessions. We bring professionals from the surrounding community in to run workshops as part of the programme, increasing young people’s understanding of different tools they can use to support themselves and widening their circle of connections outside of SisterWood.
Get To Know What It's All About
Why women only?
Mental health issues can affect people from all walks of life - with the pressures of climate change, anxiety enhanced by social media and the hormonal changes of growing up, it is very understandable that so many young people are experiencing some level of stress in the world we live in. The thing is, boys and girls display their struggles very differently, whereas boys may lash out physically, girls typically withdraw, resulting in self harm and other self destructive acts that can be hidden away. Because of these more observable differences, it is more common for boys’ behaviour to be picked up on as a symptom of internal difficulty, and interventions are designed to meet their needs. Girls fly under the radar, and those who identify as female or non-binary do not have the opportunity to explore solutions for their mental health. Creating a safe space that focuses solely on female needs gives them the chance to rewrite that story and explore what works for them.
Mental health in Devon: how bad is it?
In 2021, one youth organisation had a total of 345 self-referrals* for mental health support across Teignbridge, East devon and Exeter alone, and waiting lists for mental health support mean that they don’t get support when they really need it. For many of these young people, not have the opportunity to experience forest school provision as it stands today, where parents foot the bill.
Free to access
Web development refers to the work involved in building and developing a site for the web. The scope of work depends on the size of the website being built, and can be as simple as a landing page or as complex.
Why We Need You
Infrastructure and tools
Our first drive for funding is to build a compost toilet on the site and purchase tools for the young people to use on the programme. This includes the cost of timber, pay for the build and tools such as axes, knives, saws, drawknives as well as other equipment such as yoga mats and cooking resources. Your support will enable us to establish a functioning forest school site that can accommodate the young people’s basic needs.
Leveling the playing field
Forest school provision is usually only accessible to young people who come from families that can afford to pay for their children to attend. The SisterWood programme offers the opportunity for young people from lower socioeconomic backgrounds to overcome financial barriers by having their place funded up to 95%. Your assistance opens the door for mental health and wellbeing support to reach those who need it most.
Transport
Getting out into nature can be really hard if you don’t have a car. Public transport rarely takes people all the way to their rural destinations, let alone young people who may be struggling with anxieties about going outside. SisterWood aims to overcome this barrier with DBS checked volunteers transporting young people to and from the programme. In time we aim to purchase a minibus to make this part of a collective start and end to the day!
Keep Track of Our Goal
We’re aiming to raise enough funds to cover attendance of young people for a full academic year, meaning they can dive deep into how best to support themselves in hard times. This year is all about getting our pilots off the ground to demonstrate how much this work is needed. These charts show how progress is going towards that longer term goal….
The Teignbridge Community Lottery
Click here to support our programme through the purchase of a Lottery ticket with the Teignbridge Community Fund. This is a Teignbridge council-led initiative that gives you the opportunity to be in with a chance to win money while supporting good causes. Supporting SisterWood in this way means you are becoming part of our community, raising healthy young minds who know their worth.
