Abstract
This paper presents a co-designed, nature-based intervention supporting NHS staff wellbeing through food growing. The NHS Home Growing Group (HGG) was collaboratively developed by DesignHOPES, NHS24, and a community garden. Home growing was identified as a feasible and meaningful activity compatible with shift work, with the potential of improving mental wellbeing in line with the NHS’s Five Steps to mental wellbeing model: connect, be active, keep learning, give, and take notice. Following a feasibility study, the 12-week intervention (April–July 2025) engaged 60 NHS staff using windowsill-growing kits designed for flexibility, autonomy, and asynchronous participation. Kits were sustainably sourced through recycled pots, donated seeds, and cuttings, and included creative materials, a reflective diary, and access to an online sharing platform. Analysis of participant diaries evidenced wellbeing benefits across all five pathways. The HGG demonstrates a simple intervention that can translate organisational wellbeing strategies into accessible, meaningful, and sustainable everyday practices.
Keywords
Nature based intervention; home food growing; co-design; workplace wellbeing; everyday care
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2026.1805
Citation
MacLean, L., Wodehouse, A., Garbe, F., Shepherd, M., and Bowyer, S. (2026) Supporting mental health and wellbeing through a staff home food-growing project, in Simeone, L., Gray, C. M., Verhoeven, A., de Götzen, A., Bakırlıoğlu, Y., Zohar, H., Stead, M., and Buwert, P. (eds.), DRS2026: Edinburgh, 8–12 June, Edinburgh, United Kingdom. https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2026.1805
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Included in
Supporting mental health and wellbeing through a staff home food-growing project
This paper presents a co-designed, nature-based intervention supporting NHS staff wellbeing through food growing. The NHS Home Growing Group (HGG) was collaboratively developed by DesignHOPES, NHS24, and a community garden. Home growing was identified as a feasible and meaningful activity compatible with shift work, with the potential of improving mental wellbeing in line with the NHS’s Five Steps to mental wellbeing model: connect, be active, keep learning, give, and take notice. Following a feasibility study, the 12-week intervention (April–July 2025) engaged 60 NHS staff using windowsill-growing kits designed for flexibility, autonomy, and asynchronous participation. Kits were sustainably sourced through recycled pots, donated seeds, and cuttings, and included creative materials, a reflective diary, and access to an online sharing platform. Analysis of participant diaries evidenced wellbeing benefits across all five pathways. The HGG demonstrates a simple intervention that can translate organisational wellbeing strategies into accessible, meaningful, and sustainable everyday practices.