What can you do to in 2025 to make your site a greener, more biodiverse place? We’ve got some ideas.
Get planning
- Take a walk and identify potential areas for green space development, including underutilised courtyards, rooftops and tucked-away spaces that could be transformed into gardens or natural areas.
- Get in touch with your Sustainability team and share your ideas for the green spaces at your site. Let them know about NHS Forest. We still have lots of trees available until mid-February.
Find funding
- Larger NHS trusts will usually have a charity team. Speak to them about any support they can offer for green space projects.
- Apply for grants and funding opportunities focused on environmental initiatives and therapeutic landscapes in healthcare settings. The National Lottery Community Fund is a good place to start.
- Develop partnerships with local businesses and organisations for sponsorship of green space development and maintenance.
- Create donation programmes allowing patients, families and community members to contribute to green space development through memorial gardens or dedicated features. JustGiving is a good way to do this.
- Look at recruiting volunteers to help with landscaping, planting and maintenance. Speak to your trust volunteer co-ordinator or sign up to the NHS Forest volunteer matching scheme.
Engage staff
- Invite staff to share their ideas for green spaces. Consider a competition for design ideas.
- Consider turning some green spaces into dedicated staff areas that provide peaceful spots for breaks and stress reduction, improving workplace satisfaction and mental health. Read our Space to Breathe report for more information about the role of green spaces in staff wellbeing.
- Organise staff education programmes about the health benefits of green spaces and sustainable practices, encouraging them to become advocates for environmental initiatives.
- Develop educational signage and interactive displays about the local flora, fauna and ecosystem services provided by the green spaces.
Integrate into clinical practice
- Integrate green spaces into rehabilitation programmes. If you are creating a space from scratch consider features that support physical therapy and occupational therapy activities, such as raised garden beds and varied walking surfaces.
- Explore green social prescribing programmes where clinicians can formally prescribe time in outdoor spaces as part of treatment plans, particularly for mental health and chronic disease management.
- Explore using outdoor spaces that accommodate medical equipment and support clinical activities, allowing for outdoor consultations and therapy sessions when weather permits. Mount Vernon Cancer Centre provides chemotherapy in the Fern Garden at the site.
Involve patients and communities
- Create community garden programmes and events that allow patients, families and local residents to participate in maintaining and enjoying the healthcare facility’s green spaces.
- Establish partnerships with local schools and community organisations to develop educational programmes about sustainability and the health benefits of nature.
- Implement virtual reality nature experiences in areas where physical green spaces are limited, allowing patients to experience natural environments even when unable to access outdoor spaces. Consider using cameras and other technology to allow patients to access nature when they cannot leave the ward.
Think sustainably
- Talk to your Sustainability team about implementing sustainable landscaping practices such as rainwater harvesting, drought-resistant plantings and organic maintenance methods to reduce environmental impact. Read this blog about drought-resistant planting at Southmead Hospital.
- Create composting programmes for organic waste from cafeterias and landscaping activities to provide natural fertiliser for green spaces. Read about how the café at Southmead Hospital was able to do this.
- Implement biodiversity monitoring programmes to track and support local wildlife populations in healthcare facility green spaces.
- Develop strategies to reduce the urban heat island effect and flooding through strategic placement of trees and green infrastructure around the facility. Read the report we commissioned from Forest Research about how trees offer value to healthcare sites through eco-system services.
Research and document
- Conduct research studies on the impact of green spaces on patient outcomes, staff satisfaction and facility operations to build evidence for continued investment.
- Document and share success stories and lessons learned through healthcare industry publications, conferences and the NHS Forest to promote wider adoption of green space initiatives.
- Monitor and track metrics related to green space usage, maintenance costs and environmental impact to demonstrate return on investment.
Develop policy
- Establish formal policies that protect and prioritise green spaces in site development plans, ensuring their preservation and expansion during future renovations or expansions. Mid Yorkshire NHS Trust has significant green space commitments in its Green Plan.