Our FIFTH year of this successful venture, we embedded into the new land, 17 acres adjacent to Kaliwoods and recently planted with 6,000 trees.
In the spring we became scientists, surveying, recording, measuring, witnessing the land evolve as a newly planted woodland, agroforestry, community and forest garden. The pond held a particular attraction as frogs-spawn appeared and then some was imported, immigrants from Lowestoft, which naturally gave rise to the West Side story.
Through the creative inspiration of Kally, Nicky and Gina, we embodied our science into art, and learned to Hapazone, creating an Elder sheet of many plants, as well as individual scarves of eco-printed leaves.
From the land we ate Squash, celebrating it with the Squash Angel, Marion, who taught us a few of their names and attributes.
Two songs were created this year by Caroline Way:
– The Grass song – celebrating the variety of grasss on the land
– Kali of Kaliwood, in remembrance of Kali who died this year, and after whom the wood is named
G joined us this year. He first attended the Home Ed Tribe in Kaliwoods, and began tentatively exploring the flora and fauna, experiementing with foraging and natural remedies. He bought in a metal detector and began discovering the past history of the land, this led to an exciting development…fossils! With the pond dug and dried out this year, it exposed a fresh layer of ancient seabed, full of discoveries. Greg is now an expert in palaeontology. It is inspiring to see the change in confidence and his sense of belonging when he is immersed in the landscape. He feels safe with Elders to shows his finds, and Elders in turn bought in their fossils for him to name and talk about. For G we invited Howard Mottram, retired Suffolk County Council archeologist, to inspect G’s collection and talk to us about fossils on the land, and we had a day of going back in time millions of years
Sponsored by Post Code Lottery (in the past Heritage Lottery and Pargiter Trust) and Wider Horizons.
Funded by
The Post Code Lottery
The National Lottery Heritage Fund
Thanks to National Lottery Players
March to december 2025
SPRING 2025
March 13 – the scientists
March 20 – pond life
March 27 – Spawn, land and bridge
April 3 – Elders 4 Frog-spawn, Fossils, Friendship and not much sap
April 10 – Elders 5 Frogs, trees and eggs
April 17 EASTER
April 24 – Hapazome mandalas
May 8 Mandala hapazone continued with a few mating dragonflies
May 15 – Hapazone in tandem
May 22 – Hapazone Sheet
May 29 HALF TERM
June 5 – Rain, grass naming of plants
June 12 – Grasses, frogs, a wren and mining bees
June 19 – Weaving Grasses
June 26 – Grasses monoprints beaks and geese
July 3 – Survey results, gratitude
Winter term
Sept 18 Squash with Marion
Sept 25 Squash in orange
Oct 2 Galls and Poems
Oct 9 Printing botanicals
Oct 16 Botanicals and seed sowing
Oct 23
Oct 30 Samhaim
Half term
Nov 13 Fossils with Howard Mottram
Nov 20 Hybrid Elders
Nov 27 Tannins, Eco
Dec 4 Stalwart Eco printing
Dec 11
Review for funders
This funding was part of a mosaic of funding for a years (March to December) project
with Elders wellbeing in the woods. (a years budget is £15,000, 5,000 a term so this was
1/15th of our funding for the year.
Based on 5 years of forest school for Elders in the woods, and now well embedded in
Halesworth Community, Elders connects people and nature, builds community and
resilience, seeking to reduce lonliness and social isolation in older people living in rural
communities.
Beneficiaries come from word of mouth recommendations as well as from various
Halesworth service providers such as the Pear Tree, Halesworth Volunteer Cente,
Halesworth Demential Carers etc
This year we have embeddeed our activity in exploring the newly incorporated 17 acres
of land adjacent to the wood. The Elders became scientists, and witnessed the land over
the year. (Previously an arable field of monoculture, it was planted with 6,000 trees with
areas left to re-wild).
- We measured the growth of trees, in this drought year
- We studied tadpoles to frogs that appeared in the new pond.
- We studied the grasses that we just walked over before we realised their diversity.
- Using creative methods such as hazpazone and eco-printing we created a community
table cloth and individual scarves out of the flowers and grasses of the land. - We cooked up squash grown in the community garden, dressed in orange, and
celebrated squash varieties. - We integrated with children from Forest School, through whom learned from one about
the fossils he found on the land.
https://kindaelders.com/
https://kindaelders.com/2025-elders-well-being-in-the-woods/
How has this grant improved the lives of the beneficiaries?
There is strong evidence that physical activity and access to nature has positive impact
on wellbeing. This is defintely the case here.
- Many elders report that this is the longest they spend out side in any week are are
grateful for it - Utility and usefulness: The Vintage Elders are increasingly involved in supporting the
sessions, so giving unexpected utility to some Elders. Many have dusted down those
retired skills, like biology, creative writing, drawing, music and express them here - Physical wellbeing: Every session incorporates some physical movement for example
tapping, touch and laughter. The movement and tapping sessions helped everyone to
keep mobile and helped with some in between sessions with aches and pains. - Nature and land connection. They have become fascinated in the development of the
land watching its transformation. Some have been involved in planting out of the
saplings in the new field. Planting for the future. - Grief supporting: Some partners or friends have died during this year, and we, the
Elder community have supported. Every year we celebrate Samhain when we openly
talk about death and dying. We embrace seasonal connecting to the turning of the
wheel, Samhain, Solstice, Equinox etc - Community – this is what the Elders said on the last day of term survey, we are
community. This is the strongest element of this project. - Social connection Elders are bought together from a wide range of social and
professional backgrounds, working collaboratively with one another. They now meet
outside of the wood, and support each other.
How did you meet the key outcomes of this grant which you agreed to on your T&Cs?
General physical and mental well-being
Support for carers – We give the carer a break, and monitor and tend the partner.
Community cohesion
Creative Skill sharing
Community building and extending
Intergenerational
What were the challenges during the period of this grant and how did you resolve them?
- Insecure grant funding is one of our major challenges. We have debated charging, but
each time but decided against as many would not be able to afford the costs and it
would give additional administration. Not only would it exclude economically it would
negatively impact the social mix and dynamics of the Elders group. Only two of Kinda’s
8 business elements are grant funded, the rest are financially independent.
- The weather can be challenging, to decided to cancel for example with high winds. The
Elders rock up in foul and fair weather, - Food and providing food. We do all the food preparation ourselves which is costly in
time and money, but we feel it is such an important element of the day to provide and
share a hot soup lunch. It supports health and nutrition and sense of community. - Challenge to create a fully inclusive programe for a diverse range of elders needs.
Will the work continue beyond the life of this grant?
Yes;Yes
If so, please indicate in what way and detail what funding you have secured or need to secure to deliver it?
I am applying for grant funding now to start again in March.
We plan to embrace 4 main projects to continue our work relating to the land
- to plan and plant a forest garden on the new land adjacent to the Kaliwoods woodland
- using Elders design skills
- To learn about wild clay using clay from the land (Tamlin led) Kaliwoods
- To build a loom within the wood to weave using wood and material dyed with natural
dyes (Kally led) (Kaliwoods woods) - To build and utilise a pole lath in the wood using hazel and ash (Worlingham woods)
- to plant willow to build a willow bender on the land
Please provide one personal ‘story of change’ to demonstrate how you have made a significant difference to
the life of an individual.
P, with mild learning difficulties, facial disfigurement and some physical health issues,
lives alone, is socially isolated, started to come to Kinda Forest school a year ago. His
past work was as a warden for Suffolk Wildlife Trust in Minsmere – he was there during
the 87 storm, si he is comfortable with woodland ways. He comes every Thursday, an
hour before anyone else, to light the fire. If on the very rare occasion fire is not lit when
we arrive, we check up on P, to make sure he is ok. He has taken to being a scientist
like duck to water. With a measuring tape he has measured the 8 walnut trees each
week, the pond depth, the trees which have died and those survived. He has helped
re-plant some of the dead saplings. He has even taken to doing the homework. Social
confidence and self esteem have improved. He feels safe with the group enough to talk
in the circle without fear of judgement.
He first attended the Home Ed Tribe in Kaliwoods, and began tentatively exploring the
flora and fauna, experiementing with foraging and natural remedies. He bought in a
metal detector and began discovering the past history of the land, this led to an exciting
development…fossils! With the pond dug and dried out this year, it exposed a fresh
layer of ancient seabed, full of discoveries. Greg is now an expert in palaeontology. It is
inspiring to see the change in confidence and his sense of belonging when he is
immersed in the landscape. He feels safe with Elders to shows his finds, and Elders in
turn bought in their fossils for him to name and talk about. For G we invited Howard
Mottram, retired Suffolk County Council archeologist, to inspect G’s collection and talk to
us about fossils on the land, and we had a day of going back in time millions of years
https://kindaelders.com/2025/11/13/22-fossils-with-howard-mottram/
Please note any media coverage or publicity that you have received whilst in receipt of this grant.
Through our campaign to secure Ringsfield Hall, we have had media coverage for Kinda
Education this year
https://www.kindaeducation.org.uk/
We made a MOVIE which has been popular on social media. : https://kindaelders.com/
Elders testaments: https://kindaelders.com/2025/07/12/testaments-2025/
Our songs:
Grass song – https://kindaelders.com/2025/07/19/the-grass-song/
Kali in Kaliwood – https://kindaelders.com/2025/11/02/kali-in-kaliwood/
In Kaliwood – https://kindaelders.com/2023/11/29/in-kaliwood
Past 2021-25
We started with an 8 week prototype which was so successful we have not stopped since. Working with the support of the Pear Tree Fun, mixing elders with children from other tribes, we’ve had a blast. Here is some of our story.
Elders Weaving the woods 1 2021
Elders Wellbeing in the woods 1 2022
It’s a Wrap – summer 2022
2003 Elders wellbeing in the woods
2024 Spring Summer Winter (wild clay with Tamlin, Samhain)
Elders testaments 2025
Kinda Elders in the woods 