Project Lead and Facilitator (Maternity Cover)

About us

The Birch Collective works with young people and adults who are experiencing mental ill-health, social isolation, or difficult transitions. Through nature-based creative and land-skills groups, we support participants to build resilience, find motivation, and reclaim a sense of purpose and empowerment in their lives.

We believe deeply in the healing and transformative power of nature. Over the years we’ve evolved and expanded our offerings. We now run a wide range of programmes including:

• Fresh Air Thursdays: weekly land-skills and wellbeing sessions combining gardening, food-growing, natural craft (e.g. willow or clay work), wood carving, natural building, fireside cooking and other seasonal nature-based activities. These sessions offer a relaxed, supportive space to connect with people and the outdoors, for 16-25 year olds.
• Camp Birch / “Seeding Change: Plant Your Future”: immersive multi-night residential camps for 18–25-year-olds (free or pay-what-you-can), designed to reconnect participants with nature, build confidence, community and peer support - often forming a turning point for people feeling stuck, isolated or in need of fresh purpose.
• 1:1 Nature-Based Mentoring: personalised mentoring in nature for individuals recovering from mental health crises or living with persistent mental health needs. This includes work commissioned by the NHS.
• Therapeutic Forest School & Group Work: in partnership with organisations such as educational institutions and support providers, we also work with young adults with profound disabilities, ESOL students, asylum seekers and refugees - offering a nature-based programme tailored to their needs, background and context.
• Partnership & Bespoke Programmes: we collaborate with other organisations (e.g. youth agencies, colleges, charities) to deliver bespoke nature- and community-based workshops, designed to meet the needs of different groups.
• Steering Groups & Co-Design Opportunities: we provide participatory workshops and steering-group sessions where participants help shape the direction of Birch Collective - giving their voices real influence over what we do and how we grow next. This supports a sense of ownership, belonging and community.

Role Outline

This is a 9-month, 2-days-per-week role supporting the delivery and smooth running of Birch’s core nature-based programmes during a period of maternity cover. You will work closely with the Directors and team to ensure high-quality facilitation, consistent participant experience, and the continuation of our partnerships and community-based work.

We are looking for someone with strong nature-based facilitation experience, confident programme delivery skills, and the ability to hold both group work and 1:1 work outdoors. The role is hands-on, varied, practical, participant-led and rooted in land-based wellbeing practice. You will bring warmth, creativity and confidence in outdoor therapeutic practice and nature-connection work.

You will take full responsibility for one of Birch’s core programmes, including planning and scheduling all sessions, coordinating resources and logistics, and ensuring high-quality participant experiences throughout. This will involve forward planning, anticipating challenges and adapting to changing needs, while contributing to the continued development of programme content and structure.

You’ll be comfortable taking initiative, enjoy working in a team, and committed to supporting the continued growth of our programmes for young people and adults. This is a fantastic opportunity to make a meaningful impact, work closely with a passionate team, and enjoy a hands-on, creative role in nature-based wellbeing.

Key Responsibilities

Programme Delivery & Project Management

• Project-manage Fresh Air Thursdays, including session planning, coordinating staff/volunteers, and ensuring smooth weekly delivery.
• Delivering nature connection and arts/crafts/nature-based creative practices, including 6 week courses, one off events and regular drop in programmes.
• Facilitate seasonal Forest School sessions for students at the city of Bristol College in the ESOL department, ensuring activities are safe, engaging, and accessible.
• Deliver/hold 1:1 nature-based mentoring as needed.
• Hold participant-led approaches within all programmes, supporting young adults to take ownership, design activities and develop peer-leadership skills.
• Ensure monitoring and evaluation is implemented across the programmes you manage.
• Ensure data and photos from sessions are captured, processed and shared in accessible, meaningful formats, on our internal systems and social media.
• Joint responsibility for maintaining and improving the site, and the tools and resources stored there.
• Liaising with partners to ensure relationships are built and maintained
• Responsibility for participant engagement and experience, in conjunction with Marketing Officer.

General

• Attend team meetings, reflective practice and supervision.
• Uphold Birch’s safeguarding, risk assessment and wellbeing standards.
• Work collaboratively and flexibly within a small team environment.
• Contribute creative ideas, problem-solving and responsiveness to emerging programme needs.

What We’re Looking For

Essential Skills & Experience

• 3+ years of lead delivery in at least one of: horticultural therapy, eco-therapy, social forestry, nature-connection work, or similar therapeutic outdoor practice. This includes having strong practical skills in arts/crafts/nature-based creative practices, e.g. green woodwork, basketry, natural dyeing, textiles, clay, gardening/allotment/organic horticulture/permaculture knowledge.
• Confident outdoor facilitation skills - able to make people feel safe, comfortable and included, and to hold sessions that have direction while still offering choice, flexibility and participant autonomy.
• Experience working with people from diverse cultural and life backgrounds. An understanding of how to work safely and empathetically with trauma, mental health challenges and neurodivergence.
• Demonstrated project-management skills and strong organisational skills
• Experience working with adults or young adults outdoors, especially those facing barriers, mental-ill health or isolation.

Desirable

• Experience of participant-led practice, youth participation or co-design.
• Forest School qualification.
• Outdoor First Aid.
• A driving licence
• Access to a laptop for planning/admin.

As Part of The Birch Collective You Will:

• Join a small, welcoming, and collaborative team, working in a trauma-informed way.
• Have the freedom to shape your role and bring your creativity and land-based skills into our programmes.
• Make a direct contribution to nature-based mental health support for young people and adults.
• Benefit from reflective supervision, both internal and external, to support and enhance your practice.
• Access to pro-rata holiday leave and a paid allowance for non-essential training—opportunities to develop skills that enhance your role, bring personal enjoyment, and support your growth, but are not strictly required for your core responsibilities. (Essential training, which directly relates to mandatory requirements for your role, is covered by a separate budget.)

Salary: £34,000 pro rata (PAYE salaried employment including paid holidays, NI contributions & optional pension contribution via the NEST scheme.)

We are holding a drop in hour Thursday 5th February 4-5.30pm at Strawberry Lane Community Gardens where you can meet us and have an informal chat. Please email [email protected] for address/ directions if needed.

Note that we take the month of January off. We will answer emails but may take up to 7-10 days to reply.

Closing dates for applications: 9th Feb, midday

If invited for an interview, you will be invited for both an interview and to deliver a short practical session.

Practical sessions will take place on Monday 16th February at Strawberry Lane Community Gardens, between 10am-1pm. You will be asked to deliver a 20 minute activity to run in the practical session. For the remainder of the session you will be a participant in other candidates activities, alongside up to 5 of our participants. Please use the ‘essential skills’ section for guidance on your session. If you require very specific tools and materials, please enquire as we may have them on site.

Interviews will take place on Monday 16th afternoon or Wednesday 18th February at our office, 30-64 Pennywell Road Bristol BS5 0TG. Interviews will be 1 hour long, with times offered on a first come first served basis, to increase the likelihood of finding a time that suits you. Unfortunately we are not able to offer different dates for interviews.

Start date: Wednesday 18th March 2026

We particularly encourage applications from people from underrepresented backgrounds and anyone who feels they would bring a different perspective to our team.