- an environmental charity that’s making sustainability second nature.
We work with people who believe in the potential for creative ideas to make a difference, from government, to business to community groups.
We know being in nature makes us feel better, improves our mental health, and deepens our connection to where we live. But we also know that access to nature isn’t equal - in the UK, 1 in 5 people live in areas deprived of access to nature.* So, at Hubbub, we’re focussed on bringing people closer to nature by supporting community action.
Thanks to support from Starbucks, Hubbub has funded 100 groups across the UK to improve access to nature in their communities. Alongside this funding, we’re working with groups to create accessible resources to grow and manage green spaces, facilitate peer-to-peer learning, and provide comms, branding and impact measurement tools.
We’d love for you to meet some of the projects we’ve got to know over the last year and see the collective impact of 100 community groups creating new or enhanced green spaces.
*(Friends of the Earth)
The Nature Hubs Fund
How it worked
Nov 2023
Applications opened for grants of up to £6,000 for community nature projects.
March
2025
Final reports submitted and final user surveys collected.
March 2024
100 groups were selected from over 600 applicants.
April 2024
Starbucks employees took part in volunteering at Nature Hubs.
Hubbub ran webinars on impact measurement and supported groups with communications and volunteer engagement.
September 2024
6-month project updates submitted.
Find a Nature Hub!
Meet three hubs here!
What is a Nature Hub?
Nature Hubs bring people together in green spaces. They can look like...
Community gardens
Enhancing community gardens and farms by increasing biodiversity and making them more accessible to a wider audience (i.e. through structural changes or increasing on-site activities).
Allotments
Running gardening clubs or activities at allotments, working with the local community or specific groups such as people with poor mental health, refugees and asylumseekers, or young people.
Shared public spaces
Creating new gardens or growing spaces in the grounds of community spaces such as community centres, youth clubs, theatres, museums, health centres, etc.
Urban greening
Transforming unused communal land such as verges or empty spaces in housing estates into more nature friendly sites.
The impact of Nature Hubs
in 2024-2025
£566,200 given out in funding (Apr-May 2024)
18,273
people visited or took part in activities at a Nature Hub
100 projects awarded funding
60 atleast different types of nature-friendly activities took place at Nature Hubs
745
people transformed their lives, habits or attitudes long-term. That’s stuff like visitors who say they feel less lonely, have started long-term volunteering or employment, or have started growing their own food at home.
Benefits for people
We reviewed all 100 Nature Hubs’ 12-month reports and noted the key benefits that were mentioned in their open-answered responses. We then analysed the 400 user survey responses to the open answer question ‘How has spending time at this Nature Hub impacted your life?’ and identified the prominent themes.
Below is a list of the top six most mentioned benefits of spending time at Nature Hubs:
Learning a new skill Bridging social divides Feeling closer to other people
Better connection to nature
Improved wellbeing
Better access to nature
98% of people reported at least one co-benefit of spending time in a Nature Hub such as... improved their wellbeing made them feel closer to nature made them feel closer to other people 86% 80% 77%
89% of people reported taking an environmental action as a result of spending time at a Nature Hub
Benefits for nature
Nature Hubs are helping to create new green spaces in towns and cities. By adding specific features they are creating habitats for wildlife which will help increase biodiversity.
of Nature Hubs added at least one type biodiversity-enhancing feature, including: 90%
added bug hotels or wood piles
added any type of new plant, tree or shrub 86%
hedgehog houses
Many groups shared examples of how biodiversity had increased at their project:
“We had a rare moth visit, a rare lizard set up to give birth in our sink area which was super exciting, thousands of dragonflies suddenly using the space, numerous birds etc.”
Youth Resilience, Isle of Sheppy
“We have also become a hedgehog release site and welcomed our first hedgehog, Hilary! We have a team of volunteers called Hilary’s Helpers who pop in to ensure her food and water is always topped up.”
Green Squirrel, Cardiff
“We participate in the bird and butterfly count every year and we clearly saw a difference in the number and variety of insects and birds during the Nature Hub project here in Hartcliffe.”
“The rain-fed pond has brought in insects we haven’t seen here before, such as water skaters and small diving beetles.”
Caritas Lalley Centre Allotments, Manchester
St Sidwell Centre, Exeter
“The frog pond has become incredibly popular for frogs and visitors alike! Hedgehogs have been reintroduced to the site thanks to the hedgehog highway.”
Stonebridge City Farm, Nottingham
Feeling closer to other people
Nature Hubs created social spaces where people were able to come together and meet new people. The user surveys overwhelmingly highlighted the range of social benefits, including people who had made new friends and felt less lonely. We saw from many projects that often it was the first time people had interreacted with others from their local area and helped connect people.
“It has really given me a sense of belonging at home.”
“Taking part has created a whole new set of friends that I would never have met otherwise.”
Dawberry Corner, Our Scene CIC Birmingham
At the end of Dawberry Road was an unused piece of fenced-in wasteland, a hotspot for litter and antisocial behaviour. Our Scene transformed the space into a thriving community garden with raised beds, wildflowers, and benches to socialise.
As well as gardening sessions they have run coffee mornings, summer BBQs, woodworking and more, which have brought the local community together. People who were previously socially isolated have met their neighbours, and made friends through the garden, socialising beyond the gardening session.
“Last week an elderly community member who comes to chat rather than to garden asked for some help with getting online as her email wasn’t working properly. One of the garden volunteers sat with her and got it all sorted. It is this type of intergenerational relationship flourishing that is so exciting to see.”
- Suze, Our Scene project lead
Sow Northern participant, Stockton-on-Tees (Female, under 24)
Many projects brought new audiences into green spaces, and enabled people to come together from a range of different backgrounds. This came about both through the deliberate efforts of projects, such as gardening sessions for refugees, as well as organically as people were introduced through interacting with a new shared green space. Many quotes shared how people felt they had benefited from meeting new people who they wouldn’t have otherwise interacted with.
“There’s a strong sense of community, kindness, and acceptance here.”
“It’s the first time I’ve spent a great deal of time with [refugees and asylum seekers] ...which has been a very rewarding experience and has helped me understand their lives in the UK. We’ve shared a lot of laughs too.”
Edible High Town participant, Luton (Male, 45-54)
Outdoor Community Hub, Buzzing Roots
Leicester
Buzzing Roots created a community garden that has brought people together from different backgrounds, including refugees and people with limited English. Despite language barriers, people connected over different cultural approaches to gardening and shared recipes from around the world. People reported feeling more confident and more connected, with “gardening becoming a universal language that helps break down isolation and bring people together.”
“Workshops often turn into lively discussions where people compare how certain plants are grown back home. It’s not unusual for us to have conversations happening in three different languages at once, with English, Ukrainian, and Latvian all being spoken. Despite language barriers, people connect through gestures, shared tasks, and laughter.”
- Buzzing Roots, 6 month report
Better connection to nature
Many of the user surveys highlighted that people felt a a greater appreciation for nature, and enjoyed learning about plants, wildlife and especially how to grow food. Taking part in Nature Hubs inspired people to have a go at gardening at their projects, as well as inspiring many to garden at home. Some projects ran specific workshops around windowsill or balcony gardening, and participants shared examples of starting their own herb gardens or growing sunflowers with children. Many projects noted how people were taking part in gardening for the first time and building more confidence in these skills and a stronger connection to nature.
Edible Meanwood,
Meanwood Valley Partnership Leeds
garden hub was created at Meanwood Community Centre, which meant that the project could run weekly gardening sessions, increasing the volume and variety of vegetables they grew. The food grown is either taken home by volunteers or shared with a nearby food bank. The session inspired many people to try gardening, drawing in curious passers-by who wanted to taste the produce they could see being grown.
“I grew up in an urban environment, never having a garden... Having always had ‘fear of plant’ i.e. everything I plant dies, this has been a life restoring adventure and some of my plants are still alive! I’ve lived in Meanwood, Leeds for 33 years and knew no one from my neighbourhood. Work, work, collapse and repeat. I’ve been a bit wary of folks, having experienced bullying in the workplace. So, meeting and working with strangers has been strengthening, enlivening.”
- Meanwood Community hub participant, Leeds, Female, 65+
“I’ve never felt like nature was for me, but now I see how much it matters.”
Bristol Tree Craft participant
“It
has inspired me to do more in my own garden as I have learned from the other participants how to grow my own veg and plant wildflowers to help the environment.”
Live Theatre participant, Newcastle (Female, 25-34)
“It’s helped me to feel a sense of achievement and connection with others. My confidence has increased and I feel valued within the group. It’s always a lovely experience, I look forward to coming every time and leave feeling good after.”
Suffolk Mind participant, Burry St Edmunds (Female 25-34)
“It has been an oasis of calm for me at a difficult time in my life. It has given me the opportunity to just ‘be’enjoying nature, getting to know others and instilling a huge amount of hope in me.”
86% of user survey participants directly reported an improvement in their wellbeing, and there was a strong sense from the open responses that people valued the wellbeing benefits of spending time in nature. People reported feeling less stressed, more confident, feeling that the project had given them purpose, and that they were more motivated.
“This project has given me a strong sense of purpose in life. I feel that what I am doing is worthwhile.”
Guardians of Nature participant, Preston (Female, 25-34)
Railway Gardens, Green Squirrel Cardiff
In Splott, Cardiff, Green Squirrel expanded their Wellbeing Café from a pilot project into weekly sessions, supporting people in the local area feeling isolated. The sessions are designed around the NHS’ Five Ways to Wellbeing and include a mix of gardening, local walks, mindfulness and crafts.
People that took part developed strong relationships and felt more confident to attend other activities, pick herbs, or show friends around the garden.
Examples include one participant who started off staying only briefly but now regularly stays for the whole session, a participant who grew in confidence and now actively welcomes new members, and another participant who now leads the group in cooking activities.
“The wellbeing sessions are an anchor for me in the week and keep me connected to people”
- Green Squirrel participant (Female, 45 - 54)
Learning new skills
Many people reported that they had learnt something new at Nature Hubs, which included gardening, food growing and how to protect the environment. Learning new skills took place across all age ranges, and some projects were able to offer support for formal qualifications in horticulture. Some projects shared that participants had developed soft skills like presenting and leadership, with volunteers going on to become project leaders.
“I have learned many new skills, connected with other residents on the estate that I would not have met without the group. We compost our food waste on site, so this has helped me to be more mindful of food waste.”
Highbury Quadrant / Elizabeth House participant, London (Female, 45-54)
Groundwork Cheshire, Lancashire and Merseyside
Liverpool
Grow Speke is a community garden created to give better access to food growing. Their project upskills young people facing barriers to employment with horticulture skills. Many of these young people had never heard of community projects before and reported that volunteering at the project had introduced them to both horticultural or charity job opportunities. One participant who was initially reluctant to get involved became fascinated by the work, and reported being able to see how it would benefit mental health. Five people at the project have since completed accredited horticulture training, and 12 young people with autism created a garden at their supported living home with the skills they had learnt.
“Grow Speke... provides young people with autism developmental opportunities they wouldn’t have access to elsewhere. They create a safe space where our cohort develop new skills, explore the environment and feel the benefits of horticulture. The variety of sensory activities pushes our group to try new things.”
- EPIC Social Care, project partners
Gardening skills for young people
Better access to nature
Over a third of Nature Hubs projects created green space in urban areas that previously did not have nature, such as car parks and empty courtyards. At these spaces there was a common theme that people felt it had improved how the space looked, how they felt about the space, and was bringing nature to areas that previously didn’t have access. People involved in creating new spaces reported feeling that they were ‘part of something bigger’ and felt an increased sense of pride in their community.
“Seeing abandoned small plots of land turned into something extremely amazing is making the area into a nicer place.”
Edible High Town participant, Luton (Female, 55-64)
“Being part of Live Theatre’s Nature Hub project to create a community garden in the courtyard has given me a sense of pride in the transformation of the space we have made together. In just three months we have raised beds heaving with vegetables and fruit, and pots filled with flowers to attract the pollinators.”
Live Theatre participant, Newcastle (Female, 55-64)
Barnaby
Bees,
Sovereign Network Group Basingstoke
The green spaces at Barnaby Close were surrounded by fences, making them inaccessible for local residents, impossible to maintain and created litter hotspots. Working with award winning garden designer @thebeardygardener, residents voted for their favourite new garden design, and through community gardening events, the spaces were transformed with pollinator friendly flowers and low maintenance shrubs. A space that was initially described by residents as ‘depressing’, was transformed into a space that felt ‘calm’, ‘happy’, ‘peaceful’ and ‘something to be proud of’.
Nature Hubs x Starbucks
Starbucks and their Store Partners have helped support Nature Hubs at a local level, getting involved in volunteering as well as donating coffee and snacks for events. Hubbub helped connect 168 stores to their nearest Nature Hub, sending a bespoke poster naming the stores’ local project. Hubbub helped facilitate volunteering opportunities during Starbucks Global Month of Good and throughout 2024. Some Nature Hubs established ongoing connections with their local store, introducing themselves and collecting coffee grounds for composting. Nature Hubs were often able to use in-store community boards to advertise events, and one project ran a crafting activity in store.
Over the past year...
25 Starbucks stores or teams volunteered with their local project
14 stores donated coffee grounds to their local Nature Hub
148 staff members volunteered 573.6 hours at Nature Hubs across the UK
“My team and I are honoured that we can give back to the community and get involved with the Cambridge Sustainable Food Nature Hub! We admire the encouragement of selfsufficiency and we are proud that our coffee grounds have aided in the growth of their community gardens!”
Laura Newberry, Starbucks Store Manager, Cambridge
Edible High Town, Luton
Partners took part in a volunteering day, and also served coffee and snacks to the other volunteers and local residents to enjoy.
“The Starbucks in Southampton have been fantastic - volunteering with us, giving us regular coffee grounds, and visiting to see the project unfold. Nothing has been too much for the team, they have been fantastic.”
Tom, Southampton City Farm project lead
Camphill Wellbeing Trust, Aberdeen
Partners took part in several volunteer days to help create the new shelter.
Walk Talk Action, Stoke-on-Trent
Partners displayed the Nature Hubs poster for Walk Talk Action’s project on their community board.
“Buzzing Roots Nature Hub has really helped me personally connect with our community and has opened my eyes to what passion, hard work and collaboration can achieve in a community.”
Buzzing Roots, Leicester
Partners donated spent coffee grounds to their local Nature Hub to use in their compost.
Cambridge Sustainable Food, Cambridge
Partners donated snacks to the free lunch event for local families, and also made bug hotels alongside community members.
