This year, Black Girls Hike became a Licensed Organisation able to offer young people in our community the chance to achieve their Duke of Edinburgh’s Award (DofE). The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award (DofE) charity is working to provide more opportunities for young people in some of the UK’s most deprived areas.

For us, our young black participants will have the chance to discover new talents, develop lifelong skills and build their resilience and self-belief by working towards their Award similar to their counterparts. As part of my programme delivery, it was decided that we would launch the DofE Award at an event at the end of summer. I wanted the event to be a landing point and opportunity for young people to see and feel what they could and would experience by completing their Bronze Award. It needed to be somewhat similar to a career fest at uni or college, where you could go to a stall or activity and try something and leave with something.

Finding the ideal location was a high priority as this would be the foundation of the event and help to build the look and feel of the day, and so, after trailing through large indoor events spaces, youth and community spaces and other parks across South Manchester, we decided Platt Fields Market would be the perfect location. This community nature garden embodies what we are trying to achieve, creating a safe inclusive space for individuals to come together and feel at one with nature and meet new and interesting people.

We decided on the objectives of the day so that we could design an inclusive experience and journey for each person attending. With this in mind, I decided that all my contributors needed to fall within one of the 4 sections of the Bronze Award, I wanted the activities and stalls to give the young person an idea of what they could select or choose to do as part of their Award, especially where they may be unsure.

With that being said, the following activities and stalls were organised:

Physical BeePedalReady

Physical Bouncy Castle

Physical Jet Black Dance Troop

Physical TfGM - Bike Maintenance

Physical Yoga with Kacea

Skill Creative Encounters - Art

Skill City of Trees

Skill DJ Skills

Skill Pottery Workshop

Skill Sistas Painting Faces

Skill Sow The City

Skill Stitched Up

Skill Woodlands Ways Bushcraft

Skill/Volunteering London Wildlife Trust

Skill/Volunteering Nacro Outdoor Learning

Skill/Volunteering One Manchester

Volunteering Black Girls Hike UK

Volunteering CAHN

Volunteering Duke of Edinburgh Award

Volunteering Manchester Community Central / Macc

Volunteering Platt Fields Market Garden

Information BHA for Equality

Information NHS Blood & Transplant

And the BGH Nature Festival on Saturday 23rd September 2023 was created.

Every stall and activity was a hive and a buzz with young people and families. The dance performance by Jet Black Trope was great, the speech from The Lord Mayor of the City of Manchester Yasmine Dar was inspirational and the speech from Youth Work Practitioner/Senior Mental Health Practitioner/Achievement Coach Angeli Sweeney was well received.

I’m extremely proud of this event and what it has achieved and enabled and I am excited for the next steps in our DOfE journey and taking the young people through their awards. I am looking forward to Nature Fest Part 2 and excited to work with these amazing groups of individuals and organisations again.

Feedback

“We are so proud to partner with Black Girls Hike and look forward to seeing the continued impact of your work with young people.” -DofE UK

“I loved the sense of community spirit, activities for the kids, very informative learning about nature. I felt very included and comfortable as a black woman in this environment.” - members of the public

“Learning the positive impact nature has on mental wellbeing. Physically seeking black people in a green space helped me to understand that we belong in green spaces too. My children aged 7- 11 was with me and they enjoyed the nature walk and crafts and did not miss their electronics. Honestly I now feel empowered to enter green spaces as family activity regularly.” - members of the public

Contributors:
We couldn’t have made the day what it was, without the support of those involved:

The Lord Mayor of the City of Manchester Yasmine Dar @yasmine_dar

Platt Fields Market Garden @plattfields_marketgarden

JNC Qualified Community and Youth Work Practitioner/Senior Mental Health Practitioner/Achievement Coach Angeli Sweeney

Wrays Shack @wrays_mcr

Bushcraft with @woodland_ways_bushcraft, where individuals could learn introductory methods to fire lighting and about natural methods of friction.

Pottery Workshop with @megbeamishpottery and potters wheel where participants could take home an unfired clay pot

Art Workshop with @creative_encounters_ltd and design and paint your own postcard

We also had a mindful reflective space for quiet reflection and Yoga with @kaceao

A Platt Fields nature walk and foraging with @cityoftreesmcr

Facepainting by @sistaspaintingfaces

Balance Bike Ride with @beepedalready for young children from 4 upwards.

London Wildlife Trust @londonwildlifetrust - plant matching game for their leaves, benefits to people/wildlife and herbal uses. For the creative activity they’ll have a choice of leaf rubbings to make a card, collaging or plant printing.

Dance session and performance by @jetblackdance, Bouncy Castles from @astarbouncycastle, Bird box making with @one_manchester, DJ @djmelloofficial

Stitched Up @stitchedupcoop upcycled purse making workshop and tent pitching with @nacrooutdoorlearning

Written by: Alice Whittle, BGH Project Coordinator & DofE Manager