Abberton Rural Training - Winter Support

Aim: Help us support, mentor, feed and keep safe and warm the isolated and vulnerable participants for whom we provide projects and education to.

Who are we?

Abberton Rural Training (ART) provide community projects, education, and accredited training in a range of land-based studies as well as mentoring and advocacy support.  

ART supports some of the most vulnerable, hardest to reach and isolated people in Essex whilst also improving biodiversity & green spaces. We deliver ‘rustic recovery’ to medically discharged military personnel, and support disadvantaged individuals with multiple needs, furthest removed from the job market.

Community impact

We provide support to 417 individuals who attend our courses, all with multiple needs. With our help they have been able to get into employment, self-employment, volunteering, and further education - as well as improving their mental health, their environment, and the natural world, learning new skills, and making new friends.

Why are we crowdfunding?

Many of our students depend on ART. They see us as a secure and safe environment where they can come and receive not only education, but also support in many aspects of their life.   Currently, we are seeing exceptional levels of anxiety, worry and increased levels of support needed with the cost-of-living crisis, which is critically affecting our participants.

We want to be able to continue to offer students extra support in addition to an education in multiple ways including; free hot drinks and bowls of soup, advocacy, mentoring and emotional support as well as help with further education assistance, employment support, and helping with housing needs. We look out for the mental health and wellbeing of all participants and offer access to a Mental Health Practitioner and Advocacy Worker who can offer wrap-around support alongside learning to overcome barriers to employment, education, and training.

Our centres are a haven for students.  Somewhere warm for them to come to learn, to have access to hot, balanced, nutritious food and to feel welcome and supported.

Your Support

Any donations big or small would be greatly appreciated and will all go towards providing education, food, warmth and support in all aspects of life to provide a brighter future for our participants.