inspiring growth and engaging communities at Bramble Woods

Bramble Woods has become our ‘Impact Model’, demonstrating how we can support organisations to make a sustainable and positive impact on Armed Forces and civilian communities

a new space for Catterick to enjoy

e50K has been gifted stewardship of Bramble Woods - a 3.5 acre veteran woodland situated at Catterick. We are developing the site (alongside Amey) into an intergenerational space for the community including an onsite café, woodland retreat with communal fire pit, multi bed allotment space with polytunnels and a relaxing wildflower meadow with ponds.

sustainable cafe for all

The vision for Bramble Woods is to open a café shop with locally sourced produce from the e50K allotment site, using local artisan bakers and ethically sourced coffee to provide a continuous revenue stream for the overall e50K project.

Longer term there will be an adjoining creative learning studio, managed in partnership with Rural Arts, which can be used by all members of the community.

Bramble Woods: Our Impact Model

The site allows Armed Forces families time away from the structures and regulations of militarised environments. As well as a place to socialise and engage on an equal level with local civilians.

This supports our 5 value pillars in the following way:

Bramble Woods provides employees and volunteers essential leadership, teamwork and financial management essential skills development. This allows employees and volunteers to gain experience in an informal and collaborative environment.
Corporate partner contributions will support people into job-readiness. The training boosts confidence because everything is designed by them, not for them.
The project has employed five Catterick based AF spouses and a further three AF spouses working remotely, with 6,000 volunteer hours delivered on the site.
It has provided regular on-the-job training to all staff members and allowed for an external training course to upskill a team member.
After significant community engagement surveys and focus groups, we discovered the need for a multifunctional and multigenerational outdoor community space, away from the militarised spaces of the Armed Forces Estate.
The space was designed with, and for, the community with accessible paths installed throughout the allotment site, allowing those with mobility issues and parents with pushchairs to access the area.
We worked hard to ensure the site is profitable, with a community kitchen and outdoor theatre experience.
6 Corporate Partnerships created £50,000 worth of in-kind donated to the site and enhanced their Value Creation.
-2.93 tCO2e Carbon Accounting and 6,000 volunteer hours have delivered to improve the sustainability of Bramble Woods
In addition, 66% of our CIC supply chain are environmentally friendly