Grow Cornwall is a Community Interest Company set up in 2022 to help support the growth of Cornwall’s amazing communities. With over 7 years experience in designing and delivering award winning social and employability programmes for the people of Newquay, Grow Cornwall wanted to share this experience and support across all of Cornwall’s fragile communities.
Predominantly, Grow Cornwall have two main areas of work. They look at ways tourism can support community growth. (Community Supported Tourism – CST) and they also facilitate outdoor sessions for community and individual growth (Outdoors, Together). Their vision is simple, “A Cornwall where communities and tourists celebrate and support each other. A Cornwall where communities come together to grow.”
We’ve asked about the organisation, and below in their own words, they have written some responses to our questions so you can find out more about them and how to get involved.
What are your main aims?
Because we have two main areas of work, it means we have different sets of aims. For our CST programme it is:
To make Community Supported Tourism the norm.
To showcase deliverable viable social, environmental and financial solutions for communities across Cornwall and the world to not only adopt, but to thrive.
To do this we will be exploring Social, Economic and Environmental solutions for sustainable tourism, with the goal of developing and running tourist destinations that give back all across the county.
We understand that this is a vision and will take years of hard and dedicated work to get there. In the meantime, our Outdoors, Together programme will develop opportunities for Cornwall’s communities to get together in Cornwall’s unique outdoors. We will facilitate time and space:
- For individuals to work on their mental and physical wellbeing.
- For individuals to set and work towards achievable goals, in a safe space in their own time.
- For individuals to develop important social and support networks.
- For individuals to reconnect with nature.
- For communities to come together in a positive setting to grow.
Why is this important?
With the current financial and social pressures, we feel that communities across Cornwall and the UK are at breaking point. We want to look at ways that we can offer accessable, educational and social sessions for our communities. We want to provide safe spaces for individuals to come together to improve their wellbeing, whilst making important social and support networks. Who will in turn support them in their time of need.
How can people get involved or support you?
We are looking for landowners who are interested in partnering in our CST programme, who have spare land and want to see it used to help improve both the environment and our communities.
We are also looking for people to get involved with our first project, United Cornwall FC, a social football group that meets weekly at Camborne Academy. Whether you come along to lose weight, make friends or just blow off some steam it doesn’t matter to us.
What does the future hold?
We are right at the start of our journey, the communication and support we have had so far has been really positive and whatever it holds, we are really excited. We would love to run tourist destinations that build communities through volunteering and employability programmes, but also being a hub of social and innovative activity. We want a Cornwall where tourists are aware of their social and environmental impact, and where they make positive decisions.
