Green and Healthy Frome - Frome Town Council

Graphic Image from the British Medical Journal detailing out examples of Health and climate co benefits — Healthy people make a healthier planet

The Green and Healthy Frome Programme is funded through the National Lottery’s Climate Action Fund. The project is a collaboration between Frome Town Council and lead partner Edventure, and Frome Medical Practice.

The premise is that Healthier people make a healthier planet, and a healthier planet supports healthier people. The programme will tell a new story that engages people who would not normally get involved for climate reasons alone. Alongside storytelling and community development activities the project will deliver a catalogue of community-led climate and health initiatives that can work sustainably in Frome.

Seven work packages will be delivered over two years; each work package will produce a toolkit to enable ideas to be shared and replicated in other towns. If you have your own ideas that can deliver a climate/health win/win add it our vision board: https://yrpri.org/group/4935

Health & Climate Conference

On the 15th of July 2022 the Green and Healthy team invited people to join them to learn about the project’s impact, ways to get involved and models for making change in their own community. The event told the story of the unique partnership and how it’s making a difference to health and climate change in Frome.

Guest speakers included Jonathan Higman (NHS Somerset ICB), Dr Rita Issa (climate-focussed GP and activist), Simon Roberts (CEO of Centre for Sustainable Energy), Yvonne Bignall (award-winning nature coach) and Grace Maddrell (author of Tomorrow is Too Late), as well as members of the project team including: Dr Helen Kingston, Charlotte Carson, Nikki Brain, Jo Morris, Emma Parker and Sue Palmer.

Healthy Homes & Cycle Together

Healthy Homes aims to ensure that people in Frome who are at risk of cold homes get the support they need.

Cycle Together scheme – borrow an ebike, gain confidence in cycling, increase activity levels and reduce carbon emissions and congestion.

Plastic Free. Period.

Plastic Free. Period. is a project launched by Frome Town Council and Frome Medical Practice in 2022. The project aims to promote more sustainable (and plastic free) menstrual products that will help save money as well as reducing waste and protecting the environment.

In 2024, Frome Town Council and Frome Medical Practice are raising £4,500 to give a free period pack to every Year 8 and 9 student in Frome that needs one. A £15 donation pays for a whole pack which includes three pairs of period pants, a washable pad, a waterproof bag and a booklet. Please donate what you can to help young people towards a plastic-free, stigma-free period right from the start.

Save money, reduce waste and protect the environment by switching to plastic free menstrual products.

Weʼre raising £4,500 to give a free period pack to every Year 8 and 9 student in Frome who needs one – can you help?

Green Community Connectors

Building on their award winning health connector programme, Frome Medical Practice have employed Charlotte Carson as their Green Health Connector who will:

Train 200 green community connectors and 20 “Train the Trainers”. The connectors will pass on information to residents, friends and colleagues to link them with local climate and health boosting activities. To find out about this training visit Green Community Connectors

Educate the GP practice staff and Health Connections team on local climate and health boosting activities

Support the Healthy Homes by Prescription project and the Cycling by Prescription programme

Est. CO2 savings: 261 tonnes per year

Cartoon drawing of a guy on a bike and another with a skateboard on a lane standing next to a recycling bin. — Green health connections

Choosing Wisely

Frome Medical Practice will:

Develop resources to support clinical staff, patients and the public to make better informed health decisions, reducing the amount and impact of pharmaceutical drugs prescribed

Link in with an array of low carbon, healthy activities such as our cycling by prescription project
Empower the community to take action to improve their health in a low carbon way
Share the impact of the programme with other practices and communities.

Picture of a patient with a Doctor in a consulting room

Future Shed

Future Shed is a space where the people of Frome come together to create a greener and healthier town in practical ways – join a workshop activity, contribute your ideas or get support to get your own project off the ground.

Find out more about Future Shed

Storytelling

Edventure will be sharing the projects and the story of how healthy people and a healthy planet are interlinked, and how people and communities can take the lead.

Picture of a woman looking through the spokes of a wheel at the transition shed

Their communications will encourage people to take up behaviours that are good for their health and enable carbon reduction. Develop narratives that engage Frome’s diverse community, particularly people who would not normally be involved for climate reasons alone. There will be a structured approach to develop storytelling, including working with focus groups
A new annual conference will bring all stakeholders in the Frome 2030 programme together, share what’s been learnt during the year and learn from others who are doing or want to be doing similar activities
A website will be created and a catalogue of resources to share learning, to inspire and enable a carbon and health community of practice.

Evaluation

Frome Town Council will employ an inhouse climate change and evaluation expert to:

Measure the environmental, health and community impact of our Climate Action Fund projects
Work with all projects to provide guidance around maximising impact
Work closely with the Climate Action Fund and other funded projects to share best practice.

The evaluation work will be reviewed by an external expert to ensure it is robust, verified and truly reflects the programme’s impact.