The Chairman of a local Estate Agents has spent the night sleeping outside his office, to help raise money for The Cart Shed.
Bill Jackson pitched up outside Jackson’s Property overnight and has already raised £500 for The Cart Shed, a local charity based in North Herefordshire that offers opportunities to try something new and improve well-being; to find friendships, a sense of belonging and a place of calm, in a supportive, caring environment.
What is The Big Sleep In?
We all know a good night’s sleep is good for our mental health so as part of Mental Health Awareness Week 2021 The Cart Shed has been asking people to get some kip and to help them raise money to support young people and adults in Herefordshire suffering with their mental health.
About Bill Jackson:
Bill was born and bred in Herefordshire, christened in All Saints Church in Hereford. Bill grew up going to Hereford Cathedral Prep School and Lucton School and then joined Russell, Baldwin & Bright (Brightwells) in 1963 to do 3 years articles and training in auctioneering and estate agency.
Bill has been in the property industry operating in Herefordshire and Overseas building up experience for over 50 years, most recently setting up Jackson Equestrian in Chester.
Jackson Property has offices in Hereford, Leominster, Shrewsbury, Chester and London covering Hereford city, Leominster town and rural areas of Herefordshire, Powys, Shropshire and Cheshire.
You can support Bill by visiting – https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fundraiser-display/showROFundraiserPage?userUrl=Bill-Jackson&pageUrl=1&fbclid=IwAR0ydlGd7foSdyprGC9-HLfrdL2CaIRo48jClV_rg8Ie6xAyAW42U8AuT0s
Bill’s story:
At 75 Bill Jackson ought to be putting his mind to a more comfortable night out under the stars than the doorway of Jackson Property’s Hereford Office on King Street!
Committed to help raise awareness of how poor mental health can affect anyone, Bill has chosen to support The Cart Shed’s springtime campaign The Big Sleep in by sleeping rough during Mental Health awareness Week 10th – 16th May 2021
Bill, a Trustee of The Cart Shed, was inspired by the charity’s ethos, which resonated with his own commitment to Herefordshire and the healing power of the natural environment. This year Mental Health Awareness Week is all about how being in the natural environment is good for your mental health.
“At The Cart Shed we’ve always known being in the natural environment is good for us” says CEO Katie Eastaugh, “but being present in the natural world is really good for us: Observing, feeling, smelling, hearing, touching; all our senses come to life when we go outside and really witness what is around us”.
During the last year, many of us have discovered how important it is to notice and value our world, whether that’s a dramatic sunrise from a favourite viewpoint, a rogue dandelion pushing its way through a crack in a pavement, or as we have witnessed over the last couple of weeks, swallows returning, the cuckoo’s call echoing across open farmland or the blue haze of bluebells in our woodlands.
The Mental Health Foundation have chosen NATURE as its theme for 2021. On its website their CEO Mark Rowland says “Nature is our great untapped resource for a mentally healthy future”. The website goes on to describe all the evidence the Foundation has collected over the last year, which shows just how important green space is to us all.
Despite all the challenges of the last year The Cart Shed never closed. It overcame the challenges of the various lockdowns, thanks to funding from The National Lottery’s Covid Recovery Fund and MINDs Corona Virus Mental Health Response Fund as well as local funding from Hereford Rotary Club, Hereford Community Foundation, The NFU as well as many businesses and individuals across the County.
The ‘Virtual Woodland’ the Cart Shed’s team developed ensured we stayed in touch with all our participants. Every day, from 10am to 3pm on-line sessions were run. Activity packs were compiled and delivered to people’s homes by the charity’s volunteers, so participants had all the materials and digital support they needed to get involved – every session included time to go outside and notice.
The Big Sleep In May 2021, raising funds to support the work of The Cart Shed Charity.
