“I’ve been on and off [heroin] for about 20 years. It’s affected my physical health a lot … well it did, not now. Well taking heroin after all these years, you get used to heroin, so you’ve got to take it. It’s not something what you can take and just stop, you get … what … More George (2024) says: “I like it here because you do good things and good things come to you.”
“Quite a journey. Obviously, I’ve had the support of LandWorks ever since 2020 and that’s been really good because you don’t get any judgement and you get like time to just not be treated in a certain way by people with their own agendas, which is very good for building inner strength, if you know … More Stef says: “There is a way out of this. There is a future with the right help. Don’t be afraid to take it and ask for it, hold your hands up and move on.”
“I was going downhill. I’d just come out of prison, and I was sort of going downhill taking drugs and alcohol again, and then someone said would you like to work at LandWorks? I goes yeah, I’ll give it a go like, see what the buzz is about … started coming here and I enjoyed … More Clive says: “If I weren’t ‘ere, I would probably be dead by now … Coming here has changed my life”
“I’ve been on a journey … still on a journey of recovery now. I was just … actually two weeks ago I finished my mental health order, which I had for six months. I got a certificate, which I haven’t had for years. My mental health’s a thousand times better than what it was. I … More Sam says: “I’ve been on a journey… still on a journey of recovery now”
The first time I came to have a look around and meeting everyone and seeing everything, I just instantly was like this is what I want to do. Like I instantly knew. I just feel safe here and I find it hard to trust people, especially people like in authority or whatever, but I instantly … More Deer says: “seeing that a lot of people who work here used to be like us, it’s a symbol of hope…”
“I was talking to my probation officer one day and I weren’t in the best of moods. He was asking me about what’s the matter and stuff like that, so I explained to him I’m just bored all the time and I just had too much time on my hands because I just didn’t do … More KJ says: “It always makes me really happy when everyone likes the food…”
Like I say, the LandWorks part helped me out tremendously really. It got me out of the prison every day, well, except obviously Saturdays and Sundays and they just used to let me get on with whatever I wanted to do, which was my bowls and things. The bowl-turning, yeah. Graham taught me how to … More Bob says: “All of this is down to LandWorks really. They set me on the path […] I do actually enjoy what I’m doing now”
“I’ve done quite a lot of stuff here like. It made me feel a lot more like … it changed my way of life … there’s more to life and that. It makes you feel more like part of the community and makes me want to be able to do something with my life. Before … More JimBob says: ”this place taught me to be truthful and to say how it is…”
“So, I studied at the University of Plymouth, where I did sociology for three years and within that three years, I did a placement at LandWorks. So, I volunteered here pretty much every Thursday until lockdown got introduced. So yeah, I came out here every Thursday. I remember like my first impressions. Oh gosh, I’ve … More Rose says: “I like seeing the little changes in people…”
“I see Graham a lot. I love that. We have a laugh don’t we, and just making great stuff. We’re gonna be making that thing for * … a bin area, keep her bins safe so they don’t blow away […] Yeah, so we’ll be making that, and we’ll just be making like the benches … More Justina says: “sometimes trauma and bad things can make you into a better person…”
A window into LandWorks 