Wesleyan has recently donated a disused piece of land to a charity borne out of the need to use outdoor green spaces to help improve young people’s lives in inner-city Birmingham.
Until 2021, when the Society became aware that it owned this land in Harborne (following a local resident’s land registry search), the 0.7-acre plot lay largely forgotten. The land consists entirely of woodland and is situated next to a section of the popular Harborne Walkway.
Given the site had no potential for development and no apparent commercial value, over the next 18 months our in-house Property Team explored various disposal methods, such as transferring the land to Birmingham City Council, and placing the property into an auction at ‘nil’ reserve. Ultimately, neither option was quite right as the Council didn't have capacity to take the land on.
The Property Team also felt that Wesleyan’s responsibility, as custodian, prevented it from passing the land onto an unknown party, with unknown intentions, via an auction room.
Fast forward to late 2023, the Property Team were introduced to Free@Last (via Wesleyan’s Culture & Engagement Team). Free@Last is a Nechells-based charity that aims to enhance the wellbeing of children, and young people, by giving them access to outdoors spaces that are difficult for them to otherwise access.
Free@Last subsequently expressed an interest and put forward a plan laying out how they could use the land to help support their objectives. After multiple site inspections and surveys, the team finally agreed terms to transfer the land to the charity at no cost.
Morgan McKenzie from the Property Team comments: "In line with the Society’s wider efforts, we are constantly on the lookout for ways in which we can use Wesleyan’s property portfolio to achieve ESG (Environmental, social and governance) successes.
"We are delighted to have been able to find a use for this land that will enhance it whilst retaining its natural state. The fact that we are able to play our part in supporting a local charity, with a fantastic cause, really makes it all the more rewarding".
A representative from Free@Last comments: "Outdoor activities play a crucial role in the work we do, and this new outdoor space, so close to nature, will significantly enhance the health and mental wellbeing of our young people. We are deeply grateful for this opportunity to provide them with such a beneficial environment."
The charity has also been awarded a grant of £8,000, through the Wesleyan Foundation, to make the area safe and fit for its intended purpose.