Wellbeing spaces

Over recent years, staff at the IoO have created two areas designed to foster wellbeing, rest and contemplation among students and staff.

The IoO Garden

The IoO Garden was established in 2018.  The aim was to create a
well-being outdoor space that could be used by staff and students for coffee mornings, lunch, meetings and even the odd party. The area around the portacabins had been neglected for many years and was mainly used for bicycle storage.
 
With some funds held by the old social committee when the IoO was in Judd Street, a team set about buying plants, furniture, hanging baskets and materials to create the garden. Numerous items from the labs were repurposed as plant containers and the old workshop team built the main plant trough from some odds and ends of wood.

In 2019, we were awarded a small grant from ‘Change for Good’ to purchase a water butt, garden bench, plant troughs and some more plants. Since the garden has been established, we have also run some well-being workshops to pot-up the plants and also learned how to take plant cuttings. 

If you would like to get involved in helping with the garden or would like your own patch to grow some things, please let the wellbeing team know.

The IoO Wellbeing Suite

The IoO Wellbeing Suite was created in 2019 on the top floor of one of the portacabins in the old offices, which used to be occupied by the Institute Manager and HR.

With a very limited budget, the main space has been cleaned and re-carpeted to create the quiet room/multifaith room, which is used for meditation, prayers, quiet contemplation and the monthly massage sessions. One of the users of the room has also kindly donated some prayer mats.

A small meeting room has also been created for staff meetings and those mums returning from maternity leave needing somewhere private for expressing milk. The wellbeing suite is very much a work in progress and it is hoped that further improvements will be made as funds become available.