Dorset Community Action is a charity focused on enriching communities through practical projects, supporting young people in training and skills development, and promoting positive well-being. EMA has worked closely with DCA on both Seed2Plate, and GreenCare, providing funding and personnel to support the continuation of their projects.

One of DCA’s projects is Green Care – a garden maintenance service providing affordable and eco-friendly services to businesses and residents across Dorset while also training young people with SEND and mental health struggles to develop their horticulture skills. EMA supplied GreenCare with funding which allowed for the employment of staff, and equipping the team with the tools required to carry out the work. EMA also provided workspace, marketing support, and work opportunities, with a key purpose of the partnership being for our own students to join the GreenCare team for work experience and supported internship placements. This gives our young people the opportunity to experience real work in a real business setting, gaining skills and qualifications in the use of equipment, developing their skills within a professional team, and understanding the responsibilities that come with a real job.

Green Care maintains the lawns and hedges around our college offices and supported living locations in Moreton, providing an ongoing contract of paid work for their employees and interns to develop the skills.

Dorset Community Action also delivers the Seed2Plate project to our Moreton students as part of their college timetable. This programme is less work-focused and places greater emphasis on developing initial horticultural skills and enterprise opportunities, with a view to eventually progress into a work experienced or supported internship placement.

“The partnership with EMA has provided fantastic opportunities and outcomes for young people”

“EMA and their staff have been extremely supportive throughout our partnership, demonstrating a shared ethos of person-centred support for young people with SEND. Dorset Community Action has worked closely with EMA on our enterprise and employment support programme, Inspire Dorset, supporting the design, development, and launch of enterprise ideas that benefit local communities. This includes our horticulture project, Seed2Plate, which transforms unused spaces into growing gardens where produce is given away to the local community, and Green Care, where we train and employ people with SEND or mental health needs in garden clearance and maintenance for those unable to maintain their gardens. The partnership with EMA has provided fantastic opportunities and outcomes for young people to gain experience, work towards employment, move into employment, and test their learning in a community setting.” – Paul Seaman, Programme Manager, Dorset Community Action

In 2025, EMA supported Dorset Community Action with their fundraising efforts to ensure the continuation of the project after funding was cut. With the help of EMA staff, we drove the production of a campaign video and accompanying messaging to tell the stories of the young people who use the programme, and with the combined efforts of EMA and DCA’s, the campaign surpassed it’s target of raising £10,000, and achieved new connections and awareness within Dorset.

In 2025, EMA partnered with Not Just Sundaes (NJS) in Wareham – a much-loved local venue known for its welcoming atmosphere and vibrant programme of previous community events and café offering. This partnership was made to further enhance the offering of EMA’s Adult Social Care provision, and ensure the location will be used more widely to support a variety of local projects and groups.

NJS has a proud history of delivering engaging events and community initiatives – from sustainability talks and quiz nights to live music and Christmas fairs. Our partnership has ensured that those much-loved offerings can not only continue, but grow, supported by EMA’s resources, including highly experienced staff in social care, education, marketing, and events.

As our services develop in Wareham, we hope to collaborate more deeply on these projects together, offer the space to more local groups, and give our students and adult social care service users opportunities to participate by putting their hospitality skills in action for those who are hosting their events at the venue, serving drinks and cakes, making NJS a bustling hub of diverse events and inclusivity.

If you’re running events in The Wareham area and would like to utilise the space, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

“A mutually beneficial collaboration”

We’re always keen to hear from Dorset based projects and community groups with ideas on how we can work together to provide opportunities for our young people that give back to the community. If you’d like to speak with us about a collaboration, please contact us.