What I Learned from the Bench Chat Project
By Deborah Needle, Community Facilitator, Naturally Birmingham
Let me tell you something I’ve learned through this work: sometimes, the simplest ideas are the ones that change people the most.
The Friendship Bench Chat wasn’t born in a boardroom, from a strategy paper, or after a round of funding bids. It started—like all good things—with a problem and a conversation. We were trying to get a bench installed in a Birmingham park. Sounds easy enough, right?
Well… not quite.
Turns out, benches can be surprisingly controversial. They cost money. They need maintenance. Sometimes, people worry about how they’ll be used—or by whom. So our City of Nature Green Champions got talking: Are benches even worth the effort?
That one question led us down a rabbit hole of discovery. And connection. And hope.
Why Benches Matter (More Than You Think)
We did what most people do when they hit a wall—we Googled. We found articles, blogs, research studies, and even an entire Bench Manifesto from a project that reminded us benches are about far more than resting legs.
They are about slowing down.
They are about making space.
They are about being seen.
The manifesto put it beautifully:
“Sitting on benches supports healthy everyday routines by enabling people to spend longer outside. These opportunities to rest can be restorative for mental health and support local walking when personal mobility is limited.”
Yes. This is what we’d been trying to put into words.
A Place to Be, Not Just to Sit
In our conversation, someone brought up the idea of Buddy Benches those brightly coloured school benches where a child can sit if they’re feeling lonely or left out. The rule is simple: if someone’s on the bench, you go over and invite them to play.
And I thought—why should that idea stop in childhood?
Don’t we all, at some point, just want someone to sit beside us and say, “Hi, want to chat?”
That’s when we discovered the Friendship Bench movement in Zimbabwe. An NGO working to tackle depression and anxiety by training grandmothers to offer basic counselling on—you guessed it—benches.
They call it kufungisisa: the condition of “thinking too much.”
Reading that, I felt a lump in my throat. Because I’ve felt that too. Haven’t you? That sense of mental spiralling, of being overwhelmed by life? Now imagine easing that weight with a simple invitation: “Sit with me.”
A Chat That Became a Movement
So, the idea changed shape. It was no longer just about installing benches it was about using them. Friendship Bench Chats were born. Not formal events. Not workshops. Just real, warm, human conversations between two people on a bench, outside, face to face.
At first, it was just a few of us heading to parks. We picked a bench. We sat down. And we started talking—about life, nature, childhood memories, worries, local issues, even dreams. Sometimes we laughed. Sometimes we didn’t say much at all. But there was something deeply healing in just being there.
No pressure. No agenda. Just time, space, and presence.
It sounds so simple, doesn’t it? But that’s the point.
In a world that moves fast, that often feels divided, that’s glued to screens and deadlines and newsfeeds, a bench offers an invitation to pause and to connect.
Want to Try It?
You don’t need training. You don’t need a sign. You don’t even need the “right” bench (although a nice view helps). You just need a willingness to be there.
There are just five simple steps:
- Find a bench in your local park, street, canal path, or green space.
- Bring a friend, neighbour, or someone you’ve been meaning to catch up with.
- Sit down together. No phones. No agenda. Just chat.
- Listen. Share. Laugh. Be quiet if you need to. Let the moment happen.
- Reflect—and maybe take a photo to remember it. Share it with us if you like.
We’d love to see your Bench Chats—your photos, your thoughts, even just a sentence about how it felt.
Why This Matters
You might be thinking, “But what difference does this make?”
Here’s my answer: connection is everything.
In our city, people are experiencing loneliness, isolation, poor mental health, and disconnection—from each other, from nature, from themselves. But a bench can be a bridge. A small act of kindness. A reminder that someone is listening.
And when we multiply these moments—when they ripple out across Birmingham—we begin to shape something bigger: a culture of care. A City of Nature that doesn’t just look good, but feels good.
So, Pull Up a Seat
The Bench Chat project may have started with a debate about costs and installation. But it ended up being about something money can’t buy:
Time. Togetherness. Trust.
So go on—have a Bench Chat. Invite someone. Or just sit and see what happens. You never know what you might hear. Or say. Or heal.
We’ll be here, waiting to hear your story.
Naturally Birmingham Future Parks Project 