Heartwood Education:

Funded every year since 2016, our flagship education project was established by the Herbal Medicine Trust to offer a range of courses from short introductions to the world of herbs purely for pleasure and self-care, all the way to full professional training. Online teaching makes our courses accessible to many who would be unable to train otherwise, and for the professional course a blended approach links herbal students with real-world herbal practices in the UK and beyond. As of the beginning of 2024, 1615 students have been part of our vision to grow the resilience of the herbal community and ensure the public is in safe and effective hands. To learn more about Heartwood please visit our dedicated website. 

Group Treatment Collective:

2026

Medical herbalists Lucy Blunden and Rachel Purdey are proud to introduce their new initiative in 2026 with the support of The Herbal Trust: a group of medical herbalists dedicated to creating an innovative model for group herbal medicine treatment. Their approach responds directly to the growing need for accessible health support, especially as disposable incomes shrink and the gap between resources and need widens.

Their vision is to ensure medical herbalists are recognised and fairly compensated for their time and expertise, whilst also making high-quality information and support affordable and available to the public. They are committed to bringing the benefits of individualised herbal medicine into a group setting, blending personalised care with community accessibility. Phase 1 of the project focuses on developing a comprehensive model for group herbal medicine treatment, tailored specifically for Medical Herbalists, while Phase 2 will establish a robust support structure designed to assist practitioners who wish to lead group sessions, but feel they would benefit from additional guidance along the way. Ultimately, their aim is to empower medical herbalists, strengthening the professional community and extending empowered health support to both local and global communities.

Grass Roots Remedies Co-operative:

2025

This collective of clinical and community herbalists aim to share sustainable, affordable plant medicine, including through their award-winning low-cost herbal clinic in Wester Hailes, Edinburgh. They also host workshops, walks and volunteer sessions in their growing spaces at Lauriston Farm, Edinburgh and Plot 26, Glasgow.

In 2026, funding from the The Herbal Trust will allow them to offer free monthly herbal workshops in Wester Hailes, spreading practical and accessible knowledge on using plants for medicine. At The Herbal Trust we believe this is an invaluable offering and we’re thrilled to be able to support. The funding will also allow for a bursary for their community herbalism course – Grass Roots Herbal Foundations 2026/27. The bursary will allow someone who would otherwise not be able to financially access the course, to train in community herbalism and spread herbal knowledge with their community.

Community Medicine Birmingham:

2025

Community Medicine Birmingham is a grassroots initiative led by Birmingham-based medical herbalists Arlene Burnett and Emma Louise Cowley. CMB promotes herbal medicine across the region through community gardening, workshops, clinics, and the arts. ‘The Northleigh Road’ Community Allotment Project is their community herbal medicine allotment located in East Birmingham within a diverse, multicultural community, with herbal traditions from many parts of the world. The allotment creates a shared space to exchange this herbal knowledge alongside Western herbal medicine.

The project aims to support sustainable growing practices and celebrate cultural traditions, while offering hands-on opportunities for residents, herbal medicine students, and practitioners whilst strengthening the role of herbal medicine in the region. The Herbal Trust were thrilled to support the allotment project, which Arlene and Emma say has been invaluable, enabling the purchase of good quality sustainable gardening tools and a shed to house a small herbal medicine library and gardening equipment.

Find out what they’re up to on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CommunityMedicineBirmingham 

see Arlene Burnett: https://www.arleneburnett.co.uk 

Festival First Aid:

2023 /  2024

For many medical herbalist students over the years, clinical hours were signed off and experience gained aboard the famous ‘The Medical Herbalists’ caravan. What is not so widely known is that The Herbal Trust funded a herbal trailer to house the dispensary – complete with botanical illustrations. This travelling teaching clinic provides acute herbal medicine, conventional or herbal First Aid and has treated thousands of festival-going patients over the years. Not only does the caravan give medical herbalism an important presence at events around the UK, it also gives students a unique chance to see acute cases under the watchful eye of Dedj Leibbrandt and her team, dealing with situations rarely seen in a clinic setting.

Support for Refugees:

2023

When Icelandic herbalist Anna Rósa wanted to work with Iraqi refugees, the trust was intrigued. Through the Helping Herbs registered charity, she travels twice a year to refugee camps in Iraq to teach women how to make products from medicinal herbs both to use and to help them earn a vital income. Between visits, workshops are taught by a local herbal trainee. During only two visits in 2023, 275 women attended the courses. Each woman left with products to use, many have expressed an interest in learning more and some are even being supported to set up their own businesses.

If you would like to learn more about the work of Helping Herbs please visit their website www.helpingherbs.org and listen to this podcast https://learningherbs.com/herbal-podcast/anna-rosa-grasalaeknir-refugees about Anna’s work.

Junior Herbalist Club:

What could be more important than reaching the next generation of herb lovers and getting them enthused about plants? The Herbal Trust were delighted to fund training for Junior Herbalist Leaders to deliver Junior Herbalist Club sessions in their local communities. Aimed at 7-12 year olds, this two year course helps children learn about the healing plants around them by taking them on a journey of discovery that engages all their senses with playful, practical skills. Course leaders are supported at annual review giving an opportunity for further training. For information about Junior Herbal Club, please see their website.