Our campuses are full of beautiful green spaces—trees, wildflowers, woodlands, ponds and streams. These spaces aren’t just good for biodiversity; they’re good for us too. Research shows that spending time in green and blue spaces can reduce stress and boost wellbeing.
As part of our Nature Positive Strategy, we wanted to find out:
- How do people use campus green spaces?
- How do they feel about them?
- What benefits do they get?
So, in April and May 2025, we ran our first Campus Green Space Survey. Holly, during her MSc placement, led the charge—armed with a QR code and plenty of enthusiasm—to gather people’s thoughts.
Holly surveying people in the Lower Hoopern Valley
What did we learn?
What really shone through from the survey and Holly’s chats with people was how much people value the campus green spaces and how important they were for people. People love our green spaces! Out of the 419 people who responded:
- 62% use them for travel
- 67% for wellbeing
- 60% for socialising
- 52% for informal exercise like walking or running
One colleague summed it up perfectly:
“The uplift to my wellbeing that these spaces afford—the tranquillity, space, connection with nature—I really, really value the green spaces here.”
People’s favourite things about campus green spaces were often about nature, just being able to be in them, the quiet and peaceful nature of them and using them to socialise with other people. Lots of people didn’t have a ‘least favourite’ thing but there were some comments around the loss of areas due to building works, litter and not enough benches.
Responses to the survey question ‘The University campuses have green spaces that…’
What’s next?
Your feedback is shaping our plans:
- When asked what they would like to see more of, most comments were around opportunities to engage with campus green spaces, so we are looking to run more events (including shorter lunchtime and late-afternoon sessions, so that people can fit them around work)
- Exploring new benches with the Grounds team
- Repeating the survey in 2027 to track progress
Thank you to everyone who took part!
Want the full report? Email sustainability@exeter.ac.uk
Interested in events? Follow us on Instagram, EventBrite, or check out the Grounds team’s volunteering page.