Latest News
Therapeutic Gardening - Winter 2024/2025
Winter has arrived in The Peace Garden and all the lush growth has sadly gone. However, this is an important time to prepare for the growing season ahead, weeding the beds, spreading a mulch of compost everywhere and repairing the raised beds. If the weather is too wet, we keep cosy indoors with art and cooking activities and, if it stays bright and crisp, we enjoy gathering around the bonfire for a mug of tea and a singsong.
Whilst there is plenty to do, it does feel as if this time of year is a little more spacious for the gardening group and that gives us more relaxation time to connect with everyone and explore creative projects indoors and outdoors.
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Christmas Celebrations 2024
This year we enjoyed a festive day together in the Peace Garden on December 19th with home-cooked lunch for everyone. We were blessed with a dry sunny day and in the afternoon we decorated one of the fruit trees and sang carols around the bonfire, before ending with a mug of hot fruit punch and a mince pie. This was a great heart-warming start to the Christmas season.
Sponsored Walk October 2024
On 7 November this year our gardening group did a sponsored walk, successfully raising £1,800 for a new large polytunnel to enable us to extend the growing season and to provide an indoor, all-weather workspace for our gardening therapy group.
A new larger polytunnel is a long-held dream for our therapeutic gardening group, which works all year round with people experiencing a range of mental and physical health challenges. A spacious under cover work and growing area, which is protected from the worst the weather can throw at us will make a huge difference to the project and to activities throughout the year.
Our wonderful Sanctuary building is still available for hire by third parties as an alternative workshop space or away day venue-please see photos below. The building has a newly-fitted kitchen, wood burner and the poshest compost loo you have ever come across! It's simple, cosy and the setting is truly idyllic. Cost £50/half day or £100/full day. All proceeds go towards maintaining the building to support our gardening therapy work. For more information on hiring the building or to check dates, do contact us
Sanctuary Hire
Mad Hatter's Tea Party - 25 June 2024
Tuesday 25 June saw us in party mode, having a good laugh as we celebrated two birthdays (Matthew's 40th and Katrina's 60th - 100 years between them!) We had a tasty BBQ in the garden at lunchtime with delicious salads prepared from home grown produce. In the afternoon we invited friends and families to join us for some light entertainment, including mandala-making, singing, comic sketches and community games. Hats were welcomed, the sillier the better!
We now have a JustGiving donations page, which makes it easy to support the work that we do with people living with mental health and learning difficulties, some of whom may be unable to work and may not be eligible for statutory funding to cover their attendance at gardening therapy sessions. Every little makes a difference and we are very grateful for every contribution we receive.
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To make a donation now, please click here
Funding update
As a registered charity, Let's Get Growing is committed to keeping its therapeutic horticulture service available to all, regardless of financial circumstances. The majority of participants attending our gardening therapy days are able to access a personal budget or direct payment. Those who are not supported through the NHS can apply to our bursary fund, as we have a clear policy of welcoming all, irrespective of personal means. The nature of the beneficiary groups with whom we work means that some charitable funding is therefore needed to support our work. We would like to express our sincere thanks to the National Lottery Community Fund and the Boundary Lane Windfarm Community Benefits Fund for generously supporting us in 2024.
Photographic Diary
One of our long-standing participants, Andrew da Costa used his considerable skills as a photographer to produce a fantastic photographic record of the group’s activities through the seasons of the gardening year, with support from volunteer, Veronica Bell. Other participants have enjoyed coming up with humorous captions for the pictures. He hope to have a link to this in the very near future.