The spotlight is now on community gardening, with the launch of the RHS’s biggest ever community gardening survey, which aims to provide a clear picture of who takes part and why, along with its reach and impact.
The charity is seeking input from groups or individuals involved in gardening outside of private and commercial gardens, and the results will contribute to a bigger report on gardening in the UK that will publish in October, in the hope that the findings will help the RHS and other organisations better support community gardeners in future.
Whether it’s a simple allotment or a project to brighten up the neighbourhood with colourful flowers and get the kids involved, community gardens can provide a place to relax, engage with nature, get active outdoors and give people purpose and social stimulation, says RHS community development officer Claire Drury.
“Community gardens transcend every demographic group. It’s one of those things everyone can do. It will improve your wellbeing. You will learn new things. It will improve your local environment. You’ll get to know new people.”
But where do you start?
Find your people
If you live in social housing, your housing provider will probably bring people together. Alternatively there might be a tenants’ or residents’ association, or a neighbourhood watch group, Drury suggests. You could post flyers or even knock on your neighbour’s door to drum up interest.
The RHS has a programme called It’s Your Neighbourhood, providing a database of all their registered groups in the UK.
Social media is also a good way to connect groups, she suggests.
If you don’t know many people in your area, a good place to start is to put on community events and activities, Drury suggests. It might be craft activities or seed sowing, to help get to know people.
For further support, contacting your local authority or Council for Voluntary Service (CVS) or the National Association for Voluntary and Community Action, she suggests.
“You may need help with organising the group, maybe getting a bank account in place, you may want a constitution and to look at policies. Your CVS should be able to find you templates to follow if it’s a new group.”
Many local authorities also have neighbourhood officers who will offer advice, she adds.
Understand what you want
“Understand what you want to do with the space and from a social perspective. Put equal emphasis on both sides of it. People who are really focused on the garden might miss out on some of the important community elements and vice versa.
“Having discussions and drawing out commonalities and themes, you can try to come up with aims of what people want for the garden to do for the community.”
Find your space
You may already know of a space which your local tenants’ or residents’ association can have access to, such as the outdoor area of a community centre, which could be transformed.
If you know of a space but don’t have an existing relationship with it, find out who owns it and contact your local council which may have the details.
If it doesn’t, go on the UK government’s website to find out who the landowner is to then seek permission for your project.
If a landowner agrees to your group using the space as a community garden, get it in writing, Drury advises. The CVS should be able to help, as sometimes it might involve you having a formal lease.
“Some places will have less formal contracts, but make sure you have something in writing from the landowner including what you want to use it for and the duration and whether there will be any charges associated with that,” she says.
If you don’t have a site in mind, approach your local authority with your project plans and it may be able to point you in the right direction, she suggests.
Find out more about the site
“It’s useful to find out what underground utilities you have, so you’re not going to dig into a water main or electricity. Check where your access points are, whether there are trees on the site and if they have preservation orders, and take soil samples.
“What plants have you already got, do you have a shed, water, a footpath? Understanding what you already have is the first step to understanding what you’ll need.”
Once you have a design in place – either done on a computer or a simpler sketch – consult with the rest of your community group to assess if they think it is going to achieve what you all want the garden to do.
Look for partnerships
Try to get local businesses involved in helping to fund your community garden, use local suppliers, services and contractors wherever you can. Approach garden centres and nurseries to see if they may donate some plants.
Make the most of available skills
Everyone involved will have something to contribute, whether it’s digging skills or book-keeping, or woodwork or horticulture, she observes. Make the most of people’s individual skillsets to give them purpose and help the project progress.
“Have really clear, open and honest conversations and keep a record of that process. Have clear, open decision-making and work out responsibilities and give people the opportunity to develop, so they can learn as well,” Drury advises.
Get public liability insurance
It’s important that the group has public liability insurance to protect it against the risk of public injuries and unforeseen issues, says Drury.
For more information on setting up a community garden and details of the survey visit rhs.org.uk.
