Community Garden Competition
Inspired by our Octavia Hill RHS Chelsea Flower Show Garden, Blue Diamond Group of Garden Centres wanted to help bring the great outdoors to the heart of communities across the UK by offering funding to support local groups to create new community gardens or give a makeover to existing community gardens.
In June earlier this year, we launch a Community Garden Competition where we offered a total of £10,000 worth of plants and garden care products to be split equally across five community gardens, along with six hours of expert help and advice to get the projects off to a flying start.
The Winners!
We were inundated with entrants and each one of those entrants deserves to be supported, but there can only be 5 winners and we are delighted to announce that the winners are…
Newton Abbot Centre Association
This community project will be paired with Blue Diamond’s Fermoy’s Garden Centre.
Newton Abbot Centre Association is a Registered Charity which exists to run the Courtenay Centre. The Courtenay Centre is a popular local community centre serving the town of Newton Abbot in Devon. It is located in the heart of the town centre, less than 4 miles from our local Blue Diamond Garden Centre (Fermoys). The community centre provides a home to lots of local groups and activities, as well as offering a cafe serving affordable food, a community fridge offering free surplus food to local people and running a range of support groups and activities for local people.
John Addy, Chair of Trustees, Newton Abbot Centre Association said; -
Newton Abbot Centre Association are delighted to have been selected as a winner of this competition for our new community garden at The Courtenay Centre. The support of an expert and the funding will enable us to complete our community garden works. The garden that we are creating is a space where people can enjoy much needed rest and relaxation. For those looking to learn or use their 'green fingered' skills, there is an opportunity to volunteer to support the maintenance of the garden. By connecting with the various youth activities at The Courtenay Centre, we hope to inspire the younger generation to get involved and develop a love of plants that lasts a lifetime. We look forward to working in partnership with Blue Diamond’s Fermoy’s Garden Centre, in the months ahead.
Pictured are (L-R) Steve Garlick; Newton Abbot Allotment Association, Linda Robson-Burrell; Newton Abbot Seed Library, Emily Farrell; Newton Abbot CIC, Kylie Dawe; Newton Abbot Centre Association, Emma Dawe; Newton Abbot CIC and Olivia Walker, Newton Abbot Centre Association.
Transition Town Wellington
This community project will be paired with Blue Diamond’s Blackdown Garden Centre.
The aim of this community group is to help their town become more self-sufficient as a reaction to the climate and ecological crises. Part of their work is to create community gardens in public spaces in the town with food for residents to pick for free, including fruit, nuts, vegetables and herbs. These spaces are managed to increase biodiversity and soil health to benefit nature as well as people. The group welcomes people of all ages, backgrounds and abilities to join our group in the “transition” to a low carbon society.
The Community Gardening Group from Transition Town Wellington are looking forward to creating the next stage of the Forest Garden at Fox’s Field with the help of the Blue Diamond grant and the advice from Blackdown Garden Centre. The aim is to plant up this 450 square meter space over the next 12 months with perennial plants and bushes, including soft fruit and other edibles, herbs and cut flowers which can provide a harvest for local residents and a home for wildlife.
Step Together Volunteering - Get Growing Project
Our “Get Growing” project is based at an allotment in South Bristol. Established in 2021 in response to the pandemic, when we needed a safe space to meet with young people, it is now an integral part of our service offer for young people facing multiple disadvantages in Bristol. We run sessions for young people twice a week where they can come together in small groups and develop:
- Confidence, self-esteem, motivation and aspirations.
- Work-related skills such as communication, reliability, team working.
- Knowledge about growing produce, cooking, healthy lifestyles, project planning etc.
The space supports 16-25 year olds and serves as a “safe” place where they feel connected to their local community, explore their interests and learn about the land and environment around them.
Helen Kington- Project Manager said; -
“We are over the moon to receive this prize. Our allotment focusses on giving Young People the chance to experience nature, grow fruit/ vegetables and flowers and to learn new skills to build their confidence. This prize will help us to expand the variety of plants and fruit/veg we have onsite, to not only allow the Young People to increase their knowledge and awareness, but also provide produce for educational/life skill purposes if they join our Get Growing and Get Cooking programmes. They will learn new techniques and the expert advice will benefit everyone on the site”.
Kingshurst Community Garden
The purpose of our community group is to foster a supportive and inclusive environment that promotes local engagement. We aim to enhance the well-being of our community through various initiatives, including educational programs, social events, and volunteer opportunities. By encouraging active participation and open days, we strive to address local issues, support sustainable development, and strengthen community bonds. Our group serves as a hub for residents to connect, share resources, and work together towards common goals, ultimately contributing to a vibrant, resilient, and thriving community Garden.
Councillor John Edwards said; -
We are thrilled and honoured that the Kingshurst community garden has been selected as one of the five winners in the Blue Diamond Garden Centres competition. This recognition celebrates the hard work and dedication of our residents and volunteers in creating a sustainable and vibrant community space.
From L to R- Lee Baillie, Lee Browning, Bill Baillie, John Edwards and Marious
Friends of Holbrook Charity
This community project will be paired with Blue Diamond’s Newbridge Garden Centre.
The objectives of the Friends of Holbrook are to encourage the development of the community of the school, and the school within the wider community; to engage in activities which will benefit the school and all its members; to purchase equipment and books to benefit pupils’ education.
Kristina Schraitel said;-
The thinking Garden is a renewal project of designated section of Holbrook grounds. It was initially set up 10 years ago in memory of a Holbrook student - Abigail, who sadly died of cancer. She loved horses and so the garden contains horse riding elements, which we will restore and preserve. Since funding was severely cut for primary schools, the garden became abandoned and overgrown and closed off to children.
We are hoping to make it a place for everyone in Holbrook, connecting the past and the future with lush groundcover foliage and beautiful native plants, making it a practical and child-friendly place to reflect, explore and enjoy.
Pictured above - Kristina Schraitel who entered the competition on behalf of entered of Friends of Holbrook Charity.
Each community project is paired with the Blue Diamond Garden Centre nearest to it and Blue Diamond are following the progress of these five community garden projects with regular updates on the website and social media channels.
Blue Diamond would like to thank all who entered this competition and wish all community projects success in the future.
Blue Diamond would also like to thank its suppliers, Evergreen, Westland and Gardena, who since Blue Diamond announced the competition, have come forward to offer additional product support to each of the winners.
Why community gardens are important to us...
We want to help bring the great outdoors to the heart of communities across the UK by offering funding to support local groups to create new community gardens or give a makeover to existing community gardens that perhaps have seen better days.
We share the same beliefs as Octavia Hill, the inspiration behind our 2024 Silver-Gilt medal & Children's choice award winning Chelsea Garden exhibit that ‘the healthy gift of air and the joy of plants and flowers’ are vital in everyone’s life. With this in mind, we aim to inspire others to create biodiverse, outdoor spaces that enables nature and wildlife to thrive, and which provides a place for people to connect with the beauty of our natural world.
Around 1 in 3 people in the UK today do not have access to nature-rich outdoor spaces near their homes, and in some deprived areas, there is no access to green spaces at all.
By supporting five community gardens through our competition, our aim is that these gardens will help to give the ‘healthy gift of air and the joy of plants and flowers’ to the communities surrounding them.
"Britain is losing its biodiversity at an alarming rate and we can all do our bit to help change this. We can increase plant diversity in even the smallest or most unusual of spaces, including those in urban areas. This competition, I hope will encourage communities to come together and to look at how they can improve their local areas and in turn, increase biodiversity there".
Alan Roper, Managing Director of Blue Diamond
To read about the many ways in which the Blue Diamond Garden Centre Group has contributed to community gardens, click here.
