The gardens of Brodsworth Hall are home to a collection of grand gardens in miniature, filled with colourful seasonal plantings and displays. The Victorian gardens were neglected for much of the 20th Century and have been carefully restored by English Heritage. Due to the many years without mowing the rich bank of wildflowers, such as cowslips, orchids and wild thyme have been allowed to establish in the lawns, something not originally in the Victorian design but deeply appreciated by modern visitors The five projects are being delivered alongside other QNI Community Nursing Innovation Projects that are not garden-themed. All this year’s projects will run until early 2024 when they will submit their final reports. If you’re searching for a specific garden make sure you only include the garden name, and if you’re in any doubt of the spelling include the part of the garden name you’re sure of, or perhaps try searching by the town it’s located in and ‘all dates’. We are thrilled to be partnering with the National Garden Scheme to secure the future of our award-winning programme. Support from the National Garden Scheme will provide training to the next generation of horticultural specialists working in historic and botanical gardens. English Heritage relies upon philanthropy and partnerships to deliver its charitable purposes, and we are all delighted to welcome the National Garden Scheme as a new supporter and partner,” says Susan Fisher, Development Director at English Heritage. Marble Hill’s Georgian Pleasure Gardens, which stretch from the Palladian Villa to the Thames, are being restored to their former glory and will launch to the public in spring 2022. Features include the Sweetwalk Flower Garden, Arbour, Woodland Walks and Grotto Garden. Visitors can play Ninepin Bowling, a popular Georgian pastime, on a re-created bowling alley, and a newly planted wildlife meadow has enhanced biodiversity and summer interest in the public park.

This project aims to redesign and rejuvenate the garden at Dorking Community Hospital. The focus of this garden project is intergenerational and cross-cultural interaction; through talking in a relaxed space, sharing memories and stories; growing food to learn about nature and encouraging conversation about the environment; sharing the food, sharing break times, memories, time and space by bringing children and older people together to create a sense of community. The Queen’s Nursing Institute and the National Garden Scheme have announced five new gardens and health projects led by nurses taking place in 2023. Community nurses have such great innovative ideas to improve the health and wellbeing of their local communities and individuals. These nurse-led projects all share a vision and are sharing learning and expertise to drive innovation and change for the better.” The 2023 projects ‘Sanctuary’ – A gender-specific safe outside space to be enjoyed – GloucesterFour care homes are each being provided with five deep planters for the gardening. The funding is being used to build table-top planters, tools, seeds and plants, recyclable waste boxes, education and support for activity coordinators. Engagement in gardening has been shown to have both immediate and long-term effects on mental health outcomes, such as reductions in depression and anxiety symptoms, while gardening daily is associated with reduced stress and increased life satisfaction. Selecting and planting specific plants/herbs/flowers, with community volunteers, will aim to support menopause and other health issues specific to women. Having a safe space outside, in which to expand the discussion and activity, such as planting of herbs, vegetables or wildflowers, will help enhance this approach in a creative and purposeful way. Burnham Square: This is a beautifully designed and constructed new garden in the middle of the former Treloar School estate in Upper Froyle with interesting shrubs and tree shapes. A lawn most of us would envy, a vegetable garden and lots of flowers all around. Stand on the terrace and admire the water feature and the view.

I anticipate the growth and development within the garden environment will bring excitement and surprise to many. The calm, exhilarating and relaxed atmosphere will encourage socially isolated fathers to meet. We hope that the project will encourage an interest in gardening for fathers and promote inclusivity, to create a sense of belonging and acceptance.” Grow Together – Share Together – Surrey Corrie says: “This project will provide a sustainable raised bed vegetable garden that all the practice community can get involved in and provide some sustainable healthy food year on year. We hope to set up a swap and share wellbeing group so that vegetables, fruit, and flowers can be shared amongst the community. Major new partnership between the National Garden Scheme and English Heritage secures future of Historic and Botanic Garden Training ProgrammeAngela Willan said: “I am keen to develop a women-only, safe space for women with serious mental illness. I have always had a keen interest in women’s health and I am passionate about improving their physical and mental health. This garden will provide a fantastic area for women to relax, meet, and for therapy to take place within an area that is peaceful and designed with them in mind. Fawn said: “My memories of gardening are woven from threads of childhood affection, passion and deep pride. My parents were involved in cultivating kitchen and flower gardens, which won prestigious awards. This passion has continued into my adult life and I continue to actively engage in gardening both at home and at my allotment. The HBGTP has acquired an impressive reputation for the quality of its training and experience offered, and for the accessibility and inclusivity of its recruitment of trainees, and the latter is an important priority for us,” says National Garden Scheme Chief Executive, George Plumptre. “And the events English Heritage is hosting will enable us to showcase our partnership in the fabulous settings of their gardens.”

The project aims to improve the mental health of fathers in the community. The gardening project will connect with fathers to support their emotional health, providing an environment of calmness, tranquillity and safety to raise awareness about mental health, and improving access to mental health services. This will contribute to improved family relationships and build community capacity. It will be the first project of its kind in the area and we hope will become a lifeline for fathers. The men will be involved in the planning and development of the garden project from start to finish. In 2023, the National Garden Scheme-funded trainees and apprentices will be placed at the following seven gardens. This corresponds to the 2022-23 academic year.

The project aims to support people’s mental health and wellbeing and provide the opportunity for early identification of deteriorating patients. The project aims to improve mental health and wellbeing for residents, increasing mobility and dexterity, providing early health promotion messages, good nutrition, hydration and exercise. It also supports the objective of enhancing health in care homes following the Covid Pandemic. The future of the Historic and Botanic Garden Training Programme (HBGTP), which allows us to train the next generation of heritage gardeners, has been secured with this substantial commitment from the National Garden Scheme,” says English Heritage’s Head of Gardens and Landscapes, John Watkins. Simon said: “The garden is about connecting – Growing Together – Sharing Together. The vision is to use the space for patient rehabilitation, bringing them to the outdoors, into a therapeutic space. The garden adjoins the community rehabilitation ward, allows interaction on a different level, in a different space to keep the mind, body and spirit energised for longer. Health benefits include using the space for conversation/health promotion as a space to talk about health and prevention of ill health.

We are planning for diversity among those who will use the garden, for example scented and textured plants for people living with dementia or who are visually impaired. Our garden will be wheelchair/walking frame friendly. The vegetable garden will be planted with flowers to promote insect pollination. We intend to choose plants that are resistant to greenfly, mites and slugs rather than relying on pesticides. The production of vegetables and fruit can be shared to all groups involved to help with the cost-of-living crisis and provide people with fresh food.” Botanical Brothers – East London The garden will be a space for children, for teaching and education, learning and growing. There is the opportunity for life-long learning – engaging children in social and developmental opportunities. The garden will also be a space for staff to relax and unwind, where they feel they can switch off and recharge their batteries. This project seeks to provide a safe space for women with serious mental health illness in Gloucester. The garden will provide an area for women to relax, meet, and for therapy to take place within a designated area that is peaceful and designed with them in mind.The prevalence of paternal perinatal depression is well documented and highlights the need at national and local level for high quality holistic support for men, in particular from an ethnically diverse community. The evidence suggests that the prejudice and stigma around mental health in these groups impacts negatively on men’s mental health, in addition to poorer outcomes for their children and partners in the long term. Today visitors are able to explore gardens designed by Capability Brown, beautifully restored parterre and organic kitchen gardens. We are delighted to be announcing five new gardens and health projects as part of the NGS Elsie Wagg (Innovation) Scholarship programme. Recent evidence has demonstrated the widespread benefits that gardens offer to a wide range of physical and mental health conditions, and from their initial presentations I know that these will be really impactful and rewarding projects. The programme is an increasingly important exemplar of the synergy between our major nursing beneficiaries and our gardens and health programme.”