Earlier this month, our volunteers had the pleasure of visiting The Therapy Garden. Located in Normandy, this is a horticulture and education charity using gardening to bring about positive change in people's lives. 

The Therapy Garden occupies an impressive two acre site. We were lucky enough to be given a tour of the wonderful grounds to discover the many different areas. There are greenhouses, a sensory garden, a pond, insect hotel, vegetable garden, raised beds, quiet areas and so much more. 

The Therapy Garden offers a supportive learning environment as well as a calm, protective space. It provides people with the opportunity to reconnect with nature and the outdoors, gain confidence and improve life skills. The gardens are accessible to all, with wheelchair friendly pathways and raised vegetable and flower beds. They also have sensory areas and quiet spaces. 

The charity helps a diverse group of people. Their Green School gives students aged 14-18  the opportunity to gain a City and Guild's horticulture qualification, giving them a helping hand to enter further education, training or employment. These students are referred from SEN and mainstream schools with a range of challenges such as ASD, ADHD and Down's syndrome. The Therapy Garden provides them with a fantastic introduction to try horticulture through practical learning.

Their Grow to Work project supports 19-25 year olds with the transition from school to College or to the workplace. As well as developing skills within the garden itself, they may also have the opportunity to gain work experience by maintaining local gardens or working in the on-site shop.

Adult clients with learning difficulties, mental health challenges or physical disabilities are also welcomed. The social and therapeutic horticulture they are offered helps to build confidence and develop social networks. We visited when one of these sessions was taking place and it was clear that those attending were loving their time at The Therapy Garden.

Each month they also have specific Wednesday morning sessions for a number of different groups. These include Thyme for You,  a group aimed to offer support to unpaid carers within the community, as well as Space to Breathe which is a session for those experiencing mild depression, anxiety or social isolation. They also have Garden Pastimes for those with dimentia or Alzheimer's, as well as Stroke of Genius for those who have suffered a stroke to aid them in their recovery.

For more information about any of these groups, please do visit The Therapy Garden website where you will find information on how to enrol and sign up.

The charity currently has approximately 6 full time employees and 70 volunteers but would welcome more! The Therapy Garden could not exist without the vital support of their team of committed volunteers. 

Volunteering can take many forms. If you are a local business and your team of employees would like to volunteer together for the day, The Therapy Garden always has one off tasks which they need groups of people to assist with. Or, of course, if you are an individual with a little bit of time on your hands, there is the option of volunteering regularly too. All volunteers will work under the guidance of experienced horticulturalists. No previous gardening experience is necessary - they just ask for plenty of enthusiasm instead! More volunteers will mean that they can help more people each week, providing them with the support they need to thrive.

Or, why not get involved in their upcoming Walk for Wellness. This takes place on 26 April. Entry costs £10 per child and £15 per adult and will raise much-needed funds to allow The Therapy Garden to continue doing the incredible work that they do week on week, month on month and year on year.

Alternatively, if you would like to support the work that they do, but don't currently have any spare hours in your day, you can make a financial donation via their website. £10 could buy seeds or gardening tools, £50 could pay for an activity day for a disabled teenager or £250 could fund a six session Green School course.

More volunteers means that The Therapy Garden can help more people. Please do support the work that they do if you can.