The volunteers gave the hospice gardens a spring makeover for Garden Re-Leaf, the annual fundraising day for Greenfingers Charity. Together they tidied up the grounds by digging out wild garlic and cutting back plants to make space for hundreds of pretty primroses. The team also focused on weeding and making everything look neater for the children and their families to enjoy throughout the warmer weather.
Created by the Greenfingers Charity in 2018, the garden offers a safe and therapeutic escape for children with life-limiting illnesses and their families. Originally a grassy area with limited accessibility, the garden was transformed into a magical pirate adventure, complete with sensitive lighting and a wheelchair-accessible water feature, to make a sensory-rich environment where children can explore, play, and have fun outdoors, connecting with nature.
Sally Szollosi, Children’s Nurse at St Andrew’s Hospice, said: “The garden here at St Andrew's Hospice is a wonderful area for patients and families to utilise and enjoy. It's a safe space for our children and young adults to explore, have time on the specially adapted bicycles and play on the specially adapted playground (including wheelchair accessible swing and roundabout). The variety of plant colours and scents within the gardens is a fantastic sensory experience that the majority of our patients benefit from.”
Nick Maw from British Garden Centres added: “It’s been great getting out and actually doing some gardening. I’m normally behind a desk, so it’s been nice to don the gardening gloves, get out in the sun and get involved!
"100% get out and do it! This is my first time properly gardening, and everyone has been extremely helpful, and I’ve had a great time. I feel really good, it’s a really rewarding thing to do!”
His colleague, Nicola Moore, concluded: “This is something we’ve supported within the business for the last year, and personally, for me, my father-in-law was here, and I know how fantastic everyone is and how hard they work, it’s been really important for me to be here today. It’s been lovely working with everyone and being outside! It’s been wonderful with the spring sunshine! Even if it’s just an hour, volunteering can make such a difference, just do what you can do!”