I see that everyone around me is also enjoying what they are doing and that it is making a difference to their lives.
Based at the Southwood Road Allotments in Rusthall, our gardening project, Flourish, is for those who are struggling with their mental health and are feeling lonely or socially isolated as a result. We believe that gardening is one way of helping to achieve good mental health.
Flourish is a hands-on project, gardening and growing primarily fruit and vegetables, and one we believe will be hugely rewarding and beneficial to mental wellbeing. It has had multiple successive seasons of productivity with many areas of the allotment well established, and the site we use has increased in size several times over this period and is continually evolving. There are new challenges and new mini-projects on the go all the time!
Whilst Flourish offers a wide range of horticultural and other outdoor activities, many of the gardeners who attend value the project as a place where they can just come and sit to enjoy being outside in a beautiful natural environment.
Attendance is by appointment only.
At Flourish, we support adults with poor mental health in our community. This is a hands-on project, offering a holistic, person-centred approach to our gardeners to help improve their physical and mental wellbeing.
We are dedicated to improving the mental health of the community around us and passionate about the health benefits that gardening, horticulture and spending time in nature can bring. These benefits include building diverse skills, increasing confidence and reducing social isolation, and connecting with the wider community.
Activities include planning the allotment, preparing the soil, planting and tending to its seasonal needs, with help and guidance from our gardening project team and volunteers. There are also regular opportunities to prepare, cook and eat the produce. In addition to gardening activities, there are also seasonal outdoor crafts such as willow weaving, wreath making, and wood-working, as well as horticultural-based trips.
When the produce is ready to harvest at Flourish, we cook delicious, healthy meals during our sessions. We refer to this as “From Plot to Plate”. It is part of our holistic approach, ensuring our gardeners have a filling meal as part of a balanced diet. We encourage the gardeners to harvest, clean and prepare the vegetables and take part in the cooking.
Any surplus produce goes to the local food larder in Rusthall.
We are interested to hear from anyone who feels they may benefit from being involved. For more information about Flourish, contact our Project Manager, Keith
Attendance at Flourish is currently free of charge.
We have a straightforward process for prospective gardeners which begins with a meeting to get to know each other and to complete the application form; we would then offer a trial session at Flourish. If the trial session is successful for both parties, we would enter into an agreement of attendance in blocks of a specified number of subsequent sessions. At the end of each block, we would consider extending to more sessions, subject to availability and the suitability of the project for the individual.
As part of our social and therapeutical horticulture programme, we are establishing methods of monitoring and measuring the improvement in people’s mental health and, where appropriate, we will also set person-centred goals which we will monitor. This enables us to adapt our support of individuals where possible and also to demonstrate the efficacy of the project as a whole.
As well as the horticultural aspects of the programme, we explore the benefits of a good diet through healthy eating by regularly harvesting and cooking the produce grown at Flourish. We have seen significant improvements in some of our gardeners’ attitudes towards food and our ‘from plot to plate’ approach has encouraged them to think about fruit and vegetables in a whole new light. Surplus produce goes to the local food larder in Rusthall.
Alongside the gardening activities, there are also seasonal outdoor crafts such as willow weaving, wreath making, and wood-working, as well as horticultural-based trips.
We are interested in hearing from mental health professionals who may have clients for whom gardening would be beneficial. For more information about referrals, contact our Flourish Programme Lead, Kate.
Attendance at Flourish is currently free of charge.
The Flourish team is led by Keith Terry with the help of Kate Cheshire, both of whom have extensive experience in Social and Therapeutic Horticulture and have appropriate mental health training. They are assisted by a keen and dedicated team of volunteers who help the gardeners with all aspects of caring for the allotments either individually or in groups.
If you live in the Tunbridge Wells area, enjoy gardening and are a patient and sympathetic individual, we would love to hear from you if you would like to join us as a volunteer. We give appropriate training to all our staff and volunteers – why not get in touch to enquire about becoming part of our growing organisation?
