Scotswood Natural Community Garden
Wednesday, 8 June 2005
William Mortada
- Address: Scotswood Natural Community Garden, John Marley Centre, Whickham View, Scotswood, Newcastle-upon-Tyne NE15 6TT, UK
Email: office@sncg.org.uk
Summary
William outlined the work of the garden with a selection of illustrative photos. The garden is celebrating it's tenth anniversary this year and has transformed what was a grass playing field into a productive green area for food growing and wildlife, complete with art installations a bread oven and a willow dragon. The garden employs five staff plus sessional workers and ten regular volunteers. There are over 2000 visitors to the garden each year.
Motivation
- Up to 15% of children in Britain are obese due to an unhealthy diet and lack of exercise - this leads to health problems later on in life
- There is limited access to fresh fruit and vegetables in Scotswood making it difficult for people to obtain healthy food
- There is little green space in this urban environment
Activities
- Nature Club - for local children
- Work with local community groups to increase involvement in garden
- Parent and Toddler group
- Public open days - festivals, craft workshops and events
- Demonstration - the whole garden is filled with ideas to inspire others to create their own productive green spaces
[Notes by William]
