A charity’s allotments which were featured on BBC and ITV news programmes were opened to the public as part of an open day involving local gardens.
The Friary in West Bridgford, which tackles homelessness, took part in the Musters Road Open Gardens event on Sunday 16th June, 2024, with proceeds from the whole event going to the charity.
Visitors were invited to look around the allotments which have undergone a major restoration as part of a scheme to mark the charity’s 35th anniversary last year.
As well as finding out how the plots are helping service-users, visitors were able to buy fresh produce, enjoy refreshments and given a tour of the allotments.
The launch of the restoration scheme was featured on local television news programmes last year, after being kick-started by a £10,000 donation from the award-winning PR and marketing agency Arch Communications, which is also based in Rushcliffe. Arch is supporting the charity with PR on a pro-bono basis.
The Friary has helped hundreds of people through its drop-in centre and outreach work. Demand for its services continues to increase, as does its running costs. Latest figures show the charity’s annual utility and food bills have almost doubled in two years to more than £20,000 and over £9,000 respectively.
The allotments project has seen the charity’s three allotments in West Bridgford re-vamped to create quiet and creative spaces, where service users are growing vegetables and learning new crafts.
The Chief Executive of The Friary, Ben Talbot, said: “We were really excited to be able to invite members of the public to have a look around the allotments and see the wonderful results of the work carried out by volunteers and service users.”
“These allotments have proven to be the perfect place for our clients to learn new skills, improve their mental health and give them a sense of purpose.
“Our clients already feel part of The Friary family and, with the valuable help of our volunteers, this is a space they can feel part of too”
Poppy Mosesson from the Musters Road Open Gardens scheme said: “We’re delighted to be supporting The Friary as part of this year’s event. There was a wonderful range of local gardens open to the public and it’s marvellous that the charity’s fantastic allotments was one of the attractions.”