The estate garden
on the Sutton Estate in Chelsea, West London fell in to disrepair 15 years ago
after the landlord erected a fence to discourage antisocial behaviour.
The ensuing years
led to a build up of rubbish and undergrowth until 2 years ago local resident
Ian Henderson and The Chelsea Association of Tenants decided they wanted to reclaim the space as a
community garden for the estate and its residents.
‘We knew that the
only way the landlord would agree to give the space back to us’, says Ian, ‘was
if we agreed collectively to take responsibility for it and turn it into a
community project. We could see that it
had the potential to be a wonderful community space and that if we could pull
it off it would transform the estate and the lives of many of its residents.’
We started by organising a coffee morning in the
derelict garden to ask residents if they thought it was a good idea. We put together a collection of photos to
show them what it used to look like and set about persuading them that it could
once again be the heart of their community and something that could offer real
benefits to residents.
‘Once they got into the garden, people
began to realise what a lovely space it is’ says Ian. ‘They realised that if we all worked together
we could create something really special for the neighbourhood.’
The Committee approached the landlord who
agreed to give them a small grant to buy tools as well as some initial help by
pruning the trees. A second grant was
made to the environmental charity Groundwork, to help kick start the project by
teaching residents some basic garden skills.
Six months on and the garden is
unrecognisable from the neglected space it once was. Raised flower beds have been built and
planted with herbs, vegetables and flowers, benches have been installed and,
most importantly, it is now a vibrant community space where residents come and
go, some gardening, some just stopping for a chat and some simply sitting and
enjoying the space and meeting their new friends and neighbours.
We estimate that between 30 and 40
residents of all ages are regularly and actively involved in maintaining the
garden and that at least twice a week a group of two or three residents come
together to do something, whether it’s planting, weeding or watering.
The garden has also spawned a gardening
club that meets every Tuesday as well as becoming a hub for community
activities such as BBQs, Easter egg hunts and even exhibitions.
‘The garden shows
the power of what a community can do if everyone works together’ . ‘Community’s don’t have a centre any more,
there’s no hub for people to meet, chat, get to know each other or help one
another out. There were people on this
estate who had lived here for years and who had quite literally never met their
neighbour.
‘Our community
garden has created that hub once again.
It’s brought residents closer together, provided a safe and secure place
for kids to play and given the whole community a reason and a place to get to
know one another. It’s become an open air community centre.’
Jean Keal, who has lived on the estate for
42 years, agrees ‘over the last 10 years there was very little in the way of
community on the estate, people kept themselves to themselves. Having a
community garden is wonderful, I’ve met people who I haven’t seen for years,
people see you out of the window and come down to say hello, people want to
know how you are and find out about you, everyone is smiling.’
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