Sensory garden at Fulham Play Project will be a haven for local children
by Hammersmith and Fulham Press Office
31/10/2006
Green Grants scheme enables transformation of garden area at play project
Pictured in the new garden at Fulham Play Project are (left to right) Saskia Pink, 8, the mayor, Cllr Minnie Scott Russell, and Elena Shahir, 8.
A new sensory garden has been created at a council-run play centre in Fulham, with the help of a Green Grants scheme run by Groundwork West London with money from Chelsea Football Club.
Fulham Play Project, in Lillie Road, Fulham, secured the £3,000 Green Grant to revamp a disused garden area at the back of the centre, which provides after-school and holiday activities for local children aged 4 to 12.
The sensory garden features paved areas to make it fully accessible for disabled children and adults and raised beds for growing flowers, shrubs, herbs and vegetables. Fulham Play Project will run a gardening club for the children to grow their own herbs and vegetables, which will then be used to make healthy meals for them at the centre.
The landscaping and paving work was carried out by Groundwork West London through the environmental charity’s landscape gardening social enterprise scheme. This is staffed by full-time landscape gardeners who have progressed from Groundwork’s Green Team programme, which trains long-term unemployed people in horticulture and landscape gardening to improve their job prospects.
On Friday (27 October) the Mayor of Hammersmith & Fulham, Cllr Minnie Scott Russell, marked the opening of the garden by joining children and staff at the Fulham Play Project and helpers from the British Trust Conservation Volunteers. The children planted daffodil bulbs and herbs and the conservation volunteers planted lavender, clematis, honeysuckle and other sensory plants and shrubs.
The mayor, Cllr Minnie Scott Russell, said: “The garden scheme has brought together children, staff and volunteers to create a lovely green space at Fulham Play Project which everyone there can enjoy. Green Grants, run by Groundwork West London and funded by Chelsea FC, are a great way to help make the borough a cleaner and greener place to live.”
Diane Lister, manager of the Fulham Play Project, said: “The old garden wasn’t suitable for us to use. The Green Grant has enabled us to create a really fantastic space, which we can carry on developing. The children will grow vegetables and herbs, which we can use to cook their meals. We also want to raise some more money to install a seating area. A lot of the children who come here live in flats so it’s wonderful that they can now enjoy the experience of having their own garden.”
Ben Coles, executive director of Groundwork West London, said: “The Green Grants scheme is helping community groups, schools and youth groups in the Fulham area to make positive changes to their local environment. The grants are usually between £500 and £2,500 but we felt that the Fulham Play Project garden was a really worthwhile project which deserved extra funding. The new garden will bring a great deal of pleasure to local children who attend the centre and we wish the play project well with their future plans to further develop the space.”
Alan Shaw, group secretary for Chelsea Football Club, said: “The Green Grants scheme allocates funding from Chelsea Football Club made available through a section 106 planning agreement with Hammersmith & Fulham Council. Chelsea FC have ensured that section 106 money is spent to improve the local area so we fully support this excellent initiative to improve the environment for young people and residents.”
• For more details about Green Grants contact Francis Davies, at Groundwork West London, on 020 8762 0323 or email francis@gwk-wl.org.uk
• The Fulham Play Project runs after-school activities for children aged 4 to 12 from five local primary schools as well as holiday activities for children aged 4 to 12 in the local area. It is one of ten centres across the borough run by the council’s play service. For more details call 020 8753 3786 or visit www.lbhf.gov.uk
