I spent several years from 2015 as a community volunteer with Grounded Ecotherapy in London, and they are still going strong. Started by housing association resident Paul Pulford, the group helps people facing substance misuse, poor mental health or homelessness to improve their wellbeing through horticulture.
Based in Tower Hamlets but working London-wide, the team turns neglected spaces into gardens. They built and maintain the Queen Elizabeth Hall Roof Garden on the South Bank, along with a Victorian Fernery and the Container Staircase Garden.
Working with Paul and the team was a pleasure, and the plant knowledge I gained was out of this world. Gardening for nature rather than design was a new way of thinking then, and one many people are only now adopting.
