Growing Places Members’ magazine, Autumn 2014
• Big Lottery Fund boost for Growing Together • Crowdfunding success in County Down, NI • A decade of growing in the Welsh capital • Bill Quay Community Farm is blooming • London City Harvest Festival 2014
Inside this issue of local authority management in Gateshead and working with housing associations in Scotland.
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elcome to the last issue of Growing Places 2014. It’s been a great growing season and we hope your project has enjoyed the harvest. We have some great stories from a range of member projects, new and longer established, sharing their experiences as they branch out in new directions, including success with crowdfunding in Northern Ireland, tackling the planning system in Wales, moving fully into community management after a long history
As a member-led Federation we want your input into the services and support we offer. We are in the process of re-developing our website and would like representatives from member groups to take part in focus groups (via teleconferencing or webinar) to help shape and guide our plans. If you are interested, please email Ken Elkes. ken@farmgarden.org.uk The copy date for the Autumn issue is 23 January. Please send your news to the Editor. diane@farmgarden.org.uk On the cover: Mural at Arkwright Meadows Community Gardens, Nottingham - recently awarded the Queens’ Award for Voluntary Service
Contents Big Lottery Fund boost for Growing Together
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News
4-5
Crowdfunding success in County Down
6-7
Noticeboard A decade of growing in Cardiff Bill Quay Community Farm is blooming CSA by the sea in Wales
7 8-9 10 -11 13
City Harvest Festival 2014 14 -15 - report Management and resources
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Funding and other opportunities
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Member services and FCFCG contact details
18 - 19
New members
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e now have 627 members. A warm welcome to all those that have joined since the last issue. Northern England • @ the edge, Hull • Lemon Balm Therapeutic Horticulture, Leeds The Midlands • Hawbush Community Gardens, Brierley • Long Eaton Community Garden, Nottinghamshire • Wellington Crescent Community Garden, Derby South East and Eastern England • Olive Branch Community Garden, Peterborough • Deben Community Farm, Suffolk • Rye Community Food & Page
Wildlife Garden, East Sussex • Penrose Roots, Luton South West England • Friends of Hengrove & Whitchurch Community Orchard, Bristol • One for All Community Garden, Bodmin London • Edible Landscapes London Ltd Scotland • Tullibody Garden Project, Clackmannanshire • Northmuir Community Garden, Glasgow • Donside Community Association, Aberdeen • Hillhead Housing Association 2000, Kirkintilloch • Lockerbie in Bloom Community Garden
Wales • Heart Of, Conwy • Darland High School, Wrexham • Badgers Brook Allotment Association, Bridgend • Peterston Super Ely Community Allotments, Vale of Glamorgan • Cae Tân CSA, Swansea Northern Ireland • The Quarries Farm, Co Down • NW Healthy Liiving Community Gardens & Allotments Project, Co Tyrone • St Columbs Allotment Association, Londonderry
News
Big Lottery Fund boost for Growing Together W
e are delighted to announce that Growing Together, a sustainable funding initiative led by FCFCG that will unlock money, land and skills to support community growing, has been awarded over £800,000 by the Big Lottery Fund.
opportunities, peer-to-peer learning and tailored support to promote new ways of raising project and operational funding - through social enterprise, crowdfunding, community share issues, commercial sponsorship, and other alternative methods.
The grant will enable the Growing Together partnership to work together, promoting fresh, innovative ways for local community growing groups to generate their own income.
Jeremy Iles, FCFCG CEO and Chair of Growing Together said: “We are delighted that the Growing Together partnership has been awarded this funding. With the grant we will help community growing groups across the UK to develop and diversify their incomes, which will in turn help sustain the huge range of benefits they bring to their local communities. We want more people and communities to get Growing Together and this will help them do just that”.
Over the next two years, Growing Together will promote the widespread uptake of innovative community enterprise, help people develop business planning and technical skills and offer advice and training on alternative funding approaches, such as community shares and digital income generation (DIG). The aim is to support and inspire a cultural shift within the sector - providing community growing initiatives with the confidence, skills and knowledge they need to move from reliance on grants to a more dynamic and balanced income model. The project will provide information, training, networking
Peter Ainsworth, UK Chair of the Big Lottery Fund, added: “The Growing Together project builds on the previous work supported by the Big Lottery Fund. Its aim to pool knowledge and resources from leading environmental and growing organisations fits well with our ambition to build on past programmes and share learning and best practice UK-wide.”
FCFCG is the lead partner of a steering group that includes The Plunkett Foundation, Groundwork UK, Permaculture Association, Funding for Enlightened Agriculture and the Incredible Edible Network. Growing Together developed its ideas and strategy during 2013 with initial funding from NESTA. This worked with 23 pilot projects exploring how innovative funding mechanisms can benefit community growing across England. We are now seeking to up-scale that work and engage new partners to reflect the four national contexts across the UK. We will be announcing more details in the near future about how you can benefit from the project, so watch this space! In the meantime, you can download useful information materials written as part of the Growing Together Pilot Project on topics including: • • • • •
Crowdfunding Digital Income Generation (DIG) Workplace Gardens Community Share Schemes Working With Business
www.growing gether.org.uk
FCFCG Social Media We use Twitter to raise the profile of community growing groups in the UK directly to media contacts, other community-sector organisations and the public. www.twitter.com/fcfcg
Our facebook page is a great place to find out what other groups are up to, catch up on FCFCG events, network and raise the profile of your group. www.facebook.com/fcfcg.uk
We are on Youtube and Vimeo. www. farmgarden.org. uk/videos And you can share your photos with FCFCG and other members. Join the FCFCG group on Flickr. Page
News
News from Scotland Over the summer our Scottish team have been working at a strategic level to promote community growing in the country. The team undertook wide ranging consultation with members on the long awaited Community Empowerment (Scotland) Bill that aims to give communities more power to buy or manage land. This Bill is now before the Scottish Parliament. The Scottish Government’s proposed new food and drink policy is also up for discussion. This policy seeks to promote Scotland as a Good Food Nation, part of which prioritises the provision of affordable local food and sees local food growing as integral to that. Exciting times. On a more practical, everyday level, ‘All creatures great
and small’ was a well received session looking at the practicalities and health benefits of keeping ‘animals’ in a community garden/school setting. The team also ran two very successful networking/ training events in partnership with TCV in Glasgow and Edinburgh. ‘Food as a tool’ highlighted tools and best practice in engaging people in growing, celebrating and integrating food year-round into their setting. Winter sees the team planning for a day of networking with those growing in campus settings, an event for housing associations and networking events in Inverness and Falkirk. We hope to secure funding to run Community Garden Starter Training from spring 2015.
New developments for our work in Northern Ireland In Northern Ireland community gardens are continuing to expand and innovate, and people are finding new ways to work in their communities. Our Northern Ireland Development Coordinator has been supporting these developments, delivering training sessions on alternative finance and training up volunteers to run garden sessions, as well as facilitating two new groups to form an association to run their projects. We are working with the Belfast Food Network to link up projects across the city, and to work with statutory and voluntary sector organisations to promote community growing in the city. Page
Across Northern Ireland the existing 26 local councils are restructuring to form 11 larger councils. The larger councils will take on new responsibilities, like community planning, urban regeneration and community development. They will be consulting on a vision for their area, and coming up with shared outcomes, relating to all aspects of community life and service delivery. FCFCG will continue to build on relationships with the incoming and outgoing council departments to gain appropriate support for community gardens, farms and other growing projects within the new political landscape.
Fed Faces
Sara Melendro is our South West Development Coordinator and is based near Exeter, Devon. “Many years before joining the Fed, I first became interested in community growing when I got involved in setting up a new community garden in Exeter. It was a fantastic experience. I learnt loads being involved with the management committee and I felt part of something meaningful. “In the years since then I have been to university and stayed on as a research student, worked for the British Red Cross as Coordinator for their refugee services in the South West and spent 6 months in the Amazon rainforest. On returning to the UK, I moved to a local farm as a wwoofer. “As well as my work for the Fed, I run a small organic market garden with my partner on Dartmoor. We grow veg and fruit and have laying hens and ducks. I am also involved in raising awareness about how our food is produced and in campaigning for a fairer system, small scale sustainable production and food sovereignty. I’ve recently developed a keen interest in fermenting and preserving and spend a lot of time surrounded by bubbling pots of (hopefully) yummy concoctions.”
News
Green Flag Community Awards 2014 In last issue we reported on a new partnership in Greater Manchester between FCFCG, Keep Britain Tidy and the National Housing Federation which was seeking to enroll groups wishing to receive support and training from established community gardens to help them to develop their projects. We are happy to report that the partnership has its first Green Flag Community Award winner: Debdale Eco Centre. Debdale is a small but perfectly formed community garden on the borders of Manchester, Tameside and Stockport. Helen Dodd, who manages the project said: “Achieving this award means a great deal because it acknowledges the huge contribution that the centre makes to the local community and the environment. “It also highlights the enormous contribution of the beneficiaries and the benefits that they gain from attending volunteering sessions, whether it’s more confidence, better mental health and wellbeing, developing skills and knowledge around sustainability or access to affordable, freshly grown food.” The garden runs on organic principles and consists of a vegetable garden and nursery, a biodynamic garden, two poly tunnels and two offices. They are developing a ‘garden kitchen’ with a cob oven for outdoor cooking. They offer a range of courses, a programme for schools, therapeutic gardening and also provide one-off workshops and a range of volunteer activities.
Kings Seeds - get ready for next season with 50% off
Above: Helen Dodd, Debdale Eco Centre Manager and Rt Hon Gerald Kaufman MP, a stalwart supporter of the project, at Deddale’s summer open day.
As long-standing members of FCFCG, Debdale were pleased to be part of the project and to share their experience and knowledge with other groups. It was clear they were good candidates for the award with their years of engaging and working with the local community. Now their commitment has been recognised The grant funding offered by the project supported Debdale’s summer open day, attended by large numbers of the public who use the park. Many people, discovering the garden for the first time, expressed interest in supporting the project and attending sessions in the future. Congratulations to all FCFCG members across the country that have achieved the Green Flag Community Award this year. The Green Flag Community Award is a national award that recognises high quality green spaces in the UK that are managed by voluntary and community groups. The awards are judged by more than 700 volunteer experts who visit and assess sites against eight strict criteria. Could your project apply for an award next year? www.greenflagaward.org/awards/ community-award
As reported previously, we have negotiated special discounts for our members with Kings Seeds, the oldest independent wholesale horticultural seed merchant in the UK. Tracey Palmer, from Kings, says: “Established in 1888 by Ernest William King at the age of eighteen, our company ethos has always been to ensure the best possible purity of stock. All our seeds are tested in our own laboratory, by a qualified technician for germination, vigour and purity, before being packed and distributed worldwide. “We are Britain’s biggest sweet pea producer for the home gardener with over 150 individual colours. We supply seed to commercial growers of flowers and vegetables, wholesale to large users of seed and to the home gardener. As we move into the future, you can be confident that the excellence we provide will be constant and remain our highest priority.” For details of how to take advantage of all current offers for members, including those for Kings Seeds, please visit the members updates section of our website. www.farmgarden.org.uk/ members-updates Page
Members
Crowdfunding success in Co Down L
ackan Cottage Farm is a permaculture smallholding near the beautiful Mourne Mountains in Co Down run by Steve and Claire Golemboski-Byrne, and has been running for 2 years. They have recently completed a selfbuild eco-classroom funded via a crowdfunding campaign. Steve describes how they ran their successful campaign. “We wanted to demonstrate how a low impact lifestyle can be a practical reality, meeting our own needs for food, energy, waste and water from the land around us. Sharing our experiences with others is important to us, and as well as offering practical courses, we welcome volunteers from all over the world to help with everything from horticulture to green building. “To begin with we didn’t know anyone in the area, but we started off by running a tree planting event, which was popular, and got to know a few people. We built on that. We have also made contact with volunteers through Grow It Yourself (GIY) and WWOOF, which helped to swell our workforce. “With a growing number of groups coming to the project, and just a tarp to shelter under in our variable climate, the team began to feel the need for some kind of building to accommodate people. “We are particularly interested in low impact building methods and so we decided to design a timber frame building, insulated with straw. The prospect of being able to live and work in structures that we have build ourselves and that are carbon neutral was empowering and in line with the project’s overall ethos. Page
“Preferring to fundraise publicly rather than apply to grant making trusts or to the council, we got to work on writing a pitch asking people to support a crowdfunding campaign. We offered to plant a tree for everyone who made a pledge. I’m a woodturner so we were also able to offer a gift of a bowl or spoon, as well as places on day courses and stays in a tipi for people bidding larger amounts. “We made a 3 minute promotional video. We’d previously had half a day’s basic training from someone at the BBC and worked out what might be successful by watching other people’s pitches. We simply used the video feature on our still camera and a £10 tripod. “The entire campaign was carried out online – facebook, email, and twitter. Having a strong existing online network is key to success. Being able to reach a good number of people that you know are already interested in what you are doing is vital. We had several hundred facebook followers and an active blog. We had to build a twitter following as we went along. It turned out to be a great way to reach people that wouldn’t otherwise have known about us.
“We had a month to raise the money, and it was really hard work. Most people are online between 6 and 10pm so that was when we worked hard to reach them. Then there are blog posts to write. You need to keep fresh ideas coming to attract people. It was 4 or 5 hours work a day, 7 days a week. “We sent the link to everyone we knew and asked people to pass it on. In the end over 90 people donated, 40 of whom were friends. That means that over half of the people who donated were strangers, some donating as much as £100. As well as cash donations, a local firm donated £700 worth of roofing membrane, and after we published a wish list of materials wanted on facebook, several people offered us glazing, bricks – all sorts. “It is a good way of doing things as you can do what you want with the money once you have it, as long as you are carrying out the work you originally promised to do. Promoting the project on social media is free and you can reach a lot of people, it just takes time. We spent nearly £100 on facebook advertising to increase
Members Crowdfunding tips 1. Build a strong network before you start. A frequently updated facebook page and blog are pretty much essential. A twitter following will help too. 20 minutes a day will pay off later on. 2. Be realistic about how much you want to raise. Do your homework, keep costs to a minimum and explain how you will spend the money. 3. Make a good pitch video. Keep it short and to the point. 2-3 minutes is grand. Write it out as a story beforehand and use it to work out what you need to shoot. There are lots of helpful online resources. A free editor – Windows Movie Maker or similar, and a basic camera are all you need. Get a cheap tripod and external microphone if your camera supports them. It will make a difference.
4. Make the rewards you offer commensurate with the amount that you are asking people to pledge. Try to make it something unusual or unique if possible. 5. Don’t just ask people for money. Explain the benefits of the project you are promoting, and what people will get back from it. 6. Look for similar crowdfunding projects and critique them to see what works and what doesn’t. Look at successful and unsuccessful pitches. 7. There are many, many crowdfunding platforms. Lackan Cottage found Crowdfunder.co.uk very helpful and supportive, but they all vary in their terms and conditions, so shop around. For more resources and crowdfunding case studies see: www.growing gether.org.uk
Noticeboard Historic drought project would like your input The Historic Drought Project is aiming to establish a national online archive of droughtrelated data. Donations can include diary entries, photographs, news articles and more interestingly, oral history recordings. Rebecca Pearce, who is responsible for collecting social data for the project, is especially keen to listen to and record oral testimonies of experiences of the severe droughts that would have impacted city farms and community gardens in 1976, 1983-4, 1995, 200406 and 2010-12. Those who participate will have their recordings preserved in a nationally significant collection. Rebecca Pearce, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter r.pearce@exeter.ac.uk
Country Living Christmas Fair
our reach, but it paid dividends, and we were able to reach over 20,000 people a week. We also invited everyone who pledged to come and help us build, and had a party for them, which was really great, got people involved and offered a feeling of ownership. “People perhaps think that we have a lot of resources here - we have now - but not as a result of having lots of money. We are able to market ourselves effectively
and communicate the ideas that we have, and I’d really like to be able to pass on that knowledge to other groups. We are interested in the idea of setting up training exchanges with other local groups, and believe in the idea of self-help and mutual support as the way forward for stronger, thriving community projects.“
Keep an eye on our Facebook and twitter for a chance to win tickets to this event in London from 12–16 November. With over 400 independent retailers and small producers from across Britain, showcasing traditional decorations, unique gifts, home accessories and festive food and drink, you’ll also find practical inspiration thanks to a lively programme of workshops and demonstrations. For more information visit: www. countrylivingfair.com/xmas
Watch Lackan Cottage’s video and read about their progress here:
FCFCG is Country Living’s charity of the year.
http://lackancottage.co.uk/blog
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Members
A decade of community growing in th A
t the northern tip of Cardiff’s Bute Park, 130 acres of landscaped gardens and parkland slap bang in the middle of the city, lies a real hidden gem of a community growing project. Sandwiched between the modernarchitectural ‘marmite’ of the Welsh Examination Board building and a busy dual carriageway, Riverside Community Garden is a haven of peace, tranquility and lots and lots of vegetables. This autumn the garden celebrates its 10th anniversary, and with a roster of 180 active volunteers and a recent record breaking afternoon of more than 50 volunteers on site at once, it’s going stronger than ever. Jim Groves, our new Wales Communications Worker, visited the project to find out more about the secrets of their success. Sam Holt, Garden Manager, has been involved with Riverside Community Garden for nearly 3 years. He joined initially as a volunteer but was soon asked to take over management of the garden when the previous manager moved on. “The site started off as a completely overgrown area - a dumping ground in the corner of an allotment site; it was rumoured that someone was living here
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Above: John and Gordon on the plot
in their car. Once we’d got the site ready for purpose, the garden was initially divided up into plots for individuals to grow their own produce, but it quickly evolved to what it is now - we all grow together, in one space. I believe that’s a better form of community gardening. We garden in a communal sense - when one person is away, someone else is watering and weeding in your place. When there’s a bean harvest, everyone gets their fair share. We’re here together; we take the good times with the bad times together!” And the good times and bad times don’t just apply to the fruit and vegetables grown in the garden. The group’s spirit of community and sharing extends to looking after each other, as well as the crops, when times are hard. Sam expands: “The crops are all there to be shared equally, but people only ever take home what they need or can use. Sometimes, if we’re aware that someone might need a little more support, we’ll make sure they go home with a little more food.”
The diversity of the volunteers who make the garden tick was reflected at a big party to celebrate the 10th anniversary on 19 September. Volunteers from brought food inspired by their homeland to be cooked on the garden’s own cob and rocket ovens. This included food from Brazil, India, China, Portugal, with a little bit of Cardiff cuisine thrown in (though growing their own Clark’s Pies is still something Sam and his team are working on). Sam himself is a bit of a whirlwind, involved in almost every organisation and committee to do with sustainable food and community growing in the South Wales area. One of the garden’s volunteers recently nominated him for the 2014 National Institute of Adult Continuing Education tutor of the year award. Sam won the award for his category, and as tutor of the year overall. While his passion lies in growing and sustainability, he understands that the benefits that can come from a community project like this one go way beyond the acquisition of new growing skills.
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he Welsh capital “I would say the garden is the portal – that’s what gives people the confidence to come here in the first place. They know what the garden is and what they might be expected to do, so it’s not like turning up to a dark room and not knowing what’s going to be there when you turn the lights on. Here, it’s more about building confidence, self-esteem; building networks. People come here and talk to people they’d never get the chance to speak to normally. Learning between the generations and different cultures is something that happens every minute here.” One volunteer, Gordon, freely admits that when he first began volunteering, he didn’t even like gardening. Not wanting to be stuck in an office, he started volunteering at the garden about 6 years ago and now loves the garden as much as anyone, helping out every Wednesday and Friday. On the day I spent at Riverside Community Garden, Gordon and John, who have become firm friends through the garden, spent the afternoon digging what can only be described as one hell of a hole, to be lined and filled in to improve drainage around one of the two large polytunnels. The fruit cage and pond (one of two on site) are Gordon’s particular babies. While the garden is entirely communal, Sam is keen to encourage people to put their own character into it: “I like to feel that everybody can carve their own character and sense of ownership into the garden. My personal philosophy is that nothing should be perfect – it doesn’t matter if things are a little rough around the edges. We want
people to look at something and think they can have a go at it, and learn from their own and our own collective successes and failures.” “I compare looking after the soil to looking after the community – if you look after the soil, the soil will look after the plants. The bacteria and fungi in the soil will produce the right energy to make the plant healthy. That’s like the community – if you feed and nurture the community and help those around you, when you need that support, it’s there for you. Our community really does allow the individual to flourish, and we see that time and time again here.” The ten year anniversary comes at a time when the garden is looking to set itself up as a stand alone charity. The hope is that charitable status will allow the garden easier access to funding to develop community growing projects throughout the city, linking together a lot of the great work already being done. Tyfu Pobl travel bursaries have allowed the garden to link up with other community growing projects, both visiting and receiving groups from around South Wales and further afield to share their knowledge and experience, and they want to do more. “I think we can run a large scale project across the city, builidng on the amazing learning we’ve had here. We’ve got great people – this is their achievement and it’s incredible. It’s a real community. We’re very proud of what we’ve got here - here’s to the next 10 years!”
Soft and scented hands at Redhall Walled Garden
Redhall Walled Garden, a Scottish Association for Mental Health garden in Edinburgh, in partnership with Jo Malone Fragrances has developed a stunning new look herb garden. After months of research, design, hard landscaping, propagating and planting by the Redhall team the herb garden was officially opened in July. Through the sale of limited edition candles in their stores, Jo Malone supports a number of community gardens. Jo Malone staff have enjoyed a number of ‘team build days’ in the inspirational setting of Redhall and watched the garden grow. Staff from the Edinburgh shop now support Redhall’s open days by offering free hands and arm massage too. Stuck for Christmas ideas? Buy a scented candle! www.facebook.com/ RedhallWalledGarden
www.riversidemarket.org.uk/ community-garden.aspx
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Members
Bill Quay Community farm is bloomin J
ust over two years ago, Gateshead Council announced that it could no longer afford to run Bill Quay Community Farm. Thankfully, a local charity, Bill Quay Community Farm Association stepped in last July to take the helm. A year and a bit later, things are looking promising for this family favourite on the banks of the Tyne. Established in 1986 by a local community group, Bill Quay Community Farm captured the imagination of the wider community. Volunteers young and old gave their free time and energy to establish a beautiful green space on a former industrial site on the south bank of the River Tyne. The farm had not been established for long when Gateshead Council was able to take over and build the barn and farm buildings that are still there today. The council employed a staff team of nine and, at its peak, the farm cost more than £300,000 a year to operate. The local community group (Bill Quay Farm Community Farm Association) always worked alongside the council and since its inception, maintained ownership of the rare breed livestock at the farm. During the council’s tenure, the Association established itself as a charity and was able to apply for funding to undertake wellbeing activities with members of the community while the council team worked to keep the place safe and entertaining for the 25,000 visitors who come to the farm every year. This relationship existed for more than 25 years. Fast-forward to 2012 and, after it was announced that funding would no longer be available from the council’s budget, the charity’s Page 10
trustees rallied round and worked with external partners to develop a viable business plan that would eventually convince Gateshead Council to give them a 25 year lease to run the farm entirely as a charity. The first step was to employ a manager who would oversee day-to-day operations at the farm, develop a fundraising strategy and other strategic objectives, build a staff team that would allow the charity to meet these objectives and, of course, raise the funds to keep the place open and free for the community to visit. The charity employed Craig Bankhead in June last year. Craig had spent many years working as a manager in the education and charity sectors before applying for the role, but had limited experience in farming. Craig recalls “When they interviewed me, I was asked a question about pigs and made myself look a bit daft by asking if pigs had multiple births. “This year has certainly been a very steep learning curve for me, but with the support of some of the trustees who have
excellent farming knowledge, I was very quickly able to employ a staff team that has expertise, qualifications and significant experience in agriculture, leaving me to oversee the strategic planning and fundraising for the organisation.” That’s not to say that Craig isn’t hands-on at the farm “When we’re really busy, I’m happy to pick up a shovel to help muck out the pigs or assist with herding the sheep. It’s not something that every charity CEO has the chance to do.” The farm is a long-established Rare Breed Survival Trust Approved Conservation Farm Park and all of the livestock at the farm is indigenous and rare breed. Visitors can see Bagot goats (which are rarer than pandas and snow leopards), Jacob, Hebridean and Castlemilk Moorit Sheep, Scots Grey Hens and Pilgrim Geese, as well as prize-winning Tamworth and Large Black pigs. It hasn’t been plain sailing all the way for the Association and the first year has seen its fair share of problems. One of the issues the Association faced was when
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g after charity take-over the proprietor of the on-site café announced that they would be leaving. However, with the help of a bridging grant from The Community Foundation, the farm was able to employ the existing café staff, who would have otherwise been made redundant. The café now has a new menu based around local food and food produced at the farm. This new menu is very successful and the association is currently looking to employ more staff for the café.
time further education study programmes in a range of subjects, including countryside skills and animal care at Levels 1, 2 and 3. Students wishing to undertake these courses on a working farm have, in the past, had to travel to the more rural parts of the region, but we are now able to offer these in an area which is near to where the majority of the region’s population lives, with excellent links to public transport.”
Through a number of successful grant applications, the association has also been able to employ an Animal Care and Volunteering Officer, an Education and Training Officer and an apprentice who is studying Agriculture.
“The ethos of the farm is about sustainable, environmental practice and educating people about the rare breed livestock that we have here. As a 25 acre farm with woodland, grazing land, two wildlife ponds and an allotment used for growing vegetables, there’s always something different going on for our students and the public to learn about, so being a formal education centre is an obvious step. It also significantly contributes to our income.”
Craig said “With the current staff team, we are able to offer a number of opportunities to the community in Bill Quay, in Gateshead and across Tyne and Wear. One of our more notable achievements in the past year is the relationship we have been able to develop with East Durham College’s Houghall campus in Durham. In conjunction with the college, Bill Quay Community Farm is now able to run full-
Another income stream is the provision of opportunities for school pupils who may not be suited to the classroom and are at risk of exclusion. These learners can be more hands on in their work at the farm and can develop social skills working with the farm’s staff team. School visits, involving guided tours, pond dipping, bug hunts, nature trails and other environmental activities are also popular with local schools and colleges. The farm’s success hasn’t gone unnoticed and late last summer, the farm was one of only two green spaces in Gateshead to receive the coveted Keep Britain Tidy Green Flag Award for 2013/14. More recently the
farm won the regional Netmums Outdoor Play Award. Netmums members voted for Bill Quay Community Farm as their favourite Outdoor Play place in the North East of England. “We’ve achieved a great deal in the past year and this is down to the hard work of the staff team and the board of trustees.” Craig added. “We’ve developed the size and strength of the board of trustees and have been able to lay some robust foundations upon which we can build even more success in future.” However, the staff and trustees of Bill Quay Community Farm Association are not being complacent. Craig warned “We may have achieved a lot in the first year and we haven’t had to borrow any money, which, at the start of the journey, we were advised may be necessary, but there’s a long way to go. We’re still existing hand-to-mouth and we must develop at a rate that our capacity allows, while continuing to enrich the lives of our local community. “We have developed projects to teach people about pet care and how to achieve self-sufficiency through growing vegetables, but the focus for next year is our own sustainability and embedding our role as a centre of the community for learning, enjoyment and wellbeing.” www.billquayfarm.org.uk
We would really love to hear from you! Please send us your news so we can include it in the next issue of Growing Places. diane@farmgarden.org.uk Page 11
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Greening Donside
FCFCG and Aberdeen Forward have been working with Tenants First to support gardening activity across a number of sites in Aberdeen. At Donside Village, residents of all ages have turned out to get to know one another whilst ‘Greening Donside’. With support from Sanctuary Housing and CSV’s Action Earth ‘Grab a Grant’, seeds, herbs and wildlife-friendly planting have given the village square a whole new look and feel. Residents have changed their route to work to take in the lovely planters and harvest herbs for dinner. The children are particularly keen and have sown radish, spinach and lettuce, with impressive results. Donside residents are now keen to grow more across the village. Plans for autumn activity include planting garlic and Japanese onions and, of course, tatties for Christmas. We very much hope that from now on social activity in this relatively new village development will centre around community growing. For more about CSV Action Earth grant in Scotland see: http://actionearth.csv.org. uk/apply/grant-application Page 12
Together We Can sows seeds of lasting friendship Together We Can, which celebrated the United Nations International Year of Co-operatives in 2012, involved nine oneday environmental challenges which took place at city farms and community gardens (plus the Co-operative farm in Goole) across Northern England, bringing together people from local Cooperative businesses, from the Co-operative membership and from the host organisation. In total 330 volunteers learned new skills and met other Co-operative members, with the added benefit of supporting a local community project. Joan Russell from Prudhoe Community Allotment in Northumberland said of their involvement in the project: “Our annual painting day, when we attempt to paint every bit of wood on the community allotment site (this includes, raised beds, buildings, fences and compost bins), is an exceptionally onerous task usually taking up to 3 weeks. “During the Together We Can event we completed the whole task in only one day! This was a magnificent effort and certainly much appreciated by the usual small band of workers. We had tremendous fun doing it with a lot of humorous banter and chatter from the Co-op volunteers. After the event they all said how much they had enjoyed the day. They asked to be kept informed of the painting day the following year and some turned up again to do some more work. “We also agreed to plant poppies on one of raised beds to remember all those who lost their lives in the First World War which was a Co-op 2014 initiative.
“This year, while at a funeral with the Co-op staff present and with whom I am now firm friends, I was again told we were to expect another group of volunteers from to help us on this year’s painting day. “Our first involvement with the Co-op’s social responsibility team has resulted in an ongoing relationship between Prudhoe Community Allotment – who support those with special needs and learning difficulties – and the staff of the Northern Region Coop Funeral Care who are a caring workforce. We have so much fun when they join us on our annual painting days.” Together We Can was the focus of research by Hull University Business School and Sheffield University Management School. The full research report will be available in due course. A leaflet summarising the reserach findings is now available to download from our website. www.farmgarden.org.uk/farmsgardens/your-region/north-england
Events
Cae Tân CSA by the sea
“Cae Tân is located on a beautiful rural site in Ilston on the Gower peninsula, Wales. The site is privately owned but leased by a co-operative called Gower Power. Cae Tân is a member of the co-op and leases land from it. The land is largely wetland of medium quality, but the drier four acres are now being used by the CSA. “Since setting up two years ago the project has established a sheep co-op which runs successfully with about 12 local families sharing a flock. There is also a fruit share, made up of an orchard and soft fruit. We have planted 1,700 trees for biodiversity and willow weaving. “Cae Tân chose the site as it was available for a long term cheap lease. It is also sheltered, reasonable growing land and close to a large population. The fact that there were a number of existing activities on site and a group of people already working the land was also attractive for co-operative working. “We were fortunate that the land owner and Gower Power co-
©Jay Brightwater
T
om O’Kane describes how a site that had been left unfenced and grazed by commons livestock for the past 30 years is now home to Cae Tân, a community supported agriculture (CSA) project, where members meet regularly to herd sheep, birth lambs, plant and care for trees, and enjoy bbq’s. Lamb kebab anyone?.
op saw that we were just what they needed to help in their own development and offered us a cheap long term lease. Following advice from the Community Land Advisory Service in Wales (CLAS Cymru), we are currently defining a ‘farm business tenancy agreement’ to suit our needs. “We have been given planning approval for a polytunnel which will allow us to move into a new phase of our development, developing two acres of field crops. Other long term plans include the creation of a community owned solar site on a further 6 acres, with space for grazing under the panels. “As the overall site is over 12 acres and there is already an existing business on site, we were able to apply for a permitted development for the polytunnel, rather than having to go through the more detailed planning process. “CLAS Cymru helped by organising a meeting with the planners. This was a good opportunity to reaffirm that we were an existing business with clear aims to expand into horticulture.
“Going through the planning system has cost us a year’s production but this has been a blessing: it has given us a year to sort out all sorts of other issues. And, now we have gone successfully through the official route, we have opened up the possibility of successful further development being permitted, such as a barn and parking. “As the grower and main person establishing the CSA, I came with most of the necessary tools and machinery. UnLtd provided a set up grant for the polytunnel and we have some other applications in to help with other set up costs. “We will invite shareholders to join in spring/summer 2015 at which point we will be providing produce. Some considerable volunteer time will have to go in over the coming year to get things up and running. The project will be financially self supporting as soon as produce is available. “My advice to others tackling planning applications? Be thorough and be patient.” tom@gowerpower.coop www.gowerpower.coop Page 13
Events
London City Harvest Festival 2014 C
atherine Miller, our London Development Co-ordinator reports on this year’s City Harvest Festival held at Capel Manor College, Enfiield on 20 September. 2014 was the best growing season I can remember, with a very dry and sunny September. We were crossing our fingers for fine weather for the festival as there were heavy thunderstorms on each of the two nights before. Luckily they finished in the early morning, and we had a warm if overcast day for the 16th London City Harvest Festival. Phew. Preparations began the week beforehand with staff and volunteers working to mark out the site and put the display tents up. London’s farms and gardens bring produce and animals up the day before, or early Saturday morning. About 90 people camped on site - big thanks to Jules Mogilner for cooking! The Horticultural Show takes place in the big marquee,and the seasonal displays are stunning. It is all ticketed up and our volunteer judges mark each entry. The farm or garden which tots up the most points wins the horticulture plate for the year. The animal show takes place throughout the day. Competition is fierce and our volunteer judges are certainly kept on their toes. One judge commented, “The standard of husbandry and quality of the animals has risen year on year...I feel privileged to be part of this amazing event.” There is always lots going on elsewhere on the showground too. The ‘Have a Go’ areaorganised by Simone Uncle from Kentish Town City Farm included corn dolly making from Wellgate Page 14
Farm. And children could also have a go at being a blacksmith! Stands from other organisations included the Chelsea Physic Garden, The Edible Garden Show, Your Allotment magazine, Megan’s Cakes from Kentish Town, Enfield Guide Dogs, the RSPB, and the Herts and Essex Wildlife Trust. Food came from Soupy Norman and Filling the Gap community caterers. Forty Hall Farm cooked up locally produced meat in the Taste of Autumn show, which also featured vegetables grown in Enfield and a great crop of chillies. Finally, visitors were able to take the weight off their feet, sit down and watch our film “Farms Hearts and Gardens”. You can watch it too: www.youtube.com/ watch?v=lHGYWixlB80. Another of our Judges’ summed up the feelings of everyone involved: “This show is one of the highlights of my year. I get such pleasure from being there and being involved, so proud. The young people …are fantastic!”...
Taking part this year: • Culpeper Garden • Freightliners Farm • Sydenham Garden • Surrey Docks Farm • Olden Garden • Wellgate Community Farm • Lambourne End Outdoor Centre • Hammersmith Community Gardens Association, • Stepney City Farm • Phoenix High School Farm • Newham City Farm • Woodlands Farm Trust • Mudlarks Community Garden • Spitalfields City Farm • Hackney City Farm • Forty Hall Farm • Capel Manor College • Kentish Town City Farm
Thanks to everyone who helped make this year’s festival such a great success: • Horticulture judges: Gaynor Daligan, Maisie Rowe, Julie Phipps and Michael Holland • Animal show judges: John Fishwick, Liz Wright, Michelle Chappell, Naomi Retallick, and Tom Davis. • Cathy Maund for invaluable support laying out the horticulture marquee, and Jim Torrance whose beautiful
Events handwriting adorned the horticulture certificates. • Liz McAllister for organising the dog show • Rob, Michael, Laura and all the fantastic volunteers and project staff who set up the show• Chris Pounds for being an incomparable compere • Dr Steve Dowbiggin, Nick Evans, Christine Bianchin, Isla Falconer, Julie Phipps and all at Capel Manor College for supporting the show • Our sponsors, funders and supporters: Awards for All, Geronimo Inns, The Metropolitan Public Gardens Association, The Worshipful Company of Gardeners, The Chelsea Physic Garden, Waitrose Community Matters, Practical Sheep Goats and Alpacas magazine and the Donkey Sanctuary.
seed sowing stand. They won a group visit to the Chelsea Physic Garden • MPGA prizes of £150 were awarded to the Phoenix School Garden and Surrey Docks Farm • The Blacksmiths prize went to a display from the Woodlands Farm Trust including wheat, logs and wild hedgerow fruit • Best Young Animal Handler - Rosa from Hackney City Farm • Best animal in show went to a ewe from Surrey Docks Farm • The tug of war trophy was awarded to a fearsome combination team from Freightliners Farm and Kentish Town City Farm • Overall winners of the Horticultural Show Plate were Spitalfields City Farm • Overall winners of the Animal Show Shield were Surrey Docks Farm
And the winners were:
More great photos from are available on Capel Manor College’s Facebook page.
• Best educational exhibit Surrey Docks Farm’s practical
European city farms conference
We were delighted to host this year’s European Federation of City Farms (EFCF) conference in Swansea in September. Delegates from all over Europe visited three local projects: Swansea Community Farm, Vetch Veg (a community garden established on the former Swansea City Football ground) and The Down to Earth Project (a social enterprise working with young people and people on probation through sustainable building, animal husbandry and growing). The conference provided excellent opportunities to network, share ideas and good practice from across Europe and discuss how to mark next year’s 25th Anniversary of the EFCF. There were also opportunities for cultural sharing. Delegates enjoyed a traditional Welsh Male Voice Choir and Twmpath, and shared a variety of traditional dances, songs and tales from their own countries. The 2015 EFCF Conference will take place in Gent, Belgium and it would be wonderful to see UK projects take part. Visit the website for a full report on this year’s conference or to find out more about EFCF. www.cityfarms.org
© All photos: Catherine Miller
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Management and resources Gentle reminder - hand gels no substitute for handwashing on farm visits Anyone visiting a farm attraction should not solely rely on sanitising hand gels or wipes to protect themselves or their children against germs that may be present in animal dirt. Although the risk of becoming unwell is very low in light of the millions of visits every year, there are occasional outbreaks of gastrointestinal disease which are linked to farm visits to farm attractions. Germs from animal droppings can be ingested when people, especially children, put their fingers in their mouths. To reduce the risk of illness, both adults and children should thoroughly wash their hands using soap and water after they have handled animals or touched surfaces at the farm, and always before eating or drinking. Hand gels can’t remove contamination in the manner that soap and water are not effective against E.coli or cryptosporidium.
Research published by the then Health Protection Agency (now part of Public Health England) of a review of 55 outbreaks of intestinal disease linked to petting farm visits over a 17 year period showed that one of the risk factors associated with illness was the reliance on hand gels instead of handwashing. Hand gels have their use in areas which are generally clean, for example offices or hospitals, but are not effective in killing bugs such as E. coli or cryptosporidium which can be found in animal droppings and on surfaces around farms. Visitors will often ignore handwashing facilities and just use if gels are available, and for this reason you should consider removing them. www.face-online.org.uk/ resources/preventing-orcontrolling-ill-health-from-animalcontact-at-visitor-attractionsindustry-code-of-practice
Free help with employment issues HRNet offers specific advice as well as a weekly briefing on employment issues. Joining HRNet is free for any registered charity or other non-profit with a charitable purpose. Membership includes: • A weekly email newsletter with up-to-date information on employment legislation and practice • Shared experience of employment issues with other voluntary organisations • Answers to specific employment questions from HR professionals
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• An information archive of employment information, guidance and good practice Please note, due to differences in English and Scottish employment law, HRNet is not available in Scotland. http://cranfieldtrust.org/what-wedo/hr-advice
Employment law changes A round up of this autumn’s changes - and proposed changes - to employment law can be found on the ACAS website at: http://tinyurl.com/nusw9oo
Community orchards through the year: A practical guide This guide, written by FCFCG Fieldworker and founder of Horfield Organic Community Orchard, Pauline Markovits, provides advice on varieties, rootstocks, planting, pruning, pest and disease control. It includes tips on organic growing and building up a healthy ecosystem, as well as lots of help on organising communal activities such as running an Apple Day. It is suitable for groups starting up, as well as offering ideas to more established ones. Illustrated throughout with colour photos from Horfield Organic Community Orchard. To order please send £5 (cheques to P. Markovits) and your details to: 80 Kings Drive, Bristol BS7 8JH
New resources from FCFCG • Allotments law and community growing • Sustaining your community garden - based on research into 12 projects in Northern Ireland this guide highlights how encouraging selforganisation in community growing projects can contribute to a good long term management plan. Available for members to download from: www. farmgarden.org.uk/infozone
Funding and other opportunities B&Q waste donation scheme B&Q operates a waste donation scheme through all stores. This scheme allows donation of waste materials, for example slightly damaged tins of paint, off-cuts of timber, odd rolls of wallpaper and end of range materials, to community groups, charities and schools. www.diy.com/corporate/ community/waste-donation
Foyle Foundation small grants scheme This scheme is designed to support smaller charities in the UK, especially those working at grass roots and local community level, in any field, across a wide range of activities. The Foundation plan to make one year grants of between £1,000 and £10,000 to charities which can demonstrate that such a grant will make a significant difference to their work. Demonstrating ongoing sustainability is also important, particularly if you have recently lost local authority or other regular funding. No multiyear funding awards will be made. There are no deadlines for submission. For full details and an application form visit: www. foylefoundation.org.uk/smallgrants-scheme
Garfield Weston Foundation This foundation supports a broad range of organisations and activities that share a commitment to making a positive impact to the lives of the communities in which they work, and that are driven by a desire to achieve excellence.
The Trustees are especially keen to see applications for core and project costs for charities delivering services directly to beneficiaries, especially in the welfare, youth and community fields, and also in regions of economic disadvantage. www.garfieldweston.org
Grow Wild grants for Spring Supported by funding from the Big Lottery Fund and led by Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew, Grow Wild is a four-year programme that aims to bring together community members, especially young people, to transform disused, unloved, neglected or uninspiring sites into a place that is attractive and useful by planting and sowing wild flowers, plants and trees that are native to the UK. Closing date: 2 December 2014 for projects starting in March 2015 www.growwilduk.com
Grow Your Tenner - register now! This year’s Localgiving.com ‘Grow your tenner’ campaign runs until 31 January - or until the money runs out. They have a matchpot fund of over £500,000 to give away. They will match one-time donations pound-for-pound up to £10, and monthly donations up to £10 per month for 6 months. All charities with active memberships are eligible to receive match funding up to a total of £12,000. With Gift Aid, a donation of £10 made through Localgiving.com during Grow Your Tenner will generate £21.55. Registration can take a few weeks, so sign up today to make sure you don’t miss out. https://localgiving.com/gyt/about
Heritage Lottery Fund Heritage includes many different things from the past that we value and want to pass on to future generations. The HLF has a range of grant programmes including ‘Sharing Heritage’ and ‘Our heritage’ for projects relating to local heritage and ‘Young Roots’ for projects seeking to engage young people with their heritage. Full details from: www.hlf.org. uk/HowToApply/programmes
Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service Congratulations to Arkwright Meadows Community Gardens in Nottingham who recently received The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service. The award recognises and rewards excellence in voluntary activities carried out by groups in the community. Groups can be nominated by those who benefit from their work, members of the public, representatives of public bodies, or other voluntary groups. For information on how to nominate a group, visit: www.gov.uk/queensaward-for-voluntary-service
InfoZone FCFCG members can access a wealth of online information resources at: www. farmgarden.org.uk/infozone
Enewsletter Containing funding and other opportunities, the enewsletter is sent out to members inbetween issues of Growing Places. To make sure you are on the mailing list, please send your email address to: ken@ farmgarden.org.uk Page 17
FCFCG member services
Make the most of your FCFCG membership
A
s an FCFCG member you are part of the wider movement of community-managed green spaces that benefit from the support, representation and promotion FCFCG provides. Here’s a summary of the key benefits available to you.
Support Services
Travel Bursaries • Travel bursaries of up to £150 (when available) towards the costs of visits to other community groups in your area or to our training/networking events. For more details contact your local FCFCG staff member.
• Development staff and a pool of experienced Fieldworkers based across the UK provide practical help and advice on a range of subjects and issues. • Emergency information and support (eg for disease outbreaks such as bird flu). • Free financial advice session with our Finance Manager (subject to availability). • Access to specialist support networks and initiatives (eg School Farms Network, Growing With Schools). • Networking and training opportunities on themes requested by our membership. These events are free or highly subsidised for members.
Online Services
Publications and mailings
Other benefits
• Free copies, either by post or email depending on your membership category/ preference, of our members’ magazine Growing Places, and other regular publications • Single hard copies of other publications are available free to members on request. • Multiple copies of promotional publications such as maps and leaflets are also available. • Circulate your inserts for job vacancies, events etc free of charge in our postal mailings.
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• You will have access to our comprehensive online resource centre in the members Info Zone on our website. • Copies of publications and newsletters are available to download. • Using FCFCG website’s online shop to market items for sale (in development). • Advertising and promotion for your events on our website. • Our site has specific regional or country pages with useful local information. • Regular e-newsletters and ebulletins to keep you informed of news, funding, training and information resources. • Discounts with various suppliers of goods and services. For details see: www. farmgarden.org.uk/membersupdates • Information about a public liability insurance scheme designed specifically for allotments and community gardens (joining FCFCG does NOT mean you automatically have insurance cover). • Access to our exhibitions, digital presentations, photographs and videos. • Access to FCFCG grants and
bursaries (when available) and subsidised feasibility studies and consultancy services at discounted rates. • Members are prioritised to be featured in our popular map publications, highlighting city farms and community gardens in regions across the UK and available free to the general public. • FCFCG can help raise your profile if you host events that we run, have an article in Growing Places magazine or host a Seeing is Believing tour for policy makers. • Members can nominate someone to the FCFCG Board.
NCVO/SCVO/WCVA membership NCVO in England, SCVO in Scotland and WCVA in Wales are umbrella bodies providing specialised information, advice and support to the voluntary and community sector. All English FCFCG members with an income of less than £10,000 per year are eligible for free NCVO community membership. For details of NCVO benefits see: www.ncvo-vol.org.uk All Scottish FCFCG members with an income of less than £25,000 per year are eligible for free SCVO membership. For details of SCVO benefits see: www.scvo.org.uk All Welsh FCFCG members with an income of less than £10,000 per year are eligible for free WCVA membership. For details of WCVA benefits see: www.wcva.org.uk Unfortunately, we do not currently offer a similar benefit for members in Northern Ireland.
FCFCG member services
Get in touch... F
CFCG has several offices throughout the UK through which we deliver our services to members.
Areas covered by our Development Workers Key: Northern Ireland Scotland
General enquiries
Wales
Staff at our UK office in Bristol can deal with general enquiries, press and PR, membership, finance, and requests for information and support. Our Chief Executive, Jeremy Iles, can also be contacted at this office.
South West
Tel. 0117 923 1800 admin@farmgarden.org.uk
Development staff across the UK Our development staff can provide specialist hands-on advice and have a knowledge of sources of information, support and funding in your area. For details of individual staff in each team please see the relevant pages of our website.
Wales Our Wales staff work from offices in Cardiff, Pembrokeshire, and Llanberis. The team in Cardiff deals with general enquiries and can provide contact details for the other offices. Tel. 02920 235 535 or 225 942 wales@farmgarden.org.uk www.farmgarden.org.uk/wales
Scotland Our Scottish team are based at Gorgie City Farm, Edinburgh. Tel. 0131 623 7058 scotland@farmgarden.org.uk www.farmgarden.org.uk/scotland
Midlands North England London East England
Northern Ireland Our Northern Ireland team are based in Belfast. Tel. 07725 699 442 ni@farmgarden.org.uk www.farmgarden.org.uk/ northern-ireland
England North Our North of England team is based in Newcastle-upon-Tyne. Tel. 01207 562 317 north@farmgarden.org.uk www.farmgarden.org.uk/north
London and the East
Our London team is based at Kentish Town City Farm. Tel. 0207 485 5001 london@farmgarden.org.uk www.farmgarden.org.uk/london
Midlands
Our Midlands team is based at Cardinal Wiseman School Farm in Coventry. Tel. 07807 822 717 midlands@farmgarden.org.uk www.farmgarden.org.uk/midlands
South West
Our South West team is based in Exeter. Tel. 01392 243 233 southwest@farmgarden.org.uk www.farmgarden.org.uk/ south-west
Projects and partnerships School Farms Network Tel. 01373 302 204 ian@farmgarden.org.uk www.farmgarden.org.uk/ education/school-farms-network
Community Land Advice Service (CLAS) England: Tel. 0117 966 9491 england@communitylandadvice. org.uk Scotland: Tel. 0131 225 2080 scotland@communitylandadvice. org.uk Wales: Tel. 02921 960 966 wales@communitylandadvice. org.uk www.communitylandadvice. org.uk
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Growing Places Members’ magazine, Autumn 2014 UK Office The GreenHouse, Hereford Street, Bristol, BS3 4NA Tel. 0117 923 1800 admin@farmgarden.org.uk
www.farmgarden.org.uk News, events, job vacancies, how to set up a new city farm or community garden, members zone and online seachable database giving details of city farms and community gardens across the UK.
Copy date for autumn issue: We are happy to include items sent in by members, including news about your project, ideas and advice for other projects.
Please note: 23 January 2015
Supporting communities to manage their local green spaces. Patron HRH The Prince of Wales Chief Executive Jeremy Iles Chair David Drury Charity no. 294494 Company no. 2011023 Scottish charity no. SCO39440 Printed using vegetablebased inks on recycled paper.
This newsletter can be made available in large type, Braille or on audio-tape. Tel. 0117 923 1800 FCFCG receives funding from many sources including: