Ashley Community Housing get involved with South West in Bloom ACH gardening project

This summer we have been excited to become Green Fingered. Following on from our Quartet Community Foundation funded project “Beans, Peas and Plums”, we are delighted to take part in South West in Bloom through the support of Bristol City Council and the Neighbourhood Manager Abdulrazak Dahir.

We put forward two properties for Hillfieds, Eastville and Frome Vale in Bloom with the aim to:

• have a positive aesthetic impact on the local area
• make tenants more house-proud and happy about the space in which they live
• teach carpentry and gardening skills to tenants
• help improve the mental health of tenants by reconnectingwith nature, being outdoors, seeing things grow, and participating in a community project

One tenant remarked at the end of the day; “It’s amazing that if you make a small change it makes a big difference”

Our tenants were the first users of the new “tool library” scheme set up by Easton Energy Group, which enables community members to access equipment to work on their gardens, where they would not otherwise have the means to do so.

Tenants from three of our properties worked with Ashley Housing Staff to transform two front gardens on Fishponds Road. Tenants learnt carpentry and DIY skills through the creation of two large wooden planters from scaffolding planks to plant herbs and flowers in. Tenants interested in cooking were excited about using the herbs from the garden including mint, thyme, rosemary, and parsley. We also built window planters for flowers using planks of wood.

The day was a great success: by the end of the day the garden looked vibrant and attractive, and the tenants were much happier with their houses. This project enabled tenants from different properties to get to know one another and work together, alongside support staff. There are a total of fourteen tenants living in the two properties and ACH staff will encourage them to work together to maintain the garden, making sure to water it regularly. This was a good opportunity to encourage tenant participation, and we will continue taking steps to empower tenants to take responsibility for their homes, and to voice their opinions and ideas.

The competition winner is announced on Monday, so be sure to check our Facebook & Twitter for the results!