H.O.P.E. Garden Trust

» Opportunities for Service » H.O.P.E. Garden Trust

This opportunity for service is literally "bite-size", as it involves supporting the work of an organic garden in Arbroath which produces delicious fruit and vegetables for local consumption. The Hospitalfield Organic Produce Enterprise (HOPE) is celebrating its 10th anniversary in 2004, and is going from strength to strength. HOPE exists to provide opportunities for people with learning disabilities who live in Angus: training and work experience as well as social and recreational activities. HOPE also offers the local community a reliable source of organically grown vegetables, fruit and plants.

Over 20 trainees come to the HOPE garden on a regular basis, and work with HOPE's two gardeners, Debbie and Richard, on horticultural training modules. Several trainees have gained their SVQ modules in gardening skills, which gives them a route into employment in nurseries and similar workplaces. The garden is located next to Hospitalfield House on the Westway, and is a wonderful testament to the vision and hard work and vision of the HOPE Trust, its staff and the trainees.

There are a variety of ways that we at St Andrew's can be involved in the work that HOPE is doing:

• You can spend time:
  • working in the garden, doing gardening tasks or helping trainees with their gardening. You don't need to be a gardening expert, as the HOPE staff provide guidance and instruction.
  • delivering boxes of vegetables once a week or fortnight to homes in Arbroath.
  • taking part in a weekend rota of watering plants during the warmer month, which saves the HOPE gardening staff from having to come to the garden at weekends. This would particularly suit people who live in the Hospitalfield area, as the garden is close by.
  • assisting with and supporting fundraising activities such as coffee mornings and open days at the garden.
• You can visit the garden to buy freshly picked vegetables, fruit and herbs in season, and also to purchase a wide range of bedding plants, perennials, shrubs and trees for your garden. HOPE is open for sales of plants and produce Mon-Fri, 2-4pm. There is a bus stop on the Westway right at the garden's entrance for those who don't have a car.
• You can take part in the vegetable box scheme, which delivers produce from the garden to your home once a week or fortnight during the warmer half of the year.
• You can give HOPE a 10th birthday present! The project is in need of garden hand tools and equipment, either new or used (in good serviceable condition), terracotta pots (not plastic - they have enough of those) and consumables such as twine, fencing wire, and rabbit fencing.

To find out more about HOPE, visit their website at hopegardentrust.org.uk

If you would like to respond to any of the above opportunities to support HOPE, please contact Linda McDonald or Debbie Lochhead, HOPE's head gardener. She will be very happy to show you the around the garden and discuss opportunities with you during HOPE's opening hours (see above), or you can phone her on 07752 107942.