With National Gardening Week in full swing, it’s great to see so many activities celebrating our outdoor spaces.
We are hearing more than ever about the power of green space and gardens to improve our social, physical and mental wellbeing. School gardening projects have been shown to boost confidence and creativity, and to break down social barriers for children with learning and/or behavioural difficulties.
Studies also show that stress levels and mood are directly related to the amount of green space in people’s area. And for those with stress and depression, garden-oriented rehab programmes have been shown to significantly reduce the number of GP visits.
Gardening is not only great for boosting endorphins, the body’s natural ‘feel good’ hormone, the physical activity means it burns the calories too. No wonder then that doctors are starting to recognise ‘horticultural therapy’ as an effective prescription.
As you might expect, we at Kebur are passionate about helping people benefit from gardens and nature, so it has been a great privilege to help some recent local projects to do just this. This March, we donated materials for a forest school canopy at St Peter’s Primary School in Farnham. The canopy allows children from across the school to benefit from learning outdoors in a natural environment whatever the weather.
Last month, we were impressed with the number and range of nominations for the Kebur Community Challenge, our annual competition, in conjunction with Eagle Radio, for £2000 worth of materials. It has been great to see local groups wanting to improve their green spaces for so many reasons; for healthy eating, play and risk-taking, contemplation and sanctuary, and to build a sense of community.
The winners, Owlsmoor Primary School, will be using the materials to revive their ‘Friendship Garden for Lily’, a special place where friends and family can remember former pupil Lily, who sadly lost her life to sepsis. We look forward to helping them achieve this.
If you are part of a local school or other group and want to improve your community outdoor space, talk to us about our special discounts for community groups.
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