The team from Furzey Gardens run by local charity Minstead Trust have been accepted to RHS Hampton Court Flower Show to build their show garden. To make the garden a reality, the team need to raise the funds needed to create and build the garden and are seeking support from individuals and businesses. Over £15,000 will be needed for the project, with significant material, transport and support staff costs required to undertake their ambitious garden build.
The show garden aims to help change perceptions in society towards people with learning disabilities. Many still feel socially left out and face stigma and discrimination in their everyday lives. Gardening can play a role in giving people purpose in their life and a chance to show what they can achieve. Many of the gardeners have spent a lifetime struggling against discrimination and lacking in the opportunities that many other people enjoy. This garden will allow the team to demonstrate the horticultural skills they have built over several years working at Furzey Gardens.
Furzey Gardens is a haven of peace and tranquility, run as a social enterprise of local charity Minstead Trust to support people with learning disabilities. The gardens have been supporting people with learning disabilities for nearly 40 years, where they maintain the gardens and raise plants for sale in the nursery.
John Davies, Minstead Trust support instructor, said: “This is a really exciting challenge the guys are taking on, a chance for them to show what they can do if given opportunities that are usually not available to them. Many of them have been through really hard times in their lives and this is a chance for them to stand at the show at the end of this journey and feel really proud of what they have achieved. I hope people will support us so that we can change some minds around what people with learning disabilities can do if given a chance.”
For more information about the garden and to support the brilliant Furzey team in their RHS Hampton Court Festival endeavours see Furzey Garden Team website where one can donate, enter their raffle or sponsor the show garden.