Taylor Wimpey digs deep in Harringay
Volunteers in charge of a prize-winning community garden have received a timely boost in their bid to secure a prestigious award for the fifth year running – thanks to a £1,000 donation from Taylor Wimpey, the leading housebuilder behind a number of developments of houses and flats for sale in East London.
The Gardens Community Garden, run by the Gardens Residents Association (GRA), in Doncaster Gardens, Harringay, has secured a national Green Pennant Award for four years in succession, in recognition of the contribution the popular public green space makes to the local neighbourhood.
But after the bitter winter took its toll on the plants and shrubs, residents who run the garden faced a race against time to restore it to its usual glory in time for an official inspection for the 2010 competition.
The donation from Taylor Wimpey, which is currently building several developments of new apartments and houses for sale in East London, arrived in the nick of time, however, allowing the committed volunteers to replace the damaged plants before the Green Pennant judges visited.
The cash injection has also paid for a significant chunk of the garden’s annual £1,000 running costs.
“The donation couldn’t have come at a better time and we’re delighted Taylor Wimpey has stepped in to help us, particularly as funding for the general upkeep of the garden is pretty difficult to come by,” says The Gardens Community Garden Co-ordinator Andy Newman.
“At one stage we weren’t sure we’d be able to get things looking as they should before the inspection, but thankfully we managed to bring it up to scratch just in time.”
The Gardens Community Garden is located on a small plot of land owned by Network Rail, and is being leased to the Gardens Residents Association (GRA) for a peppercorn rent.
Before the GRA took responsibility for the site, it was neglected and overgrown for years and plagued by vandalism and anti-social behaviour.
Since opening to the public in 2002, the garden has become a hive of activity in the local neighbourhood, hosting regular events including seed planting days, Easter egg hunts, film screenings, summer fairs, Halloween parties and Christmas carol concerts, and open 365 days a year.
Taylor Wimpey’s involvement began after a chance meeting between Andy and a team of the housebuilder’s engineers, who paid a visit to the garden earlier this year while carrying out survey work in the area. One VIP guided tour later, and the Taylor Wimpey team were completely won over by the garden’s charms.
“They were just overwhelmed because the last time they had seen the site it was completely overgrown – their jaws dropped to the floor when I opened up the gate and showed them around,” Andy adds.
“They were really impressed with what we had done with the space and said they were only too happy to help us.”
Derek Misson, Senior Engineer for Taylor Wimpey East London, says: “The difference that The Gardens Community Garden volunteers have made to this piece of land really is unbelievable, and it just goes to show what can be achieved when people pull together for a common cause.
“As a company, we are always looking for ways to help the communities in which we work, and this fantastic project is as deserving a local cause as I’ve ever encountered.”
Taylor Wimpey has a number of new homes developments across the North and East London area, including Altius, a stunning collection of one, two and three-bedroom flats for sale in Clapton, priced from only £174,995.
Further information on Taylor Wimpey developments across the region is available by visiting the website at: taylorwimpey.co.uk
