What we do
Nestled behind houses on the Trescott Estate, RHS award-winning Allens Cross Community Garden has provided growing space for the community since its development in 2015. A partnership with local environmental charity, ecobirmingham, transformed Allens Cross Community Association’s recreation ground into a productive community garden.
We have been run independently since April 2020.
Allens Cross Community Garden is a green space in the middle of Northfield, where we work with our volunteers to grow plants and our community. Our volunteers have the chance to work on lots of different garden projects, helping with general gardening jobs like maintaining our compost, sowing seeds, growing fruit and veg, feeding the birds, and maintaining the garden and pond area. Our volunteers can learn more about gardening and wildlife, and can take on different projects within the garden, from creating wildlife areas to ornamental borders.
We have twice been part of the Eco, Green and Growing exhibition at the Malvern Spring Festival, which focuses on eco-friendly and community based growing practices. Our volunteers helped us prepare for the show, and many of them have come along on the weekend to help set up and talk to visitors at the Festival.
Our Mission
At Allens Cross Community Garden, we try wherever possible to be eco-friendly, from using recycled materials in the garden and reusing things until they break, to gardening completely organically – there are no pesticides used in the garden at all. Growing in this way is better for the environment and people, both in the garden and out.
We want to give everyone living in the area the opportunity to connect, share and grow with the living world; creating a sense of belonging, improving personal and community wellbeing, and doing something positive for the environment.
Our mission is to care for people and the natural world. We do this by championing the needs of our local community through volunteering and educational opportunities that grow people, as well as plants, as well as providing fresh, organically grown produce, plants, healthy living initiatives, community outreach and inspiring events for everyone. We also place care for the environment at the forefront of our decision-making to create a fertile, self-reliant and productive garden for all life to thrive.
An inspiration to others
Ecobirmingham was inspired by our community garden and worked together with us as part of their “Power to Grow” project. Watch the below video to find out more.
Visiting the Garden
We are always happy to welcome visitors to the garden, either on our usual volunteer days or for our special events.
Volunteering
We are happy to welcome new volunteers to the garden, whether you have lots of gardening or want to learn more.
Accessibility
Some, but not all, of the garden is wheelchair accessible. Part of the garden has a wheelchair friendly surface and we have a number of raised beds at different heights.
Bee Mindful project
We have two beehives at the garden, as part of our Bee Mindful project, which aims to teach young people about the importance of bees and other pollinators, and ways in which they can help them.