Horticultural Therapy Trust, a small mental health support charity based in Stoke has been awarded a £200,000 grant by the National Lottery Reaching Communities fund.
Horticultural Therapy Trust, which was founded 13 years ago, provides isolated people within the community with a safe space using gardening and horticulture as therapy.
Based at Penlee Valley Gardens the trust was established by Dennis Trewin and Deb Hoskins and has helped hundreds of people of all ages and backgrounds over the years.
The Reaching Communities grant will provide funding of £50,000 a year for the next four years. Deb Hoskin said:
“This is the largest grant we have ever received and will allow us to do so much more to support local people experiencing mental ill health with a wider scope of time, days and resources.
“As well as continuing to grow our community garden haven, we will be able to help other communities to create gardens in which people and biodiversity can thrive. We have already heard of a few people out there in Plymouth doing their best to make unkempt spaces beautiful and accessible who would like our help.
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“Our mission is to offer a beacon of hope for a brighter future by cultivating a therapeutic, participant-led garden where individuals can grow whilst building emotional wellbeing, resilience and a sense of community.
Central to our ethos is care of biodiversity, where wildlife is considered part of the HTT community. Being able to be with nature is where the healing happens. We also share a lot of fun and enjoyment, HTT is a safe space to share experiences including the funny ones! A smile is such a measure of change for the better and improved quality of life.”
A participant said:
“HTT being funded by the National Lottery means more people can access this literally life changing space and continue to let the trust’s precious community evolve and blossom. More people crucially will feel less alone and experience more of a closeness to nature, learning to care equally for plant and person.
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More funding additionally enables HTTs’ passion to reach environmentally undernourished communities, always delivered with such care, and hopefully more people and green spaces can have the chance to thrive, cultivating meaningful friendships along the way.”
Deb added:
“We are uniquely based on kindness and respect, peer mentoring and care. Over all the years I have been so deeply inspired by the ‘humanity’ at HTT. Everyone drops into being kind because everyone has suffered, and is going through something, so no one points the finger in judgement at another.”
Up until 2023 HTT existed with two staff doing everything in sessions and out of hours to keep the charity going, with the kind help of a group of invaluable volunteer trustees and volunteer gardeners who also offered wellbeing support.
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HTT now has four part time staff all with different backgrounds each with their own journey to HTT, offering unique skills to bring alongside participants, volunteers and trustees, with Deb Hoskin and Paul Keller, a founding trustee, still fully present, and still learning.
Deb added:
“We are as always so grateful to everyone who has funded us over the years. Every penny counts and has counted towards us being able to do what we do. Until this latest funding we got through by kind support of up to 30 funders without whom we wouldn’t be able to run. We have very few overheads so every penny goes into actively helping others.
Paul Keller, founding trustee and chair of Trustees said ‘HTT has always worked with mental health in an accessible and approachable way ensuring the participants it works with feel safe and cared for. This is something that is so important in our fast paced world today – a safe space created for people to grow in an awareness of the peace that nature and gardening brings with a chance to talk to others.
“I have supported this project from the beginning and continue to do so because like all those staff and volunteers, past and present that also support this project I believe in the good it brings in helping those in need to help themselves.
“Thanks to staff, volunteers, participants and funders for all your continued support.”
