BBK returns to Horatio’s Garden to maintain vital space for spinal injury patients
The Spinal Injury Team has just returned from a corporate volunteering day at Horatio’s Garden London & South East situated at the London Spinal Cord Injury Centre in the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital, Stanmore.
It was fantastic to once again spend time supporting a charity that creates such an important and uplifting environment for people with spinal injuries to enjoy.
Horatio’s Garden, which has spaces across the UK, describes its hospital gardens as places for “reflection and adjustment, privacy and solace, joy and companionship” – something that is truly felt throughout.
We started the morning with a warm welcome from Tracey, the garden administrator, and Lily, the head gardener, who gave us an insight into the history and purpose of the garden. They spoke about the incredible level of thought and care that went into designing the garden, from the height of the flower beds to the materials used for the pathways, ensuring the entire space is fully accessible for wheelchair users.
It was truly inspiring to hear about the intentionality behind every detail of the garden and even more special to see the space being used exactly as it was intended.
There was a strong emphasis on just how much the patients and their families value the garden, highlighting the important role it plays in providing a sense of calm and escape from the clinical environment of the hospital.
After the introductions, it was time to get to work. Our tasks for the day included turning and sieving compost, painting the office floor and jet washing the outdoor flooring.
The compost task involved shovelling mixed compost into wheelbarrows and using makeshift milk crates as sieves, which ended up working perfectly, leaving us with beautifully fine compost ready to be reused around the garden. Safe to say, an arm day at the gym was not needed afterwards!
Having painted the office floor last year, it needed a new coat to brighten the space once again. The team moved furniture, cleared away cobwebs and applied the paint, leaving the office looking refreshed and ready for use by the gardening team.
After a much needed break, we gathered together for lunch and enjoyed the delicious homemade bakes made by the BBK team, which Alex also shared with the patients afterwards. We then returned to finish the remaining bits of our tasks and before we knew it, the day had come to an end.
It was a pleasure returning to Horatio’s Garden for the second year in a row and it was wonderful to see the garden continuing to go from strength to strength. Seeing the garden thrive and continue to serve the purpose it was created for made the day feel all the more meaningful.
