We’ve put together a highlight of the “Afternoons on the Acre” that ran during the summer. It was a wonderful way in which we were able to open up the garden to local families and friends.

By creating a booking system and keeping the groups small, we were able to open the acre in a safe and measured way. This was special as all through lockdown the gardens and the vegetable patches were maintained. It was so lovely to be able to share the passion and care that the garden had received during all those months. Nature is the balm that certainly heals us all.

The groups we had come to the acre were varied. Local families came whose children had attended the garden during trips to the project through links with their school, the children leading the way as the adults had not been before…

We had long standing friends of the project come and pay a visit with their families. Groups of work colleagues, groups who volunteer regularly at the acre, all taking the chance to make the most of the weather, kick back and relax with a BBQ.

The acre played host to a 2 year old’s birthday celebration complete with a pink cat cake and a reunion with a Grandparent!

The activities ranged from butterfly catching, bug hunting, vegetable picking, exploring the maze as well as all the crooks and crannies on the acre. Marsh mallows were roasted, leaf prints made and bundles of fruit and vegetables were picked and carried happily home.

In total 20 afternoons were hosted. Here’s some of the joyful accounts we received;

'We had a ball!! Great weather, children SO excited and Corin on hand to encourage and guide. A truly wonderful afternoon!'

'Lovely afternoon. They really loved it. Hide and seek, the maze, the wild flowers. Thank you to everyone who enabled our afternoon.'
'We had such an amazing afternoon and are so grateful for that relaxing time. My friend and her children are in our 'bubble' but neither of us have a garden big enough to keep all our children entertained. Yesterday was so nice because we knew we were the only ones there. It was so relaxing and my friend and I actually got a chance to chat!'
“I really liked seeing the vegetables growing and it was exciting to be able to pick and eat our own fruit! I can’t wait to come back and see the pond when it is finished - pond dipping is one of my favourite things to do. I also really liked the maze - we played some great games of hide and seek around the Acre. We are planning to use some apples to make crumble!”