LR Peterlee Town Council Autumn 2021 - Flipbook - Page 6
Local Interest
A Community Garden in the
Heart of Peterlee
Did you know that Woodhouse Park in
Peterlee had its own award-winning
Community Garden?
The Woodhouse Park Community Garden
Group started in 2018 in conjuncTon with
Peterlee Town Council, Durham County
Council and Durham Police to provide a
space where the community can gather to
plant, grow and take home their own fruit,
vegetables, and owers.
The garden originally consisted of 7 raised
beds for the community to use. In 2019 the
community garden won the presTgious
Community Partnership award at the
County Durham Environment Awards
ceremony. The group was also awarded
£500 from Durham County Council’s
Improving your Neighbourhood awards.
The group wanted to expand as they only
had space for the raised beds which limited
their ideas and abiliTes. In the summer of
2020 Peterlee Town Council’s Park
Department expanded the community
garden to allow the community gardeners to
develop a new area.
Whilst the expansion was happening the
Community Garden group applied for
funding from the NaTonal Lo+ery so that
they could develop the community garden
to a higher standard. Thinking they may only
get a small amount, it was to their
amazement and surprise that the work they
had put in had paid o6 and the group were
successfully awarded £9,500!
6 Peterlee
The Community Garden commi+ee,
volunteers and Town Council Parks
department have spent a lot of Tme and
energy improving the area and have
included a new sensory garden and
allotment. The area they have expanded into
was previously an unused corner of the park
and had been blighted by anTHsocial
behaviour. The area is now used as a posiTve
community space and is looking amazing in
comparison to just a few years ago.
The Community Garden Group and
volunteers have removed the old planters
which were ro+en and replaced them with
paths and planters in a MediterraneanH
themed sensory garden. Other community
groups have also lent a hand, including
young people from East Durham College
and the local PCSOs Mikei Hubbard and
Simon Walters.
The group used some of their funding from
the NaTonal Lo+ery for materials needed to
expand and improve the Community
Garden including bricks, grano dust and
beauTful purple slate. They teamed up with
The Shaw Trust, based in Seaham, and have
bought the majority of their new plants
from there to help support The Shaw Trust’s
cause. As well as teaming up with The Shaw
Trust, the community garden has made
recent links with the SalvaTon Army and will
donate any fruit or vegetables not taken by
the community. This will then be included in
food parcels for the vulnerable.
The garden 'formally’ opened to the public
in July 2021 and people are encouraged to
plant something, have a look around or just
relax in the sun. The Community Garden
Group are currently on the lookout for more
help to help keep the community garden
looking amazing and to conTnue to develop
it with new and inspiring ideas.
If you think you’d like to give a few hours of
your Tme to help in the Community Garden
or elsewhere in Woodhouse Park please
contact Kay Tweddle at Peterlee Town
Council kay.tweddle@peterlee.gov.uk
or Louise Hudson
louise.hudson@peterlee.gov.uk or phone
0191 5862491 ext205/214 for a volunteer
applicaTon form. There are usually
members of the community garden in the
park every morning during the week if you
want to have an informal look around Irst,
or feel free to speak to one of the members
of the Town Council’s Parks Team who are
based at Woodhouse Park and they will be
able to show you around.
