We create opportunities that bring people together, promote wellbeing, and celebrate diversity within our community. As part of our Refugee Week celebrations, we were delighted to host a plant give-away session during our Unity in Diversity drop-in. This activity aimed to encourage connection, healing, and joy through nature.
Based at York Place Baptist Church, we were fortunate to have access to outdoor space where we could develop a small community garden. With the support of regular volunteers from our refugee and asylum seeker community, the garden quickly became a shared project filled with care and collaboration. Volunteers dedicated their time to removing weeds, watering the plants, and looking after them with great commitment. Thanks to their hard work, the garden flourished, producing a healthy variety of vegetables, flowers, and herbs.
During the plant give-away session, many members of our community were excited to take plants home with them. To make the experience even more enjoyable, we introduced a friendly “Who Can Grow the Tallest Sunflower?” challenge, which brought laughter, enthusiasm, and a sense of shared purpose among participants. It was wonderful to see how something as simple as a plant could spark happiness and connection.
Throughout this gardening project, volunteers, trustees, refugees, and asylum seekers worked side by side. In doing so, they built confidence, friendships, and a strong sense of belonging. These shared activities play an important role in breaking social isolation and supporting mental health and wellbeing, particularly for those living far from home while facing language barriers and other challenges.
