Mum (Heather Robinson) loved her garden in Norfolk so much. She spent most of her time outdoors making it look beautiful. Prior to moving to Norfolk Mum lived in the West Country near her children and again was fortunate to have a garden at her home there. She was very aware that not everyone was in the same position.

In her memory we would like to enable anyone who regarded Mum to donate to this page and all monies raised will be given to Social Farms & Gardens which is a registered charity who enables the creation and management of Community Gardens and City Farms in urban areas to give people who may not have the space or ability to maintain and enjoy a garden and outdoor space in the same way she did.

SOME INFORMATION ABOUT SOCIAL FARMS & GARDENS

Social Farms & Gardens is the result of a merger between the Federation of City Farms and Community Gardens (FCFCG) and Care Farming UK in April 2018. We are a registered charity which supports, represents and promotes community-managed farms, city farms, care farms, community gardens, allotments and other green spaces, creating opportunities for local communities to grow. FCFCG was formed in 1980 and after the merger we currently have around 900 members.

We work with these community groups to help empower local people of all ages, backgrounds and abilities to build better communities, often in deprived areas, and to make a positive impact on their surrounding environment. Our work contributes to creating better communities across the UK in both urban and isolated rural areas.

We also provide the national face of the community farm and garden movement, promoting its work and raising its profile with decision-makers, funders, the public and the media. Our current projects include:

Growing Together: A partnership initiative aiming to help community growing groups to thrive financially by finding alternatives to grant funding. Growing Together (supported by the Big Lottery) will develop and promote bright ideas so groups can have a balanced, sustainable income. www.growingtogether.community

Community Land Advisory Service: The Community Land Advisory Service (CLAS) tackles the lack of available land for community gardening and associated activities by working with both landowners and community groups. CLAS provides direct advice from expert advisers located in England, Scotland and Wales. There is also a comprehensive portfolio of information resources – many of them created specially by CLAS - via its website, covering topics such as finding land, information for landowners, planning, negotiating tips and information on leases. www.communitylandadvice.org.uk

Green Flag: Community Green Space Awards: We are a partner in the Green Flag Awards Scheme, working with Keep Britain Tidy, and its respective organisations in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. We helped develop the Green Flag Community Award, starting with the Community Green Space Awards Project in Greater Manchester, where Community gardeners and the social housing sector had the opportunity to get support and training to developing thriving community gardens.

Gardeniser Project: Gardeniser is a unique, skills-sharing project to develop and promote garden facilitator training, to help in the development of community gardens in Europe. Funded by the European Union, the project builds on a previous programme on urban gardening called Otesha. Collaboration started in November 2013. http://gardeniser.eu

School Farms Network: There are now more than 110 School Farms in the UK. FCFCG helped set up and co-ordinates the School Farms Network, which offers support and assistance to school farms, co-ordinates meetings and facilitates the exchange of ideas and information, including peer teacher support. In addition, an e-newsletter is regularly despatched to members to keep them up to date and this webpage is updated with useful information including contact details. www.schoolfarms.org.uk

Access To Farms/CEVAS: Access To Farms is a partnership of organisations including FCFCG that promotes quality educational visits to farms. A training scheme called Countryside Visits Educational Accreditation Scheme (CEVAS). CEVAS offers training for individuals who are working – or plan to work – with groups of school children, young people or clients with additional needs. Training is coordinated and delivered by the Access to Farms partnership, and accredited by Credit4Learning, part of the Open College Network (OCN). www.visitmyfarm.org/cevas-farmer-training

More About Social Farms & Gardens