Foster + Partners has formed an exciting new partnership with Thrive, the gardening for health charity, based in London’s Battersea Park. The partnership focuses on the regeneration and regular maintenance of Thrive’s Herb Garden, which is just a five-minute walk away from Foster + Partners’ London office.
Thrive is dedicated and passionate about the health benefits that gardening, horticulture and spending time in nature can bring. Their fundamental aim is to ensure that people with varying needs have the opportunity to access therapeutic gardening and horticulture programmes. Thrive adopts an approach called social and therapeutic horticulture, where trained horticultural therapists work with plants and people to improve an individual’s physical and psychological health, communication and thinking skills.
A team of volunteers from Foster + Partners work in the Herb Garden on a monthly basis, undertaking horticultural tasks such as weeding, clearing paths, painting and replacing trellising. The practice’s contribution supports the work of the client gardeners, allowing them to receive the full benefits of social therapeutic horticulture.
Feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, with volunteers from Foster + Partners expressing their enjoyment of the scheme. One volunteer said: “Working with Thrive is such a lovely way to get involved with the local community. The added bonus is that I get to spend the whole day outside, meeting new people and developing new skills.”
The partnership also puts theory into practice, with volunteers experiencing the benefits of biophilic design first-hand. Spencer de Grey, Head of Design, Foster + Partners, commented: “Thrive’s therapeutic approach, using plants and gardens to improve physical and mental health, corresponds with the practice’s ethos of embracing nature in our built environment. We are delighted to be working closely with Thrive, making a positive contribution to our local community.’”
Read more about the work of Thrive.
