Introduction to Therapeutic Horticulture

Grow Wakefield started off in 2010 as a small community group in Horbury but has since grown into a hugely successful, district wide, social enterprise with a social mission “to develop innovative local food initiatives that help as many people as possible to enjoy the many benefits that come from learning to grow your own food.”From 2012 onwards we were called Incredible Edible Wakefield but in June 2021 we changed our name to Grow Wakefield to differentiate ourselves from other Incredible Edible projects across the Country.We work with individuals, community groups and organisations to remove the barriers that prevent people growing their own food and to bring the benefits of healthy food and exercise to many disadvantaged people across the district.We achieve this by creating Edible Community Gardens, Mini Allotment Plots and Communal Growing Spaces as well as running Edible Gardening Clubs and Help Us Grow sessions, helping people to have a go at growing their own food for the first time or to improve and share their existing food growing knowledge.We also work with schools, helping teachers to use food growing as an effective medium for developing life skills and confidence amongst pupils, linking it to the school curriculum so children are learning outside the classroom in a fun, enjoyable atmosphere, as well as embedding the many health benefits that growing your own food brings.