Emanuel Whittaker donation helps kick start youth gardening project

Remember there’s no such thing as a small act of kindness. Every act creates a ripple with no logical end

Scott Adams

The raised beds begin to take shape

Local resident Dennis Powell has been keen to share his love of gardening and has been involved in Burnage in Bloom for several years.  He has been spreading his enthusiasm for all things green amongst his local community and has been working with local youths at the Burnage Arts and Media Centre, helping them with their horticultural skills.

The young volunteers had previously helped with some bulb planting, but were keen to develop their skills a little further and turn their hands at growing vegetables. Together with Dennis they came up with a plan to design, build, plant and maintain a vegetable plot. As well as horticultural skills, they also wanted to use the plot as a means to develop their marketing and accounting skills. They planned to sell the locally grown produce to local people and generate funds to re-plant the plot the following years.

Dennis has now been given approval to turn a large disused strip of land at the back of the College into a vegetable garden. But to grow the idea, Dennis and the local volunteers needed some ‘seed’ funding to purchase the wood, equipment and produce to create the veggy patch. Karen Mitchell and Southway have given the project their full backing and put the idea to their partner contractors.

Emanuel Whittaker were hot off the mark with an offer to donate wood from their joinery manufacturing workshop, together with gardening equipment and seeds to get the project started. Following a short visit to Emanuel Whittaker’s joinery workshops in Oldham, Dennis selected all the wood and equipment that he would need to get his volunteers underway.  Emanuel Whittaker delivered the wood, materials and seeds to the College the following day, and the volunteers took no time in building the vegetable beds ready for planting. Let’s hope the green fingered enthusiasts have a bumper crop!