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Nature initiative to ‘breathe life’ back into east Bristol community
Barton Hill is one of 1,000 nature-deprived areas across the country chosen to receive the services of a Postcode Gardener.
The initiative, coordinated by Friends of the Earth and the Cooperative Bank, aims to breathe life back into urban neighbourhoods and neglected areas by creating spaces for wildlife and community gardening.
Harriet Wylie has taken the position of Gardening for Health worker at the Wellspring Settlement, an organisation at the heart of the neighbourhood’s community services.
is needed now More than ever
As part of her two-year post she has already started work to increase biodiversity in the area, including creating a community orchard with the help of local volunteers and the Alive Gardening group.
New Postcode Gardener for Barton Hill Harriet Wylie is establishing a community orchard and plans to host nature walks around the neighbourhood
The Postcode Gardening project will officially launch with a community picnic at Aiken Street community garden Thursday, with gardening activities on offer including building herb and flower planters for participants to take home.
Friends of the Earth launched the initiative following their own research revealing one in five people in England live in nature-deprived areas, including 1.6m children under 12 years old.
They also found people of colour are disproportionately affected by nature loss and are nearly three times more likely to live in areas with limited access to green or wild spaces.
The environment charity identified Barton Hill as “an area where the community would greatly benefit from a greener environment,” citing the health and wellbeing benefits of nature including reduced air pollution, protection from climate change impacts, and positive effects on mental and physical health.
“It’s been great getting to know local residents so far. Despite the challenges of the last few years, this is clearly a community with a lot of resilience, positivity and a desire to create a local area that people can take pride in,” said Wylie, in reference to a fire in Eccleston House in 2022 and the evacuation of Barton House in 2023 due to structural issues which left many displaced for months.
The community orchard is a work in progress, with trees being planted and the space being developed for plants and wildlife
“By improving and maintaining Barton Hill’s green spaces and introducing new ones, we can create wonderful havens that support both healing in the community and nature to flourish,” she continued.
“It’s really important that this project helps foster community connection and a sense of trust locally. That’s what I love about this role, it’s all about collaboration and getting people involved in the greening activities they want to see.
“Having seen how the community can pull together, I hope to harness some of this spirit to deliver really meaningful change for the area.”
As well as developing the community orchard, Wylie intends to host walk-and-talk events for residents to better identify and understand the uses of plants growing in the area.
“It’s really exciting to be embedding a new Postcode Gardener in Barton Hill, which we’ve identified as one of the areas that would most benefit from this initiative nationwide,” said Rianna Gargiulo of Friends of the Earth.
“We’re thrilled to see our pioneering Postcode Gardeners programme expanding to new locations around the country… Bit by bit, we hope to rejuvenate 1,000 depleted spaces nationwide, reconnecting communities with nature and each other.
“Making Bristol a little greener brings us one step closer to building the healthier, happier and more harmonious world we know to be possible.”
The community picnic launch event will be held from 4.30pm – 6pm Thursday, May 22, at Aiken Street Community Garden, Barton Hill, Bristol, BS5 9UL.
It will be family friendly, with activities and refreshments available. Guests are encouraged to bring food, drink and blankets.
All images: Harriet Wylie
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