Thanks to you, we exceeded our target and raised over £54,000.

Earlier this year, we launched an appeal to raise £50,000 to help provide patients, staff and visitors with a calming space that promotes physical and mental wellbeing. 

Why have a garden?

We all know that nature aids recovery and can improve our mental and physical states. Gardens have been used in the healing process since ancient Greece, with the first medical practice at the temple and gardens at Epidavros. But it was not until 1984 that psychologist Roger Ulrich first documented the evidence for the healing effect of gardens or outdoor environments in the journal “Science”. 

Ulrich showed that patients with a view of nature benefited in several ways:

• They suffered fewer complications after surgery
• They used less pain medication
• They were discharged sooner than those who looked out on an inanimate brick wall
• They experienced more positive feelings and fewer negative emotions

There is strong evidence that natural sunlight aids recovery for critical-care patients. And of course, gardens not only benefit patients, but  their families and hospital staff.

Developed by designer Nicki Jackson, the garden will provide patients, staff and visitors with a calming space that promotes physical and mental wellbeing. Nicki said:
"Beech hedges that will enclose a garden filled with sweeping beds of swaying ornamental grasses, creating a bold contemporary backdrop to a broad selection of flowering perennials. Nothing will feel static: all planting has a naturalistic mood moving gently with the breeze. It is sensory, tactile and calm on the eye.

Two interlinking paths will traverse the garden, generous enough for two wheelchairs, and super smooth for the most unsteady on foot and drip stand to be pulled along easily. Private seating areas nestle among the planting and a larger space opens up at the heart of the garden. Existing mature trees offer shade, and new trees create a balance where needed. Lawn runs under the trees providing a place for children to play. Power points will allow patients to stay outside longer."