Submission Details ------------------
Nominee Summary
Cluny Community Walled Garden was formed with one purpose - take over and transform the old walled garden on the Cluny Estate for the benefit of surrounding communities. Volunteers have invested their time, knowledge and skills to engage with the community, fundraise, and put together an ambitious, collaborative, and wholesome project that creates a space where everyone is welcome. This inspiring group of people are engaging in heritage, horticulture, health and wellbeing, skills development, youth programmes - they are making their community garden unique and accessible to all.
Overcoming Challenges
There have been many challenges for Cluny Community Walled Garden - this project started as nothing, an idea - or should that be hope?! There was a garden needing rescued. There was no money. There were certainly no tools. There was only a lot of grass to cut AND a shared ambition to come together and create something truly magnificent for the community. Main Challenges: Funding - Starting with a zero balance they have tirelessly raised funds to date of £7,000 through community fundraising, £5,500 from grant funding, and £1,000 in community donations. Condition of Grade C Listed Walled Garden - The walls are requiring restoration, but this requires a staged process to achieve. They have had a Condition and Structural Survey carried out, put the work out to tender for heritage specialists to quote for the works - as at 27 April, 3 quotes have been received and are being reviewed. Access - The old estate road has to be upgraded and parking needs to be developed. CCWG have engaged an architect who is actively putting forward a planning application - the group have had an ecological survey, topographical survey carried out to date to support this. Tools and Equipment - Trying to ensure that they have the right tools and equipment to tend to the monumental task of clearing and preparing the ground within the garden - after a plea to the community there were so many donations of tools and equipment that CCWG were overwhelmed by kindness.
Supporting the community
The most inspiring part of the project is not (believe it or not) bringing together all of these amazing people with their varying skills and developing connection. The most incredible part of the story is their Youth Programme.... Painting the picture: Historic Scotland has identified that heritage skills in Scotland will drop by more than 50% in the next 10 years as skilled craftsmen retire. Young people in local schools are facing huge barrier to learning either through a severe learning difficulty, mental health or poverty - conventional learning does not support these young people. Cluny Community Walled Garden is working in partnership with Kemnay Academy (a school 3 miles away) to deliver a traditional skills programme for young people to come to the gardens and, through practical 'hands-on' learning - develop skills in drystane dyking, horticulture, traditional glass making, traditional carpentry, and blacksmithing. These Young people will be provided with a certificate upon completion of this rolling programme and provided with additional opportunities beyond the programme to engage in further skills development at the garden. The young people in our community will be supported, given confidence, provided purpose, and be shown that there are no barriers to learning at the walled garden.
Ethical/environmental standards
CCWG has committed to sustainable land use, community stewardship, and heritage preservation. The project prioritises environmentally responsible gardening practices, including organic growing methods, composting, rainwater use where possible, and avoiding chemical inputs, helping to protect soil health and local biodiversity. Careful attention has been given to conserving the historic character of the walled garden itself, with maintenance and restoration work to be carried out sensitively to preserve original features and respect the site’s heritage value. Local heritage contractors with experience of walled gardens will be appointed for these works. The initiative actively involves the local community, ensuring that residents play a central role in shaping, maintaining, and benefiting from the space. There have been 2 consultations to date and every fundraising event encourages feedback, questions, and suggestions from the community to ensure full engagement. Where practical, the project supports local tradespeople and suppliers for materials, tools, and services, strengthening the local economy and reducing environmental impact from transport. In particular we have only used contractors within a 20 mile radius for the ecological surveys, architect, topographical survey, condition and structural survey etc.
