The Green Way to a Brighter Future

AT A TIME when children and young people in inner cities are increasingly finding the natural world an alien environment, a small south London charity is using horticulture to help troubled teenagers re-engage with society.

Established 25 years ago to help disadvantaged young people from Lambeth and Southwark prepare for the world of work, Roots and Shoots offers up to 20 16- to 19-year-olds the chance to grow.

“Many have statements of educational need, some have learning difficulties or behavioural problems, some are young people in the caresystem but all have, in some way, fallen through the net,” says manager Linda Phillips. “They are referred to us by local Connexions services or by social services and usually they have no qualifications and lack the confidence to get into college or enter the job market.

“We offer a unique training opportunity for young people who have expressed an interest in this world. We take a holistic approach to training, teaching key skills and general life skills alongside horticulture or retail, working towardsan NVQ Level 1 qualification in one of these subjects.” Based in Kennington, near the Imperial War Museum and the Houses of Parliament, Roots and Shoots has transformed a one-acre derelict site once used for Civil Defence. Where once a Meccano factory engineering works and barrage balloon launchpad stood, there is now an eco-training centre, a plant nursery, a shop, a wildlife study centre and a wild garden.

Surrounded by high buildings, this is a lush inner-city oasis with a mild climate in which plantsfrom temperate climates flourish. Diverse habitats have been developed in the Wild Garden to increase and promote the biodiversity of insect, plant and birdlife and it provides a base for the London Beekeepers’ Association, whose members run beekeeping courses and taster days.

For many years the charity leased the site from Lambeth Council but two years ago a grant from the London Development Agency enabled them to buy it.

“The council has been very supportive,” emphasises Linda. “Although we do get donations from individuals, what you can see now has been created thanks to a series of grants

from Lambeth Regeneration and the Big Lottery Fund, for example.

“Our eco-training centre and study centre are great learning resources which provide environmental education for nursery, primary and special schools, as well as for the wider community.

But the building is also an asset we can hire out to local groups to generate an income.” In Roots and Shoots’ nurturing and supportive environment, the young people acquire social skills and confidence and find a purpose and direction to equip them for work and life.

“We want to encourage them to take responsibility for their own learning and personal development,” says Linda.

“In the same way that this environment helps us to nurture plants, so we can nurture these young people.” Work experience with local employers is also part of the programme, which is tailored to the needs of each student.

Linda, 53, is a Kew-trained horticulturalist who has been with the project since the start. Other members of her team specialise in welfare and education and are charged with drawing up their individual learning plans. Linda can also draw on the talents of five to 10 volunteers at any one time and the organisation is also plugged into the Southwark Volunteering Bureau, which has links with many City firms. “Some big businesses have helped us with one-off projects as part of their corporate social responsibility activities,” she explains.

Using horticulture as a way to train andempower the disadvantaged has a long history in Lambeth. As long ago as 1887, the Lady Margaret Hall Settlement, the charity founded as part of the high church movement from Oxford and Cambridge to tackle the problem of the Victorian inner city, was training people in gardening and woodwork.

“There were the skills which the Settlement believed would most help the poor access jobs,” Linda explains. “Those being trained were practical rather than academic. The Settlement was run by young women graduates committed to helping the poor. In many ways they were the first social workers.

“Our successes have included young people who have gone on to work in parks in Lambeth, to work in retail and to go to college

I employ one former student here and am often asked to provide job references for others.

“Over 25 years, Roots and Shoots has helped hundreds of young people but the project has been kept small so that it acts like an extended family. Perhaps that’s why some keep coming back to see us.” Roots and Shoots is holding its next open evening on 4 July.

www.rootsandshoots.org.uk..

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