Earlier this year, VGT were successful in securing a lease for the site and have begun to implement its plans of reopening the gardens to the public.

The initial clean-up project is well underway and when completed will allow VGT to implement other projects and initiatives. This includes mental and emotional wellbeing, community inclusion, while also providing a greenspace for the community to access. 

The group have been on site for five months and have carried out a lot of hard work to date, as shown in pictures below. The work has been carried out by volunteers and supported by our Restorative Justice team.

VGT have also been supported by our Community Partnership Team who assisted the group to access funding worth more than £30,000 through the Local Development Plan, Recover NL and Community Empowerment NL. 

It is the goal of VGT to bring the gardens to the heart of the community once again. This will be achieved through reviving the gardens, and then reintroducing and expanding on the community activities and events the gardens can facilitate.