The Five a Day Garden, located in Englefield Village, has been awarded a £1,200 National Garden Scheme (NGS), Community Garden Grant.

The annual grant is designed to empower gardens to engage in meaningful community projects, offering opportunities for learning, connection, and improved quality of life – all of which are primary goals for the Five a Day Garden.

Started by social worker Pam Goddard in 2009, Five a Day aims to improve the well-being of local people by providing horticultural education, horticultural therapy and access to healthy, naturally grown produce.

The generous funding from NGS will help support the development of a new space for the ‘Thyme Together’ sessions, a friendly social group for seniors offering therapeutic gardening activities to help individuals facing mobility, sensory and cognitive challenges, and suffering social isolation.

NGS Vice President, Heather Skinner recently visited Five a Day Garden to present Lead Volunteers Glen Higgins and Jenny Carter with a celebratory plaque. She said: "It was a pleasure to meet with Glen and Jenny and hear more about their work at Five a Day Garden.

"The National Garden Scheme were proud to provide them with a new plaque celebrating the development of the Thyme Together area, supported by our Community Garden Grant."

Glen Higgins expressed how grateful Five a Day was to receive the generous funding: “The NGS grant has allowed us to extend the area used by the Thyme Together group to grow more produce and flowers.

“The area now has three new growing beds - which were built by one of our volunteers - and two of them are raised so that the members can sit or stand while they tend to the flower beds and vegetable patches.”

Englefield Estates’ Director, Edward Crookes added: “The Five a Day Garden is a valuable asset to our community, so we were very pleased to learn that its popular Thyme Together sessions have secured vital funding, and also that its group numbers are increasing. Well done to the team.

To find out more about Five a Day Market Garden and how you can get involved, contact info@fiveaday.org.uk or visit https://fiveaday.org.uk/