Garden Needs

Garden centres. You know, places you potter around in with your older relatives, picking out something colourful for your window box or a garden shed.

Things are a bit different though at Garden Needs, a green space with colourful ambitions.

Like any conventional garden centre, here you can buy your evergreens, your hardy perennials and there's a lovely herb section too. But underlying all of this is a commitment to health and well being which makes this place a cutting above the rest.

In fact, it's run as a social enterprise, meaning that any profits are fed back in to the buisness or the community rather than shareholders. There's also a full programme of events, courses, classes and activities designed to support people with a range of conditions, such as the Ability Programme for anyone with learning disabilities, or others designed to use gardening as therapy for those dealing with a mental health issue, plus specific events for children or those over 65, and a lot more.

Of course, it's still a garden centre, so if you're just after something bushy to brighten up a corner of your yard, pop in. But this extremely positive and delightful place turns shopping for a shrub into something much more supportive.