A NEW community garden has hoped up in the Calton to help people in recovery.
The project – named ‘Roots to Recovery’ – is encouraging people who use Addaction’s support services to get green-fingered and boost their social and mental recovery.
Founder Georgie McConnell, who is a recovery worker at Addaction North East Glasgow which is based in Bridgeton, said: “Outdoor activities like gardening are proven to boost mental health - which is so important in drug and alcohol recovery - so I thought about starting a gardening project for people who use our services.
"I thought that while helping them learn new skills and socialise with others, it could nurture talents or interests they didn’t know they had and boost their self-esteem.
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“It was a bit of a challenge to find a site for the project – which we named Roots to Recovery – but I came across a potential site in the Calton (near our service building) and the owners were delighted to hear Addaction was interested in it.
“Thankfully we were successful in securing a £1,000 grant from Clyde Gateway which helped us buy plants and raised flower beds. A group of people in recovery began building the garden and working on it weekly to get it ready for the community open day. By that point, we had grown fruit, veg, and some lovely decorative shrubs.
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"Now our garden will grow and develop as the seasons change and as new people and ideas come along.”
The open day event brought together partner organisations including Calton Heritage Centre, Thenue Housing, Calton Communities, Clyde Gateway, and East Community Addiction Forum. Activities for more than 60 guests included a tour of the newly constructed gardens and the fruit and veg boxes developing there; music from The Well Happy Band; a barbecue; a raffle; outdoor yoga.
To find an Addaction service near you, visit www.addaction.org.uk where there’s a webchat function for anonymous guidance from an Addaction support worker.
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