Food bank benefiting from Let’s Grow Telford

Volunteers through the Let’s Grow project in Telford & Wrekin are tending two gardens which are providing fresh vegetables for Telford Food Bank, which is in turn helping struggling families enjoy produce not normally available through food banks.

The first garden is based within Chelsea Gardens in Telford Town Park where young volunteers from Telford Rights and Fairness Project’s Upstart Group are working with the Friends of Telford Town Park every Wednesday from 11am-1pm to grow vegetables.

With the help of some training sessions from a community gardener the group have sown and planned a vegetable garden that will continue to produce crops throughout the winter.

The second, based at Dawley Town Hall is the Diane Morris Garden which, thanks to a grant from Veolia last year, saw the old car park transformed into a growing space with eight raised beds.

Families and volunteers from the local community joined in with two planning and planting days in the spring and a small group of committed volunteers continue to tend the garden every Thursday from 3.30-5pm.

They have created a thriving garden producing an amazing crop of vegetables.

Both gardens are donating all their crops to Telford Food Bank, which is receiving a really positive response from those people getting food parcels.

So far fresh vegetable grown and donated includes potatoes, carrots, peas, runner beans, courgettes, lettuce, spinach, cabbages, beetroot, spring onions, kale, tomatoes and herbs.

The Upstart volunteers are now starting to develop recipe cards which will help people to identify the vegetables and know what to do with them.

Councillor Angela McClements, cabinet member for Communities, Regeneration and Transport, said: “It’s phenomenal what can be achieved when people work together towards a shared goal and I’m astonished at what these groups of volunteers have created.

“The volunteers are learning skills and enjoying being involved in their local community, while others in the borough are benefiting from what they are producing.

“I applaud their dedication, and I know their efforts are appreciated by those enjoying the fruits, or should I say vegetables, of their labour.

“These projects show what a positive impact volunteering can have on the community.”