Dumfries and Galloway Sustainable Food Partnership

Behind the walls and fences of HMP Dumfries is a wonderful space.

The 5 acre garden is made up of a number of different areas that combine to make a well being haven for the people in their care, staff and the wider community. They grow fruit and vegetables including potatoes, onions, tomatoes, salads, greens, raspberries, apples, pears and much more. The produce grown goes into the kitchen and for the prison community; last year this equated to around £5000 worth of food.

Having this facility allows the people in HMP Dumfries care to get involved and have a feeling of self-worth by giving something back to the prison and community. They are the ones who put in the hard work from ideas, design and physical implementation. Growing your own food really helps to connect people to what you eat, they also run ‘veg box’ cookery sessions to provide skills on what you can cook with a selection of fresh ingredients. This skill of utilising fresh vegetables to provide sustenance could make a huge difference to those reintegrating back into their community, often on an extremely tight budget and with limited cooking facilities to do so.

As well as the food growing aspect of the project, they have created a wellbeing garden that includes seated areas, a pagoda which a group of people here built from conception to reality, ponds with wildlife and fish and paths to allow people to wander around. The garden provides a sensory area and a place for quiet contemplation and is improving the mental and physical health of everyone here.

There are regular visits from groups in the wider community and run sessions and activities for people with Dementia living in local care homes. These activities can be from having a cuppa in the garden, potting up some veg seeds to playing a game of Petanque (French Boules) on the pitch made by the people in their care. Individuals involved have had training in supporting people with dementia and this is helping to improve wellbeing across the prison's own ageing population as well as with the visiting groups. There is also a family day out in the garden in the summer, which brings those in their care and their families together in an environment that feels normal to them all.

Some of the individuals working in the garden mentioned the sense of gratitude for the opportunity to give back to their own community and the wider community through working in the garden. Also, the chance to see food grown from seed to table is giving people connection to what they eat and a sense of worth and achievement as they learn new skills. All of this they feel improves their own physical and mental health along the way.

The project got started In 2018, working in partnership with the NHS IDEAS Team in Dumfries staff presented a business case for a polytunnel in the garden area to facilitate activities with the NHS Ideas Team. These activities supported people living with Dementia and provided learning and experience of working with elderly individuals to prison staff engaging in the project.

After a pause due to the pandemic and fuelled by learning, the Wellbeing Garden really gained momentum with the people in their care really driving this forward with ideas and hard work. Their enthusiasm was supported by Trellis (Horticultural Society) who came in with training and practical support to guide us to the place they are now. We have also been supported by Branching Out organisation.

This month see’s HMP Dumfries facilitating activities with Thera-pets through engagement with Canine Concern.

Sustainability in the garden isn't just about growing vegetables, although It is really important to be able to provide as much food as possible to ensure fresh, quality ingredients are eaten within the prison community.

There's also a wildlife garden to improve biodiversity which also increases food production and a scheme that makes some great compost with an individual who has the experience and skill to maintaining the system. There are 250 solar panels within our garden space to lower the HMP Dumfries carbon footprint and generate cleaner energy for the building.

Almost all of the materials used in the garden are recycled pallets or donated offcuts that the Joinery team here have utilised to create some fantastic infrastructure for the space.

Over the last 18 months they have also grown in excess of 1500 trees including Oak, Elder and Birch that have been donated to the community, going out to schools, local reforesting projects and for shoring up river banks.

As with many projects working to a budget and securing funding when required to keep moving forward is always a challenge. They also have to manage the project with safety and security at the forefront and ensuring to build trust and support with everyone involved. Building and maintaining community relationships with partners and stakeholders is vitally important.

The team have learned that with the right motivation and incentive and change in mindset a great deal can be achieved. In allowing the people in their care to plan, design and work together, they instilled a collective ownership and responsibility and a sense of purpose, not only with those in their care but also the staff and managers within HMP Dumfries. The project has helped to embed both life skills and training through this project that can hopefully have a meaningful impact for the individual and a wider impact for our the community going forward.

This year Greg, the Gardens Officer Instructor’s drive and enthusiasm in coordinating the garden and it’s workforce has been recognised with a Butler Trust Award for outstanding work within the custodial and community justice setting.

In the future the team are hoping to find ways to continue to utilise the garden and it’s produce to engage with community groups, and to share learning and the Wellbeing Garden to improve the health and wellbeing of both communities.

They are looking at a number of ideas that will support the continual development and increase the usage of our gardens for all.