Sunnyside Ecology Centre and Gardens

Sunnyside Ecology Centre and Gardens

North Londoners formed the Sunnyside Community Gardens Association and created a wildlife park, woodland, nature pond and ecology and horticultural therapy centre for people living in the surrounding densely-populated housing estates.

The project has won several awards, notably for The Guardian Charity Award 2000, as well as a composting award from the Conservation Foundation.

Background

Local residents formed Sunnyside Community Gardens Association as a charity in 1978 to convert a then derelict site into a garden, completed in 1980.

Greater London Council, which owned the land at the time, handed it over to Islington Council and provided funding. The British Trust for Conservation Volunteers (BTCV) also helped local residents, ex-offenders and other volunteers set up the project. Other organisations with an input included the Inner London Educational Authority, THRIVE, Islington Mind, Community Service Volunteers and Federation of City Farms and Community Gardens.

The Association fought a proposal for a dual carriage way and high-density residential housing complex which would have spelt the end of the garden.

Instead, Sunnyside Gardens, Elthorne Park and the Ecology Centre were created.

The Association now has 80 members/volunteers and three part-time staff, a special needs co-ordinator, mental health development worker, gardening education co-ordinator for schools, community gardener, children and families worker, volunteers co-ordinator and projects co-ordinator.

Sustainable living

The award-winning Ecology Centre was built in 1996 as a hub of information and example of sustainable living.

It was designed with energy efficiency in mind. It has south-facing windows, heat-retaining glass, a solar water heater and waste paper insulation. It uses renewable electricity and is made of natural and environmentally-friendly materials.

The Association also promotes waste efficiency by composting.

Community benefits

What the management committee is most proud of is combining local community work with special needs and caring for the natural environment in an area of high density housing.

In particular the Association works with people with special needs in the area of mental health, physical disabilities and learning difficulties. The project enables them to get involved in volunteering and learn new skills, such as gardening and carpentry. It also helps ex-offenders to get back into the community in a positive way.

The Centre holds a cultural music festival that reflects the communitys diversity and provides positive initiatives for young people, through an after school club, play schemes and other outdoor and physical activities.

The Ecology Centre is also used as a community centre.

The Association estimates that at least 4,000 people benefit from activities each year.

Local ownership

The management committee is made up of people from the local community who care passionately about their surroundings and take into account the social impacts of decisions. The project empowers them to take part in decision-making, with strong equal opportunities policies.

Sunnyside also promotes self-confidence of its members and the wider community by encouraging people to take responsibility for their lives and get involved in training. It also provides practical help, for example, with seeking employment.

The project also builds trust within the local community by organising local events, camping holidays and festivals. All are open to the entire community.

Funding

Funding is seen as the biggest challenge to setting up a successful environmentally sound and sustainable development project. The Association is financially accountable to the organisations providing funds, charitable funding trusts and local authority social services.

Ben Hooke, projects co-ordinator, said: We've learnt an important lesson not to be totally reliant on only one source of funding when embarking on a project of this magnitude. It always helps to have closer links with similar projects.

Attracting funds, especially core funding, is time-consuming and requires skill not always available locally. Nonetheless, the help received from local residents and others has been invaluable.

The management committee views funding as its greatest challenge, and is open to suggestions or help.

Want to join forces?

In the future, the Association would like to manage and develop the neighbouring park, to facilitate environmental and social improvement on surrounding estates and to develop education in sustainability with local schools.

Sunnyside project members are interested in being part of a London support network with similar projects.

They are keen to share their experience and skills, and would like to hear from other projects with suggestions on:
•  funding
•  developing and improving ways to combine social care with environmental activities
•  sustainable organic waste management.

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