Bloom Sheffield is a not-for-profit charity that seeks to positively influence women’s mental health by forging connections with nature, horticulture and other people. We spoke to Bloom’s founder, Kendall Turner, to hear more about their work and how anyone can get involved.
First of all, what is Bloom Sheffield?
Bloom Sheffield is a community flower garden, which promotes positive mental health through the use of horticulture.
Why did you establish it?
It all started back in 2019 with a very overgrown allotment. I was a teacher working in a particularly challenging role, and it was the first time I felt that my mental health had taken a bit of a dip. I had my own allotment and that was the only place where I felt I was getting a bit of respite and feeling better. I thought that everybody should have this opportunity, especially because allotments are quite expensive and big, so it’s a huge commitment for one person to take on. I thought it would be wonderful to have a space for women to come together, work on a shared project and reap the benefits of being outside and gardening together.
“I had my own allotment and that was the only place where I felt I was getting a bit of respite and feeling better. I thought that everybody should have this opportunity.”
Why did you decide to focus on women in this project?
We work predominantly with women and non-binary people and the reason is that we realise women in particular have lots of factors that can contribute to negative mental health. For example, women are more likely to become carers, which can lead to feelings of isolation and increased anxiety. Also, they’re more likely to have experienced sexual and domestic violence. Another thing is I think horticulture can be a little bit of a boy’s club, so we wanted to provide a space where women can come and have a go without any pressure.
What kind of sessions do you offer?
We currently run two different strands of activities. First of all, we have open days which run twice a week throughout the spring, summer and autumn – those are for any woman to come for free and literally just give it a go. It’s all about meeting new people, trying something new, feeling good and generally having a lovely time. We have a wide range of tasks, so if you struggle a little bit with your mobility, there are things to sit down and do. Or even if you just want to come and have a cup of tea, that’s great!
“We wanted to provide a space where women can come and have a go without any pressure.”
Then we also have our ‘gardening to feel good’ group. That’s specifically aimed at people who feel they need a little bit of support managing their mental health. We have women who are referred to us through healthcare services, GPs, nurse practitioners and other organisations as well. We also have a self-referral pathway.
Do you have a target age range?
Absolutely anyone. We have people who are 16 to 17 coming along and we have people who are 70-plus. It’s a really lovely environment, very intergenerational.
Do you have any upcoming plans?
We’ve recently taken on a brand-new garden, on the same site as our current one. It’s massive and overgrown so our volunteers are working hard to prepare it, trying to make sure it’s ready for new and exciting things next year. We’re hoping to be able to offer groups to not just women but loads of different groups in that certain space. We are a non-profit organisation, so we rely on the kindness of our sponsor and the community to kind of keep us going. Alongside other products, we also sell the flowers we grow as a community to fund our therapeutic horticulture group. People can find the shop online at www.bloomsheffield.com, and we’re also launching a Patreon page, so people can support the work we do in the community and get exclusive treats as thanks.
Find out more by following Bloom on socials: Insta // Facebook // Twitter
