Community Growing

Typology /

This covers a huge array of projects – allotments, community gardens, city farms – where people learn about & grow seasonal food, nurturing learning wellbeing and resilience.

Despite a drastic reduction over the last 50 years, allotments are still perhaps the most familiar type of urban food growing though they are now classified as a leisure use rather than for food security (their original purpose). Many cities also have city farms and a growing number of community garden projects which are transforming wellbeing and educating to change food cultures. City farms were mainly set up in the 1980s, to provide community resources and education through demonstration food and farming projects – some have started to scale up
food production.

Allotments

  1. St Annes, Nottingham, an historic site now featuring many different facets of modern allotments:
  2. A leading example of a site under devolved (community) management: Horfield. Bristol

Community Gardens

  1. Clough Mills, Northern Ireland
  2. Trimdon Community Garden. Co. Durham

Established City Farms

  1. St Werburghs City Farm in Bristol now manages local allotments as well as Propagation Place, a food growing hub
  2. Heeley City Farm, Sheffield has expanded into local food production:

Support organisations

  • Social Farms and Gardens is the leading UK charity dedicated to supporting city farms, community gardens, care farms & other green spaces. Peruse their pages and maps for hundreds of examples of care farms, city farms and community gardens.
  • School Farms Network. There are now more than 120 School Farms in the UK. SF&G set up and co-ordinates the School Farms Network as a mutual support and specialist network of practitioners and those interested in starting a new school farm.
  • National Allotments Society is the leading national organisation upholding the interests and rights of the allotment community across the UK.
  • Scottish Allotment & Gardens Society – protecting sites, preserving skills and promoting the value of allotments and community gardens throughout Scotland.