On 12th July, we were delighted to welcome Her Royal Highness Princess Alexandra at the Thrive Trunkwell Garden Project in Beech Hill, near Reading. Invited guests joined Thrive staff, clients and volunteers to celebrate the opening of the new Secret Garden and to enjoy the annual Flower Show.
The Secret Garden is specially designed for older people with dementia and young people with special educational needs and is now ready to be used for a range of gardening programmes. The garden has many innovative features including a ‘Living Wall’ of shells, stones and bottles to attract wildlife, and seasonal borders to reflect the change in the seasons.
Thrive’s Flower Show was a great success this year with 241 entries for categories ranging from ‘Tactile garden in a seed tray’ to ‘Best dressed scarecrow’. Her Royal Highness toured the Show and met the lucky prize winners.
During her visit, HRH Princess Alexandra also presented a new award celebrating the achievements of disabled people who attend garden projects. ‘Inspire: the HRH Princess Alexandra Award for Outstanding Achievement’ was given to Tony Rigby from Bury in Lancashire.
Nicola Carruthers, Chief Executive of Thrive, said: “We were honoured that HRH Princess Alexandra joined us for this special occasion. A great deal of thought, expertise and ingenuity has gone into the Secret Garden and now that it is open, we can start making a difference to the lives of local people with dementia and young people with special educational needs. We are extremely grateful to everyone who has contributed.”