STH is particularly effective for people with major health conditions, providing complementary support alongside conventional treatment. It is safe, scalable, and improves mood, reduces anxiety and depression, strengthens social connection, and increases confidence and independence. Integrated into social prescribing and community care, STH can also reduce repeated primary and secondary care visits.
Partnerships between STH providers, local health systems, and voluntary organisations have created therapeutic gardens and community growing spaces, including on NHS sites. These spaces support rehabilitation, social prescribing, staff wellbeing, and prevention, improve access for underserved groups, and reduce NHS workload by enhancing outcomes and self-management.
The emerging Association for Social and Therapeutic Horticulture (ASTH) is developing national standards, a code of ethics, and defined competencies for practitioners, addressing workforce gaps and ensuring safe, effective delivery. Adopting these standards in NHS settings where STH is used or commissioned would support quality and consistency.
Providing accessible training for NHS staff and integrating the benefits of nature on health and wellbeing into relevant training pathways could help shift clinician and commissioner perspectives, normalise nature-based interventions, and increase referrals and commissioned services; expanding equitable access and improving health outcomes.
We believe that recognising and resourcing STH within the 10-year workforce plan would offer the NHS an opportunity to unlock the full potential of nature-based therapies, strengthen preventive and community care, and build a skilled, resilient workforce capable of delivering sustainable, person-centred interventions across local communities.
