Pots & Petals is a therapeutic, interactive gardening project for children and young people aged 8-19 years with a range of disabilities including PMLD (Profound & Multiple Learning Disabilities). The students who attend have complex needs such as difficulties with communication, sensory or physical disabilities and mental health challenges.
Thrive practitioner, Vicki, has been running Pots & Petals sessions in a local SEND (Special Educational Needs & Disabilities) school for more than ten years. Vicki uses the natural environment to provide seasonally based activities to stimulate the five senses.
Hear from Vicki below.
“It has been a privilege to run the Pots & Petals programme for the past ten years; it is such a delight to see the benefit that students receive from the sessions. Whether their participation is passive or active, all can benefit in some way from gardens, gardening, and the natural environment.
When I start a new programme with new students, the first few sessions are all about getting to know each other, and particularly about me learning how they communicate. There is very little spoken communication; being able to interpret their sounds takes time and input from teaching or support staff.
When I first arrive at the school, the students are normally still taking a snack break; this gives me time to say hello to everyone and set out the materials for the day’s activities. When break time is finished a particular piece of music is played signifying the start of the Thrive session. If the weather is cold or wet, we will work in the classroom. If we are able to be outside, which is always preferable, we can work in the outdoor area just outside the classroom or make our way to the main school garden where we have several raised beds that we use.
I follow a seasonal programme of gardening and nature-based craft activities. The students are encouraged to explore plants, compost, herbs, vegetables, and flowers. All the plants and materials that I use need to be non-toxic as the students invariably explore with their mouths as well as their hands or feet. The sessions often take place with students who are semi-reclined in beds, and I have a range of lightweight containers to hold compost and plants.
Thrive practitioner, Vicki, encourages a student to smell the rosemary.
If there is a new activity that I would like to try with the students, I may have to adapt it but I always work on the ‘how can we do this’ premise, never on ‘we can’t do this’.
The students that I work with each week face so many barriers. I don’t believe that their lives should be limited or defined by disability, and I am aspirational in my expectations for them.
Many of the students have serious and, in some cases, life-limiting conditions. Whilst all of this must be given due attention and consideration, I find that simply being given the freedom to be a child can get overlooked. The opportunity to have fun, play, get muddy, laugh and explore are all so important. These are the things that I focus on during the sessions, using the garden as my classroom.
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