May 2020

Developing Exeter’s Creative Scene through Community

Gardening Schemes

Developing Exeter’s Creative Scene through Community Gardening Schemes

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Executive Summary Cities across the UK recognise the benefits of creativity to place branding, regeneration and

the economy (Exeter Culture, 2019). Exeter has not maximised its potential due to a lack of

collaboration, pre-industrial space and funding issues (Jinks, 2020). This report outlines how

Exeter’s creative scene can be developed through a pilot community garden in Newton

which would provide a creative solution to community fragmentation.

This project was inspired by the transformation of alleyways into gardens in Salford

(Milbourne, 2009). This was followed by desk and field-based research exploring the green

spaces of Exeter.

The results of this research are as follows:

• There is a want and a need for green space and projects which bring the community

together in Newton (Exeter City Council, 2019).

• Community cohesion is important to the wellbeing, resilience and economic health

of residents (The Big Lunch, n.d).

• However, more than 50% of the population feel distant from their neighbours (The

Big Lunch, n.d), which shows intervention is needed to bring communities together.

• Gardening is an important creative tool which helps to regenerate areas, facilitate

community connections and promote mental and physical health (RHS, n.d).

• Exeter is keen to support projects which promote environmental responsibility,

wellbeing and community cohesion (Exeter Culture, 2019), of which these

recommendations align to.

Accordingly, the pilot garden would aim to bring the community together, reduce isolation,

and promote inter-generational relations. This scheme could be enhanced with creative

collaboration from artists and local institutions. If successful, the scheme could be expanded

across Exeter and help develop Exeter’s creative scene.

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Introduction

This report focuses on how a creative garden can resolve community divisions. So why focus

on creativity, gardening and the community? Creativity has been portrayed as an industry

full of socio-economic promise (Hawkins, 2016), but it also has an important everyday

aspect, which is the focus of this report (Crouch, 2009). Gardens are symbols of creativity

and foster creative collaboration with artists and institutions (Milbourne, 2009).

Additionally, gardening has been identified as a key tool to facilitating social connections

(RHS, n.d). The community has been identified as a vital network whose importance has

been diminished in the UK (The Big Lunch, n.d) and consequently, policy makers and

members of the community are keen to pursue schemes which can bring the community

back together (Ings et al, 2012). Gardens can therefore provide a creative solution to

community fragmentation.

The structure of the report will be as follows. Firstly, the methods used to develop

recommendations will be outlined. Secondly, a literature review which will examine why

creativity has been so favoured in policy, the importance of the community and why

gardening can provide a creative solution. The next section will detail the

recommendations; the introduction of a pilot garden in Newton, how this will be conducted,

why this is suitable and possible benefits and risks to Exeter. It will then finish by concluding.

Methods

This report was conducted using desk-based research. My thinking developed after reading

about the Seedley and Langworthy gardening project in Salford which transformed

alleyways into gardens (Milbourne, 2009). I expanded my thinking by researching similar

projects, some focusing on gardening and mental health (Johnson, 2019), and others with a

community focus (The Friendly Bench, n.d). To consider how gardening schemes could be

applied to Exeter, I conducted a walk around my local area, considering what green spaces

there were and how there were currently being used. It was during this field work, that I

noticed the under-utilised space between East John Walk and Sandford Walk, and how this

could be the pilot study space. This research was aided by gathering information on my pilot

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area which helped form my analysis. I also considered my personal experience of the area to

understand if a community gardening scheme would be appropriate and why. These

different strands of research helped form my recommendations on a community gardening

scheme.

Literature Review

Why Creativity?

Creativity has been seen as the solution to economic woes, a material practice which

produces goods, and part of the everyday (Hawkins, 2016). It has been promoted for its

potential to heal community divisions, regeneration and place branding (Evans, 2009). The

importance of links between place and creativity demonstrate why creativity can be

beneficial when utilised at the community level. Aside from these national and local

benefits, there has been recognition of the value of creativity to individual’s health and

wellbeing (Ings et al, 2012). It has subsequently become a key policy focus for the UK (Ings

et al, 2012). The importance of creativity explains why it has become a priority for Exeter

(Exeter Culture, 2019), and why this report centres around creativity.

The importance of the community:

This report focuses on how Exeter’s creative scene can be improved from a community

level. This was guided by thinking which promoted the importance of the community.

The neighbourhood is an accessible scale to work at (Stenning, 2020) and neighbourly

connections are crucial for our everyday wellbeing (The Big Lunch, n.d). Alongside the

negative health effects that are associated with community fragmentation, the community

layer has been eroded due to austerity and political fracturing following Brexit (The Big

Lunch, n.d). A more cohesive community benefits the health and wellbeing of residents, is

more resilient to crisis’s and provides an economic boost (The Big Lunch, n.d). In essence,

the community has been identified as a scale in which effective material changes can be

applied, and as a scale in need of improvement.

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Connections between gardening, creativity and the community:

There are is also an important everyday side to creativity. Unlike perspectives which view

creativity as transformational, this perspective focuses on how creativity emerges from

cultural improvisation (Crouch, 2009). Gardening is an everyday creative act which is

constituted in the performance of the self (Crouch, 2009). Gardens themselves are also

evocative of creativity in their design and displays of colour (Milbourne, 2009). Accordingly,

the links between gardening and creativity demonstrate why gardening is a suitable creative

act to develop Exeter’s creative scene.

There are also links between gardening and other forms of creativity. Artists utilise

gardening in their work. Maria Thereza Alves’ work in Bristol is one such example. Alves was

commissioned in 2012 by Bristol City Council to make a ballast garden in Bristol’s harbour

(Figure 1) in which the histories of colonialism, trade and migration could be located (Maria

Thereza Alves, n.d). Anne Marie Culhane also utilises the garden in her work. For example,

the Little Patch of Ground project (Figure 2) runs across the UK to encourage inter-

generational food growing and performances (Anne Marie Culhane, n.d). These examples

demonstrate the variety of ways gardening and creativity can link and this developed the

research to consider how the gardens could inspire collaboration with other creative forms,

simultaneously improving Exeter’s creative scene.

Figure 1: Seeds of Change, Ballast Garden, Source: (Maria Thereza Alves, n.d)

Figure 2: Little Patch of Ground, Source: (Anne Marie Culhane, n.d)

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However, it is important to not take an uncritical view of the benefit of gardening and

creativity. Community gardens can be created for and utilised by the cultural elite which

reinforces dominant class relations whilst espousing diversity and tolerance (Exner and

Schutzenberger, 2018). This highlights the exclusion that can be linked to community

gardens and creative policies more broadly. Creative practices can also have a negative

impact on the community by encouraging gentrification due to their place making and

regeneration abilities (Hawkins, 2016). The place making abilities of creative practices mean

projects involving the community must be steered by them, and address their needs

(Hawkins, 2016). This report has taken note of these critiques and aimed to ensure

inclusivity to its community led scheme.

Recommendations

This report recommends a pilot community garden in Newton, in the underutilised space

linking East John Walk and Sandford Walk (see Figures 3,4,5 for potential garden plans).

Following evaluation of the project, the scheme could then be expanded throughout Exeter.

These schemes would aim to improve community cohesion by providing a space for the

community to meet regularly and work together in the maintenance of the garden.

Intergenerational relations would be fostered as generations could come together: children

could use the green space for play, whereas older generations could use the gardens to

maintain social connections. The schemes should all be led by members of the community,

so they are tailored to the neighbourhood’s needs.

The gardens could also tie into other forms of creativity. The Seedley and Langworthy

gardening project collaborated with local primary schools, artists and poets on the history of

the area (Milbourne, 2009). Similar projects could be applied to the Newton garden once it

had been established. Indeed, the close location of Newton Primary School could provide

ready opportunities for collaboration either along a similar theme of histories or broader

themes such as sustainability.

In a similar vein to Anne Marie Culhane’s Little Patch of Ground, food cultures could also be

integrated. This could be via a community composting bin, and a vegetable and herb

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garden. This would be environmentally and educationally beneficial, and again could involve

the local primary school.

Figure 3: Comparison between pilot area and drawing showing a potential community garden, Source: (660012154, 2020)

Figure 4: Comparison between pilot area and drawing showing a potential community garden, Source: (660012154, 2020)

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Funding:

The drawings above show a potential mock-up of what the Newton community garden

could look like. Based off these, a rough estimate of costings was produced (Appendix 1)

totalling £2350. To gain this funding, there are several sources which could be utilised.

Firstly, the Community Grants by Exeter City Council. These grants are given to projects

which run over time and are beneficial to the environment and or community (Exeter City

Council, 2016). These grants range from £1000-£50,000. Following the costings above, a

grant of between £2000-£2300 could be applied to help with start-up costs, with other

sources of funding used for additional costs.

One stream of funding could come from the community. In the Salford project, residents in

participating streets paid £2/3 a month towards the upkeep of the gardens (Milbourne,

2009). The Community Grants are expected to be supplemented by the local community

(Exeter City Council, 2016) and so this would be a suitable avenue to explore.

Figure 5: Comparison between pilot area and drawing showing a potential community garden, Source: (660012154, 2020)

Developing Exeter’s Creative Scene through Community Gardening Schemes

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Finally, corporate funding could be achieved using Waitrose’s Community Matters funding.

This scheme donates a share of money to different local causes each month based off

customer choice (Waitrose, n.d). This would enable another source of income whilst

retaining community independence.

Why Newton?

A study by Exeter City Council shows there is a want and a need for green space and greater

community cohesion in Newton, making it a suitable area for the gardening scheme.

Although residents noted Newton’s diverse and neighbourly feel, many felt isolated and

lamented the lack of projects in which social connections amongst residents could be

facilitated (Exeter City Council, 2019). The lack of community is something I noted whilst

living in the area. The gardening scheme could provide such a project in which members of

the community could congregate.

Reinforcing this, the 2011 Census reveals Newton ranks as most deprived in areas of crime

and the environment (Figure 6). The community garden scheme would aim to lessen

environmental deprivation by providing residents with a better-quality outdoor

environment. It could also contribute a reduction in crime deprivation by reducing anti-

social spaces, as was noted in the Salford project (Milbourne, 2009).

Figure 6: Table showing indices of multiple deprivation, Exeter 008A (Newton pilot area), Source: (Devon Country Council, n.d)

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These two pieces of research suggest Newton is a suitable area for the first community

garden scheme to be located in.

Why Exeter?

These recommendations are also suitable for Exeter as they align with the city’s strategies

on community and creativity.

The Exeter Community Forum is a collection of community groups who alongside Exeter City

Council, developed a community strategy for the city in 2015. This strategy aims to

empower Exeter’s communities to create more active citizens and improve community life

(Exeter Community Forum, n.d). These recommendations build on this desire for

community-based projects and are thus aligned with the dialogue within the city.

Equally important to the suitability of the recommendations is the Exeter Culture Strategy

(2019). This aims to make Exeter known for its culture and creativity in the areas of the

environment, wellbeing, cultural, literacy, creative making and heritage (Exeter Culture,

2019). This report fits into two of the main aims of the strategy. Exeter aims to utilise

creativity to be an innovative and environmentally responsible city (Exeter Culture, 2019).

The gardens align with this by promoting environmental responsibility, improving the local

environment and enabling collaboration with artists. The Exeter Culture strategy also wants

the arts to be utilised to better the city’s health, wellbeing, communities and environments

(Exeter Culture, 2019). Again, the gardens align with this by aiming to bring the community

together through their management and opportunities for socialisation. The strategy

provides a plan for the priorities and wants of Exeter and aligning with the strategy

importantly places the project “within the ongoing dialogue in the city” (Dillon, 2020).

Benefits

Having considered the projects suitability, it is now necessary to turn to the benefits to

Exeter which could be derived from the community gardens.

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The recommendations aim to provide a creative solution to the problem of community

fragmentation. If successful, this would be the main benefit derived. Community gardens

are places where the community can form stronger social relations (RHS, n.d). They

facilitate regular contact in their upkeep and provide space for outdoor play. Cohesive

communities bring individual, such as health and wellbeing, benefits as well as wider ones,

such as enhanced resilience and more productive workers (The Big Lunch, n.d). Accordingly,

this scheme, by providing a space for a stronger community, can benefit Exeter.

Gardens as green spaces also improve the local environment. This can increase physical

activity with subsequent benefits for mental health (RHS, n.d). The presence of a vegetable

garden can enhance knowledge of and healthy eating (What Works Wellbeing, 2018). The

Gardenforce! project in East London exemplifies this. They brought creativity into public,

private, communal and green spaces; out of 358 participants, 302 noted an increase in their

physical activity and 293 felt more positive about their lives and community (Ings et al,

2012). Therefore, the community garden scheme in Exeter would provide opportunities for

exercise, a greener and more sustainable space, and subsequent improvements to

residents’ health.

Both of these benefits align with the Exeter Culture strategy. This is important in aligning

with Exeter’s focus and provides opportunity for collaboration. One such form of

collaboration could be with Anne Marie Culhane who has worked on similar projects

incorporating gardens, such as Little Patch of Ground (Anne Marie Culhane, n.d). This

potential for collaboration is important as one of the main issues identified in Exeter’s

creative scene is lack of collaboration (Dillon, 2020), and this is thus another benefit derived

from the recommendations.

Risks

However, it is also important to think through any risks that could emerge from the

community garden schemes.

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It is important to consider the inclusivity of community garden schemes (Exner and

Schutzenberger, 2018). This is reinforced by Stenning (2020) in her report of Playing Out

which found that men, single parent families and those in complex family situations were

most commonly excluded or did not participate. This is an issue particularly significant to

Exeter as many communities are of a transient nature due to the large student population

(Citizens Advice Exeter, n.d). There are questions as to how suitable this scheme would be in

student-dominated areas, and how successful attempts to improve community cohesion

would be, due to the changing population. The community gardens in transient

communities could become a source of contention, and this poses the main risk to these

recommendations. If the scheme is to be successful, it must think carefully about the

specifics of different communities and this must include consultation with the community.

It is also important to recognise that the weight of expectations can contribute to the

demise of community projects (Ings et al, 2012). Community schemes are not magical

solutions to community fragmentation and loneliness (Stenning, 2020). To be successful,

projects must emphasise their potential to bring a community together, but it should not be

projected or relied on as the only solution.

Additionally, there are important practical issues. Not all communities have space available,

an issue exacerbated by Exeter’s lack of pre-industrial space (Jinks, 2020). The fact that

some communities may have gardens, and some may struggle for space may become a

source of tension. However, by working with the communities through these discussions, a

consensus could be reached.

Conclusion

This report has outlined recommendations in order to develop Exeter’s creative scene.

These centre around a pilot community garden in Newton which could be expanded to the

rest of Exeter. The gardens fill a void within Newton for green space and social connections

(Exeter City Council, 2019) and align with the Exeter Culture Strategy (2019). This

demonstrates the suitability of the scheme. Community gardening would be beneficial to

Exeter as it could bring the community together, benefit mental and physical wellbeing,

Developing Exeter’s Creative Scene through Community Gardening Schemes

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produce a greener environment and regenerate areas (RHS, n.d). The recommendations

also provide opportunities for future collaboration, a key issue within Exeter’s creative

scene. However, the inclusivity of the schemes must be considered and there are also

concerns relating to Exeter’s transient population. Although there is no magical solution to

these issues, a focus should be on the schemes being community led and maintained.

Overall, Exeter’s creative scene could be developed by the implementation of community

gardening schemes. This would provide a creative response to issues of community

fragmentation, inter-generational mixing and loneliness. The hope is that the gardens can

contribute to making communities, and Exeter, a healthier, happier and more creative

place.

Biography

As a student at the University of Exeter I have studied the creative economy. Thus, I have

explored the importance of the creative industries to places, policy makers and the

economy as well as more everyday creativity imbued within the community and activism. I

also run a blog which provides geographical perspectives on the creative industries enabling

a deep exploration and understanding of them.

I have lived in 3 different areas of Exeter and have first-hand experience of the pilot area.

This enabled an empirical understanding of the issues facing Exeter and the community in

question.

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Appendix

Appendix 1: Table showing costs of pilot garden, based off drawings by the author, prices correct as of 29th April 2020

Product Cost Source

Hanging Baskets (x4) Link Petunia’s (x4) Link

£81.95 Crocus

Herb Plants: -Sage Link -Basil Link -Rosemary Link -Fennel Link

28 Plants: £167.72 Crocus

Ornamental Trees: -Midland Hawthorn Link -Japanese Flowering Cherry Link

£159.98 Crocus

Bedding Plants Link

80 plants: £399.90 Crocus

Mulch Link

24 bags: £225 Crocus

Log Edging Link

£30 Homebase

Paving Stones Link

£52 Homebase

Turf Link

10 rolls for £40 Homebase

Raised planters (x5) Link

£425 Homebase

Corner Tiered Herb Planters Link

£80 Homebase

Picnic Benches (x6) Link

£450 Homebase

Brick pathway/wall Link

250 bricks: £242.50 Homebase

Total: £2354.05

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References: 660012154 (2020), Figure 3, Photograph and drawing of community garden, taken on 13th March 2020 660012154 (2020), Figure 4, Photograph and drawing of community garden, taken on 13th March 2020 660012154 (2020), Figure 5, Photograph and drawing of community garden, taken on 13th March 2020 Anne Marie Culhane (n.d), Projects, [website], Available at <https://www.amculhane.co.uk/pages/amprojectsfin.htm> [Accessed 25th March 2020] Anne Marie Culhane, (n.d), Figure 2, Little Patch of Ground, viewed 25th March 2020, Available at <https://www.amculhane.co.uk/pages/amprojectsfin.htm> Citizens Advice Exeter (n.d), Exeter: Town vs Gown? The housing challenges faced by a university city, Dispatches from the front lines of the housing crisis, 8-19, Available at<http://citizensadvice.org.uk/Global/CitizensAdvice/Housing Publications/Dispatches from the front lines of the housing crisis (2 Exeter).pdf > Crouch, D. (2009), Creativity, space and performance: community gardening, in Edensor, T., Leslie, D., Millington, S., and Rantisi, N.M (eds), Spaces of Vernacular Creativity: Rethinking the Cultural Economy, Oxon, Routledge: 129-141 Devon County Council (n.d), Figure 6, Table showing indices of multiple deprivation in Exeter 008A, Community Profile, viewed 26th April 2020, Available at <https://www.devonhealthandwellbeing.org.uk/jsna/profiles/community-profile/?areaCode=E01019994> Dillon, B. (2020), Belinda Dillon in conversation with Nicola Thomas (17/03/20), [soundcloud link], Accessed 25th March 2020 Evans, G. (2009), Creative spaces and the art of urban living, in Edensor, T., Leslie, D., Millington, S., and Rantisi, N.M (eds), Spaces of Vernacular Creativity: Rethinking the Cultural Economy, Oxon, Routledge: 19-33 Exeter City Council (2016), Grass Roots Grants: Guidance Notes for Applicants October 2016, Exeter City Council and Exeter Community Forum Exeter City Council (2019), Conversations on Improving Health and Wellbeing in Newton: an inquiry into how to promote and develop a healthy, active neighbourhood where all members of community feel able to participate, Exeter City Council, Available at <https://exeter.gov.uk/media/4415/newtown27nov-final-report.pdf>

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Exeter Community Forum (n.d), Community Strategy…in detail, [website], Available at <http://exetercommunityforum.net/doing-3/community-strategy/> [Accessed 25th March 2020] Exeter Culture (2019), Exeter: A Place Based Cultural Strategy 2019-2024, Exeter, Exeter Culture Exner, A. and Schutzenberger, I. (2018), Creative Natures, Community Gardening, Social Class and City Development in Vienna, Geoforum, 92: 181-195 Hawkins, H. (2016), Creativity: Live, Work, Create, London, Routledge Ings, R., Crane, N. and Cameron, M. (2012), Be Creative Be Well: Arts, Wellbeing and Local Communities: An Evaluation, Arts Council England, Well London Jinks, D. (2020), Dominic Jinks in conversation with Nicola Thomas (17/03/20), [soundcloud link], Accessed 25th March 2020 Johnson, S. (2019), Green therapy: how gardening is helping to fight depression, The Guardian, 13th May, Viewed 7th March, Available at https://www.theguardian.com/society/2019/may/13/green-therapy-gardening-helping-fight-depression Maria Thereza Alves (n.d), Seeds of Change: A Floating Ballast Seed Garden (Bristol): 2012-2016, [website], Available at <http://www.mariatherezaalves.org/works/seeds-of-change-a-floating-ballast-seed-garden-bristol?c=17> [Accessed 25th March 2020] Maria Thereza Alves (n.d), Figure 1, Seeds of Change, Bristol Harbour, Bristol, viewed 25th March 2020, Available at <http://www.mariatherezaalves.org/works/seeds-of-change-a-floating-ballast-seed-garden-bristol?c=17> Milbourne, P. (2009), Growing Places, Community gardening, ordinary creativities and place-based regeneration in a northern English city, in Edensor, T., Leslie, D., Millington, S., and Rantisi, N.M (eds), Spaces of Vernacular Creativity: Rethinking the Cultural Economy, Oxon, Routledge: 141-155 RHS (n.d), Why should I join Britian in bloom? RHS, viewed 20th March 2020, Available at <https://www.rhs.org.uk/get-involved/britain-in-bloom/why> Stenning, A. (2020), Tackling Loneliness with Resident-Led Play Streets, Newcastle University and Playing Out The Big Lunch (n.d), Closing the Distance Between Us, eden project communities, Available at <https://www.edenprojectcommunities.com/sites/default/files/closing_the_distance_report.pdf>

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The Friendly Bench (n.d), What is the Friendly Bench?, [website], Available at < https://www.thefriendlybench.co.uk/> [Accessed 26th March 2020] Waitrose (n.d), What is Community Matters, [website], Available at <https://www.waitrose.com/content/waitrose/en/home/inspiration/community_matters.html> [Accessed 26th March 2020] What Works Wellbeing (2018), Briefing-Places, Spaces, People and Wellbeing, What Works Centre for Wellbeing

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Geography Submission Appendix

Module Code: GEO3131

Student Number: 660012154

Word count: 2994

Do you have an approved Individual Learning Plan (ILP)

No

If Yes to above, do you require and have approval for specific learning difficult marking guidelines (as outlined below)?

No

https://www.exeter.ac.uk/media/universityofexeter/wellbeing/documents/Dyslexia_Marking_Guidelines.pdf