The Community Gardens From a dump to an oasis…

Harringay Community Gardens is the story of a local community taking the neighbourhood matters to their own hands, mobilizing and campaigning to solve their neighbourhood issues. The community gardens as a project has simultaneously decreased crime in the area, while creating a community asset.

For fifteen years the area underneath the railway arch at the Doncaster Gardens off Stanhope Gardens was derelict, overgrown, with really low fences. Trespassing was common and vandalism was frequent. In fact, the British Transport police had written a report regarding the many problems on the railway line. The railway arch was identified as a significant escape route for the robberies that were committed near the Sainsbury’s cash machines. Therefore, the local Gardens’ Residents Association campaigned for three years, and with Network Rail, came up with the idea of bringing the area to use for the community’s benefit.

The association negotiated a contract with Network Rail, got funding from Finsbury Park Partnership, which gave them some seed money and worked with the Haringey council. Fundraising the rest of the money themselves, they cut off the arch and built a garden. Sealing off the arch prevented the trespassing along the railway line and stopped the vandalism, prostitution and the fires around the railway line, decreasing crime by 95%.

The gardens was the result of a truly community effort

In 2000, after obtaining their licence, the association also did a launch to raise further funds. They searched for designs, materials, art and elements to put in the garden and got planning permission from the council. The local postman even wrote a poem about the garden.

The garden was built mostly with the work of the local volunteers under the leadership of the association. The drainage, the fencing and the rest of the hard work took two years to complete. Since then, the garden has become a beautiful community asset, organizing events for the children, providing venues and equipment for the events of others in the neighbourhood, especially the schools.

Right after its formation in 2002, a large party was organized, with the participation of around 1000 people. The party, resembling a community fair, saw the Mayor, Nick Gavron from the GLA and representatives from the fire brigades and the local police participate. A large stage was also built on the road. All this was done in partnership with Network Rail all the way through. Thus, awareness regarding the railway was always a part of the project. In the initial party, a game was organized where the kids ran along the made up railway line, unable to beat the high-speed train. With this, the railway company aimed to raise awareness of safety alongside the railways. Furthermore, funds were raised to pay for a fence alongside the railway line. Following this party, a planting day was organized in August 2002, where the garden came to be. Kids and local residents came in to turn the area into a beautiful garden.

Since then, the garden has been host to a series of gatherings, with one large event every year. 2014 will witness an Ester egg hunt and seed planting for the kids in April and a grand party for the festival in fall.

The garden has become a host for numerous events for the community

The history of the garden includes many events. Andy mentions the party held for the Day of the Dead. The Mexican tradition was celebrated with a Mariachi band and an altar in the arch. The year before that a fire eater was brought as the focus of the yearly party. Christmases are beautiful, Andy explains, with carols sung in the arch. Christmas tree recycling is another significant activity where almost 100 trees are brought every year by the residents. Halloween, Andy says is always a big party in the community gardens. Having started with only five kids in the first days, the Halloween party has now become a tradition and a locally a significant focus. During the last major Harringay festival, a junk modelling day was organized in the garden where residents dumped their junk in the area and the attendees made interesting and creative models with them and took them to the festival.

The garden has tools and equipment in the arch to rent out to people at available rates, alongside giant chairs, jenga, games that schools and residents associations borrow. For a very small price the local institutions can hire games, gazibos and similar equipment to utilize in their parties.

“Film food and fun is the theme” says Andy, moving on to describe the garden’s photography project this year. The project focuses on photographic paper, where objects could be put on to create an image. As the first form of photography, the project is meant to introduce children to photography. “The young ones can pick flowers, objects… and make their own pictures” adds Andy. They have already done activities such as  “design your own garden”, model making, etc…

Amidst all these activities the garden is maintained by the community itself. First Saturday of every month local residents come along and help out planting in the garden. Although the system is well established now, the garden’s periodic needs are sourced by fundraising. Andy underlines that the insurance itself is quite costly.  “Just to open the gates” says Andy, “the minimum cost of the garden is about 1000 GBP a year. Insurance alone, which is public liability insurance is 600 pounds.”

Andy also highlighted the importance of maintaining the garden in its current condition, not only to preserve its beauty but also to prevent crime. Once, the panels above the arch were graffitied by a trespasser. After being notified of this, Network Rail had immediately taken case of it; within a week, Network Rail had sand plastered the graffiti off. Andy explains that graffiti spreads quickly, and if the garden is not maintained in the state that it is, graffiti and similar activities tend to increase. To prevent similar problems in the future, Network Rail also managed to put a fence one year after the incidence.   

The jewel in our crown is the Best Community Garden in London Award

The Harringay Community Gardens has won many awards, recognizing the great effort that went into the area as well as its successful transformation. In 12 years, Andy notes that 23 national and local awards were won by the garden. The garden has won the Haringey Bloom; the best community garden in Haringey four to five times. They won the Green Flag award; the national standard for open green spaces about eight times. The garden has also won the outstanding level of “It’s your neighbourhood award” given by the Royal Horticultural Society five times in a row. As these were not enough, the garden has won the 206 best community garden award in London.

However, the garden’s future threatened by the council’s development plans

Despite all the positive assets, the garden is facing an existential threat. The Haringey Council’s Development Plan Document (DPD) includes the council’s projections for the next 20 years. Every plan has to nominate a housing plan for 20 000 houses to be built in 20 years in the whole borough. Their DPD envisions the opening up of the arch again. This not only means the closure of the garden but also an increase in crime rates, says Andy. Alongside the garden but also the storage space for the equipment would also be lost.

In March the residents association has objected to the plan, however the DPD arranges for housing units to be built in the place of Sainsbury’s, thus requires the archway to be opened as a road linking the apartments to the rest of the streets. The association will nonetheless continue to fight against the plans, arguing that the Harringay would loose a community asset and that the crime rate would increase.

Andy Newman was the founder of GRA