Limekilns School and Community Garden
Travelling southwest to a pleasant corner of Fife to visit Limekilns School and Community Garden, part of the wider remit of the inspirational Charlestown, Limekilns and Pattiesmuir Nature Conservation Group.
Whilst CLP Nature Conservation Group has been up and running since 2018, the community garden in Limekilns is a newer addition to their portfolio, with just one full growing season under its belt.
The garden is tucked away behind a tennis club, on what was an unused piece of land with big potential. Situated directly across the road from the local primary school, members of the local community had long recognised its potential, especially as the school has limited greenspace within its grounds. With dogged persistence, CLP Nature Conservation Group managed to organise a longterm, low-rate lease of the land in partnership with the landowner. The winter and early spring of 2023 saw the raised beds installed and other infrastructure put in place, with the schools beginning to utilise the space as soon as it was completed – spring 2023.
With the help of dedicated community volunteers of all ages and amazing partnership working with teachers and pupils at the school, they have been able to integrate the garden into the school, with weekly visits from all children during the fairer months of the year. Not just for gardening, but as a curiculum-wide greenspace, with art, maths and wellness activities taking place within its grounds. And its not for exclusive use by the school, either – the garden has also been host to community activities, and even in my short visit, a volunteer passed by on a dog walk and spoke about the foraging classes she was planning on running, with the start and finish utilising the community garden and its resources.
Of particular note is the organisation’s commitment to creating a community manual – a service document that can be used by anyone in the future who wants to take lead on the various initiatives run by CLP. So many of our valuable community greenspaces rest on the especial skills of a small handful of particularly knowledgeable and dedicated volunteers – and when the time comes for them to move on, often their skills and knowledge are lost. By developing a manual, CLP Nature Conservation Group will clearly show their commitment to longterm benefit of the environment and their community.
CLP Nature Conservation Group are keen to find a local community member who would be interested in taking a lead on caring for the community garden – could this be you? Get in touch if you think you’d be keen!
