Permanent Culture Now are proud to present to our readers the second in a series of posts from one of our friends Gavin Pate who is involved in a community growing project in Manchester.
It’s been 16 months since work began. Back then, a large fence divided two massive bramble patches. For those who knew the land before it became the Fallowfield Secret Garden, the transformation is remarkable. Last weekend, without help from any organisation, we coordinated a volunteer push at the Fallowfield Secret Garden, bringing in nearly 100 participants: mothers and toddlers, grafters and that all too familiar bunch of local kids too. Now the seed of a community has germinated, as the ideas dreamt by each of us begins to inspire the next. But the real change can’t be measured by the tonne. The first question we asked ourselves at the Fallowfield Secret Garden was how do you engage the community? We started by printing leaflets and knocking on doors with limited success, which frustrated us because, more often than not, people were supportive only from the comfort of their homes. It also frustrated us because this wasn’t the opportunity they had been waiting for; we had projected ourselves upon them! Yes, it exposed the project, but to call it engagement wouldn’t be accurate. At this stage however, enough support was garnered for an extension on our lease, with a peppercorn rent, for another 5 years. That’s sustainable! 
Community building
After many, many hours of discussion we finally came to accept the reality: our neighbours were strangers. For the most part, and for perfectly normal reasons, it will likely remain that way. But we still wanted community. Credit to the work done here, over a thousand people have come to the Garden, and much positivity has followed. But the immediate, on-the-door-step, local community who actively participated were almost exclusively young people. On a given afternoon, maybe 10 children aged between 8 and 13 might swarm through the back gate from the road they were accustomed to. Very quickly they found fascination for fire, so we taught them to respect it. Then we taught them how to build it. For that we earned their respect, and they come back. An opportunity struck like thunder! Bonfire night was round the corner and the kids would be devastated to miss the biggest fire in the neighbourhood, but of course, adult supervision would be required. We put on some food and let the kids publicize the evening. We had a fire circus, a large donation of fireworks, a large petrol-fused bonfire and the best part of 70 people, for free. For the first time many were the real local community. Someone was overheard saying, “It hasn’t been like this for years!”
We concluded that, like a fire, if you provide the right conditions, then community spirit might be kindled. Our approach to the Fallowfield Secret Garden’s development changed course slightly. It was to become more of an event space, to be used generously for the enjoyment of the local community. Of course, non-locals might wish to pay the premium for us to host their special occasions. But this way we could encourage the local community to nurture their common land, and it’s so much better if the memes of sustainability begin take root.
A big thank you!
A big thank you is due to all participants in the development of our community garden. Additional thanks are due to our main funders and supporting organisations; City South Manchester Housing Trust, Action for Sustainable Living, Manchester City Council, the University of Manchester, and the Challenge Network. Additionally, we would like to credit similar environmental upstarts for their advice, opportunities and shared ambitions. To MORFF, Envirolution, Moss Side Community Allotment, The Big Dig and Sow the City — good luck! And let us push sustainability forward in Manchester.