Grounded Community - Together We Can Grow

Grounded Community profile

Project by Grounded Community

We did it
On 15th June 2021 we successfully raised £32,329 ( + est. £1251.75 Gift Aid ) with 127 supporters in 120 days

A charity in Bournemouth, that aims to support our community's access to nutritious food and create a replicable model for food organising.

 New stretch target

With further funds we will be able to dedicate more time to our project, educate more people, create more skilled food growers. 

The more we raise the more we can use to match fund for further funds. The way funding works is we have to have more coming in to make more.  We will be able to expand to support people in their homes too!

With your help we can support people growing at the garden, in their homes and help feed our community. 

We want to take this further and support other communities to replicate what we have done. 


Hello!

We are super excited about this crowdfunder so thank you so much for being here. We really need your support!

We are a group of locals with a huge passion for people and the planet, we grow food, we share it and we would love you to also.

There are some great rewards on this funding page, so have a browse...please be aware we will not send out rewards until the funder ends on April 10th, just in case you are buying as gifts!  You can also simply make a donation and please share our project with your friends so we can progress all our amazing projects !

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Our Story

In 2012 a walled Victorian 'Secret Garden' was uncovered and replanted into a food growing haven. It is our areas worst kept secret. It is set in one of the most deprived wards in the country where there is 47% of children in poverty.  

In 2014 our project was born. We have been food growing with sustainable no chemical methods, supplying food to our community and learning skills since then. 

Many of our community struggle with isolation, poor mental and physical health. People want to improve their situation and we are together in that challenge. You can see in our video some of the people that benefit, there are many more.

What do we do?

1. Education:  Provide people with the skills and resources needed to grow their own food using organic techniques, and create a model of community sufficiency which can be replicated in other urban areas.

2. Community: Build a resilient, collaborative, thriving community based around growing, learning, sharing and eating food together. 

3. Access to food:  Improve health and well-being in our area through the sharing and eating of nutritious, locally grown food, as well as surplus from gardens and businesses.

4. Environment: To heal natural ecosystems and increase biodiversity by using organic regenerative gardening techniques. To promote lifestyles that are in harmony with nature.

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Our Projects

- 2 Walled Gardens

- Food Education Workshops and Nature Play Sessions

-10 Bee Hives

- A Composting Facility on a shopping centre roof. 

- Feed Our Community programme, which picks up 2-3 tonnes of food surplus from supermarkets and local businesses EVERY WEEK and distribute parcels to people who need it. 

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We are busy as the bees making our area community sufficient and sustainable. Thinking globally acting locally and supporting each other in the belief that 'Together We Can Grow'. 

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What will we use the money for?  

We decided to begin on valentines day and go right through lent until Easter weekend. It is a long 8 weeks, but that is plenty of time to share the campaign out there and raise as much as possible for our projects. 

The funding will help us

- Build an outdoor classroom to deliver our workshop programme. This will include a BBQ and Pizza oven (already funded), which we can host community food gatherings and our adjacent schools can use for outdoor classes. 

- Deliver our education workshops over the next 5 years to teach our community food growing skills and create more connection with nature

- Run our volunteer programme which is a lifeline to some and respite to others. 

- Continue to deliver Feed Our Community, feeding over 1000 people in need per month and reducing food waste.

 - Expand our programme to develop new projects such as community composting and soil improvement, food preserving project, bee keeping and community education.

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You will see from the amazing list of rewards that you can also sponsor certain aspects of our project to see those emerge too! You could also get a smaller reward but make a bigger donation?? !!

Our locally awarded honey is amazing. This year we got so much more honey than expected. We wanted to make the honey go further and send a message with it. That is when we decided to crowd fund. Next year, if we get sponsorship for new hives we will produce more honey and give it to our neighbours and friends too. But this year most of it will go to you as you donate... so choose your rewards wisely.   

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Lastly the honey money will help fund our staff who are so dedicated and passionate about what they do. Up until this year it has all been voluntary but we want to create stability and progress our charity further. All staff are part time and do so much more than they are paid for. In fact all our paid staff also continue to volunteer their time to help grow and give out food. We want to expand this team to support people growing in their own homes too... that could be you? 

Get Growing and Stay Grounded ! 

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Our Boscombe Bees1611608828_20200802-roz_4951_copy.jpg

Our garden where bees can collect pollen and pollinate all our veggies.1611608844_20200802-roz_4829_copy.jpg

Our friends at Beebombs kindly donated 50 of these great packs for our campaign!!1611608873_beebombs_image_.jpg

Our local award winning honey and 'bee grounded' sticker.1611763065_honey_2.png

Example of the composter we have and shelter we plan to build. 1611609230_hengelo-a700-rocket-composter-900x675.jpg

Our garden veggies and site for Edible Forest (where poly tunnel is pictured)1611609298_mrkf7987.jpg

Ruth one of our more experienced volunteers and local link to Gardens of Sanctuary.1611609464_grounded_148_copy.jpg

Rewards

This project offers rewards in return for your donation. Please select a reward below.

£30 or more

0 of 5 claimed

Yoga Lounge Intro Offer worth £30

Yoga Lounge Bournemouth have kindly donated 5 x Introductory Offers Worth £30! Offering you 30 consecutive days of live streaming yoga. With a variety of classes and teachers every day suitable for all levels of yoga. Try pilates and meditation classes including Vinyasa, Bikram, Yin, Hatha, Ashtanga and a Meditation Lab. We will be in touch in April to set you up! *Not redeemable to current or previous students, but may be gifted

£10 or more

4 of 40 claimed

Grounded Saved Seed Packs plus Sticker.

Our seed packs could have a variety of the foods we grow such as kale, onions, chard, or spinach.

£12 or more

10 of 20 claimed

Jar of honey 90g taster jar.

Our lovely litlle jars of honey give a taste of what we are producing. We will add a little Grounded Sticker in the bag too. :)

£12 or more

0 of 20 claimed

Bee Mission Honey!!

Our friends at Bee Mission have donated us 20 jars of their honey as ours is flying out fast!! In a taste test a few of our volunteers preferred this honey to ours!! But is was close... They are produced in hives around Bournemouth mostly at care homes. Serge is the beekeeper having kept hives for many years. We are partnering with these guys to expand the local colonies of bees in our urban setting. (The price we have set to include postage.)

£14 or more

1 of 4 claimed

Pen Gallery Photo Prints

Pen Gallery is part of the regeneration project at Kingsland Crescent in Poole, which will bring some much needed vibrancy back to Poole with so many new exciting independent businesses. You will receive one of 4 prints, each by a different artist. Emma has kindly included a sticker, as have we! Choose a print you want (view our update for which photo print you like) and visit them on Instagram @pengallerystore

£15 or more

1 of 8 claimed

Greenponics Sprouting tray!

Greenponics are a small home based production of sprouts using goldfish and aquaponics. They are based in the centre of Boscombe and they are AMAZING! Sayeed has really honed his skills. You can find them on facebook and can order direct too! Your will get 4 different varieties as pictured in the update and we can send out to you and drop in a Grounded Sticker too!

£18 or more

0 of 5 claimed

Bee Squishy (Hand Made) plus sample honey 90g

Laura was one of our great volunteers through her furlough time last summer. She wanted to do something to help, so she created these fury friends for you. (see pictures on the recent crafty update.). We will throw in a ' Bee Grounded' Sticker and a sample honey pot too. Follow Laura @perkyandbright on Instagram

£20 or more

3 of 20 claimed

BIG THANKS and a Grounded sticker

Choose a sticker and get a big thanks from us...

£24 or more

31 of 40 claimed

Bee Bits - Honey and Bee Bombs

Our Friends at Bee Bomb kindly donated their seed bomb packs for us (usually £8.99) we are also adding an amazing 300g jar of our award winning honey.

£30 or more

1 of 20 claimed

Big Thanks and a Grounded Sticker

Maybe you don't want a reward and a thanks is enough, we will give a big thanks and throw in a sticker for anyone who donates to us..

£30 or more

0 of 12 claimed

Aimee's Art Workshops

Workshops will be held at The Secret Garden in the summer so we can enjoy being out in nature. Aimee will teach and guide you to create your own Origami pieces and demonstrate how these can be displayed into simple wall hangings, incorporating found elements from around the garden. You will have a wall hanging of your own to take home, as well as exclusive discounts from Aimee. Refreshments included Check out her creations here @aimee___designs

£48 or more

8 of 10 claimed

The Grounded Package

Get a Pack of Bee Bombs, a jar of our award winning honey, a Grounded sticker, and attend one of our workshops of your choice where you will also get a seasonal veg box!!! ( Does not include craft workshop, see website for details on sessions)

£100 or more

1 of 10 claimed

Sponsorship- Raised Bed Improvement

Some of our garden beds are rotting, others need to be raised higher. This donation will pay for 5 sleepers to a raise our bed up, for better growing and some for wheelchair use. We will also send you a sticker and a thankyou.

£200 or more

1 of 10 claimed

Sponsorships - New Raised Bed

We have raised beds in our garden. A lot of the wood is rotting and we need to replace it. We have a promise of some treated eco sleepers but we need £200 per bed to replace and 10 beds to do. Can you help? We will add a tasteful wooden sign for each donation on our beds, if you would like that. We will also send you a sticker and a thankyou.

£300 or more

1 of 2 claimed

Sponsor a Bee Hive

Help us increase our colonies of bees and you will recieve an Up close and Personal Bee Experience for 2-5 people (or a family) plus 3 jars of Grounded Bee’zz Honey each year for 3 years + a Bee Bomb Pack and stickers.

£300 or more

3 of 4 claimed

Corporate/Business Team Days

Our gardens are the perfect place to bring your team. To get outdoors, build team spirit, contribute to a great community project. Being in nature and contributing positively are supporting wellbeing. With Anxiety and tension being high in our world right now, why not book in a team experience with Grounded Community. This could include work days on a particular task, workshops which could include some relaxation, or a tour of our beehives.

£500 or more

1 of 2 claimed

Corporate Bee Hive Sponsor

Up Close and Personal Experience for up to 10 people. Paint Hive in Your Colours or have a plaque placed on the hive. An exclusive post on our social media and newsletter + Bee Bombs, 2 large jars and 10 taster jars of Grounded Bee’zz Honey for 2 years.

£500 or more

0 of 2 claimed

Sponsorship- The Secret Garden Edible Forest

Currently our secret garden has two plastic polytunnels. One takes up a lot of room and is used for storage. We want to remove it and replace it with an amazing food forest where our chickens can roam and fruit can be grown. The single sponsor will get a plaque, a Grounded Hamper and can come to our opening as our guest of honour.

£750 or more

0 of 6 claimed

Sponsorship -The Secret Garden Community Classroom

We have a grand design for our garden which is to create an outdoor classroom kitchen area. It has been hard in 2020 to run workshops with restrictions, this space will make it a lot easier for us. The neighbouring schools will be able to use it for lessons, we will have community meals there and it will be a great feature and asset rain or shine. The sponsors will get a plaque on our wall of fame and social media coverage.

£1,000 or more

0 of 2 claimed

Sponsorship - Rocket Composting Facility

Our latest venture to create our own compost from local food waste. We have been donated a £20k Rocket comoster and we have raised £3k to get it started. This money will help us with running and development costs . Sponsors will receive a Grounded Hamper, Social Media and Website Profile.

£1,500 or more

0 of 1 claimed

Sponsorship - The Secret Garden 2!!

Help create our second home base with plant nursery, Educational Bee Hives and community composting area. Firstly we will build a shelter for storing items, then move our polytunnel and greenhouse there for the plant nursery. We will keep bees and store composted soil there too. It will be our engine room. The sponsor will get a plaque on the gate, a hamper and invited to our opening in the summer.

£14 or more

3 of 3 claimed

Just 1 Swap Shopping Voucher £10

HI Why not support our crowdfunder and also support a local businiess at the same time. The reward includes a £10 voucher to be redeemed in store. where they do amazing dried goods, teas and bread. Postage is included as well as a Grounded Sticker !

£25 or more

1 of 1 claimed

Exclusive Macrame Wall Plant Hanger with Honey

Exclusive Macrame Wall Plant Hanger by JO from @be.wilderful (on Instagram). It is always great to have something creative and wonderfully made in your home and even better with a plant inside it. We will deliver to you with a Jar of Bee Mission Honey too ! Only one of these so be quick!

£65 or more

2 of 2 claimed

Up Close and Personal Bee Experience

As well as receiving our Honey and a pack of Bee Bombs (donated kindly to us), you will also come and visit our hives and get suited up for a 2 hour personal session with our bees and bee keeper Fred. He will talk you through how the hives work, you can hold the frames and see how it all works!

£100 or more

8 of 8 claimed

Up Close and personal bee experience for 2

Up close and Personal Bee Experience for 2 ! Plus 2 Jars of Honey + a pack of Bee Bombs.

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