21/02/2025 Gardening and horticulture to improve health and wellbeing

Thrive has been using social and therapeutic horticulture and gardening to change peoples’ lives since 1979.

Thrive uses gardening to create positive changes in the lives of people living with disabilities, ill health and long-term conditions, or those who are isolated, disadvantaged, or vulnerable. For over 40 years, Thrive has specialised in social and therapeutic horticulture (STH), an approach where trained practitioners use gardening and horticulture to improve physical and mental wellbeing, communication, and social skills.

Thrive offers therapeutic gardening programs at regional centres in Reading, London, and Birmingham, as well as in community settings like care homes, village halls, and prisons. They also train professionals to deliver STH in their own fields and provide tailored gardening advice for individuals with disabilities or health challenges.

The organisation supports a diverse group of people, including those with physical or learning disabilities, mental health needs, sensory loss, life-changing conditions like stroke, and young people with social, emotional, or behavioural challenges.

Gardening can be particularly good for people living with long-term health conditions as it provides an accessible option for regular and gentle exercise. Benefits include burning calories, building muscle strength and flexibility, enhancing fine motor skills and dexterity, reduced falls and pain, and exposure to the sun which provides vitamin D. Evidence shows that STH can be used for long term management of symptoms, throughout both recovery and relapse. Particularly in mental health care, with no negative side effects, STH can be safely utilised long term.

The benefits of STH come from spending time in nature, time in a positive social environment and undertaking meaningful activity. Spending time in nature is evidenced to reduce stress and improve mental wellbeing. Many people find it easier to communicate when walking, gardening or spending time outside. Trained STH practitioners create positive social environments that enable people to connect with others and even re-engage with society.

Referrals to Thrive programmes can come from different sources - including GPs, link workers, social services or support workers. Or in some cases people come independently or are referred by a family member, school or another charity. Whatever the referral route, support is tailored to meet individual needs.

From 2023-2024 alone, Thrive delivered 13,227 gardening sessions to 414 clients. They trained 1,818 people to support people through STH and was supported by 217 volunteers.

96% of client gardeners said being at Thrive had improved their physical health, and 99% said they were happier or had improved wellbeing. 95% of client gardeners said they gained skills and 96% said they socialised more with others as a result of being involved with the programme.

Thrive’s ‘Life Changers’ gardening for health programme, for example, supports people with life-changing conditions to regain or maintain an active, healthy lifestyle. Through a person-centred plan, developed with the individual and the practitioner, the programme provides demonstrable improvement in physical ability such as balance, stamina, mobility and co-ordination. And where perhaps, a long-term condition has impacted an individual’s sense of purpose, people on a Thrive programme report an increase in confidence and independence, which has further led to overall better mental health and wellbeing.

Those working for Thrive feel that there is a lack of common language for commissioners, practitioners and service users. Alongside a lack of knowledge around the positive impact of such programmes, it can take a long time to establish a referral pathway in a new area and ensure that as many people as possible are benefiting from Thrive’s programmes. Getting to the right person within an ICS, NHS or Local Authority can be difficult to navigate and take considerable effort and time. To overcome this, the team at Thrive do a lot of networking and target specific health care providers with information and marketing materials, as well as utilising directories. 

Following the success of the Life Changers programme, Thrive is keen to expand it in another region. It has been challenging to secure funding to expand the programme, so the charity has looked to make applications to grant giving trusts and foundations. Due the unpredictable giving landscape where trust and grants are concerned, this type of fundraising, is not a sustainable funding model to significantly increase the number of people benefiting from Life Changers.

Thrive wants many more people to be able to access Social and Therapeutic Horticulture programmes, wherever they live. There are several barriers to doing this, such as the lack of commonly understood standards for delivery (quality assurance), different impact measurement approaches between STH providers and the large number of small providers (scale and spread compatible with demand).

Alongside Trellis, Thrive is working to address the lack of consistent standards and the need for training requirements through the establishment of a new association for STH Practitioners. Through its courses and training the charity is working to build the workforce needed to meet the growing demand for practitioner led therapeutic gardening programmes.