Annual Report 2026
Growing food, friends and skills on Station Road
Welcome
This was our busiest year yet. More than four hundred neighbours came through the gate, our volunteers gave over three thousand hours, and the new raised beds mean that anyone can garden with us, whether they stand, sit or use a wheelchair.
Thank you to everyone who dug, weeded, baked, donated or simply came to say hello. This report tells you what we did with your time and your money, and what we plan to do next.
Ruth Okafor, Chair of Trustees
Contents
Our year
A Year on Station Road
The garden was open three days a week from March to November, and every Saturday through the winter.
We gave away 1.2 tonnes of fresh vegetables to the Millbrook food bank, twice last year's amount.Weighed at the gate on the food bank's own scales, from April to November.
Who came
Most visitors came on Saturdays, when the café is open. Our school sessions on Wednesdays grew the fastest: four primary schools now visit every half term.
- 2025
- 2026
Source: the visitors' book at the gate.
What we grew
Potatoes, beans and salad leaves did best. The tomatoes caught blight in August, as everyone's did, but the polytunnel saved about half of them.The polytunnel was paid for by the Millbrook Rotary Club in 2025.
Behind the scenes
People and Money
Forty-two volunteers kept the garden going this year, from teenagers on their Duke of Edinburgh award to a retired head gardener who comes every Tuesday.
Volunteers
Our volunteers gave 3,140 hours, about two full-time jobs. Twelve of them led a session on their own for the first time.
Schools
Pupils from four schools sowed, planted and harvested their own beds, then cooked what they grew in the garden kitchen.
Wellbeing
The local surgery now refers patients to our Tuesday morning group, a quiet two hours of gardening followed by tea."Social prescribing": a doctor or nurse suggests an activity, rather than a medicine.
The café
The Saturday café raised £4,860, all of it spent on seeds, tools and the new compost bays.
Where the money came from
| 2025 | 2026 | |
|---|---|---|
| Grants | 9,500 | 12,000 |
| Café and plant sales | 3,920 | 4,860 |
| Donations | 2,140 | 2,710 |
| Total | 15,560 | 19,570 |
Figures are rounded to the nearest pound. The full accounts are available on request.
Looking ahead
Our Plans for 2027
- An orchard Twenty fruit trees along the railway fence, planted by the schools in February.
- A garden for everyone Paths wide enough for wheelchairs to reach every bed.
- Cooking classes Six free evening classes using what we grow.
How we'll pay for it
A grant from the town council, the summer open day, and your donations.
Get involved
Drop in any Saturday from 10am, or scan the code to join our volunteer list.