Hospice Volunteer Gardeners makeover the Inpatient Unit gardens

25 April 2025

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Patients and their families often tell us what a difference it makes for them to be able to access fresh air and feel the sun on their face.

Our award winning building allows patients and their families to use the shared garden outside the Bistro and Arthur’s Shed.

Patients in the Inpatient Unit can also access the outside spaces via the French doors in each of the 15 individual rooms and the two mixed bays. The sensory garden is situated right outside the Evelyn Living Well Centre where Living Well patients visit each week.

The gardens have been carefully and professionally designed to include particular plants, flowers and colours which have been chosen to calm and soothe visitors. Our wonderful volunteer gardeners proudly tend and maintain our gardens to look attractive all year round. Each season they ensure that they look their best whilst being habitable to the local biodiversity including a range of different birds and wildlife.

Female with binoculars

The Charity’s Green Group spots and records sightings of the birds which visit the Hospice gardens, for the RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch each January and butterflies during the Big Butterfly Count in July.

Female holding a garden design in the garden with other gardeners behind — Garima Chandra from GC Garden Designs

Garima Chandra from GC Garden Design recently supported a group of volunteers with her new design to update the gardens outside some of the Inpatient Unit rooms. The gardens were quickly transformed so the patients could see a band of colours from their beds.

Female gardening

Helping in our gardens is an activity which is very popular with some of our Corporate Volunteers too, who enjoy spending time out of the office giving back to support the Charity.

Garden images

The Charity also has a plant stall (from Spring to Autumn) outside the entrance of the Hospice at Shelford Bottom, where people are welcome to donate or buy (for a small donation) plants or local produce. The proceeds all go back to supporting people in Cambridgeshire with an advanced serious illness or other life-limiting condition and those who need end of life care.

Members of the public are welcome to access the gardens when they join us for a tour on one of our Open Days, visit the Bistro (open to all everyday from 9am – 4pm) or Arthur’s Shed.