Text of a press release by Community Gardens Ireland, 3 March 2024
On Saturday 2nd March 2024 at 11am, the Community Gardens Ireland (CGI) and Social Farms and Gardens Northern Ireland (SFGNI) Spring Gathering and Forum event was held online. The event marks the third year since the two organisations have worked together on this event.
The cross-border event, organised by Community Gardens Ireland (CGI) and Social Farms & Gardens Northern Ireland, has grown from strength to strength in recent years. This year, 216 people had registered to attend, which makes this event the largest annual gathering of community growers on the island of Ireland.
The 2024 theme for the event was Food Education and attendees received presentations from landmark community growers based across Ireland, including:
- Caitríona McCarthy of Edible Landscape Project in Westport, Co. Mayo
- Gary Clarke of Louth Urban Food Sanctuary
- Kevin Byrne, Sarah O’Connell and Denise Lynch of Scoil Bernadette in Cork
- Kathy McKnight from Holy Family Primary School in Omagh
A key area of discussion at the gathering was on the need for stronger policies and legislation to be enacted north and south to support community growers. SFGNI’s Patricia Wallace gave an update on the implementation of a Benchmark Standard for community growing and allotment provision. The event heard that SF&Gs are delighted that Belfast City Council has recently adopted the Benchmark Standard’s recommendations the main one being a third of an acre should be set aside for community growing per 1000 households.
TD for Waterford Marc Ó Cathasaigh also presented at the event on the draft Community Gardens Bill, and on recent updates to the Planning and Development Bill.
Mr. Ó Cathasaigh highlighted how on Thursday 29th February 2024, Minister Kieran O’Donnell had accepted Ó Cathasaigh’s amendment to the Planning and Development Bill. Minister O’Donnell has committed to review the exact wording for community gardens to be added to the Planning and Development Bill. This amendment, now accepted for review by the Minister, will create the role of community gardens in law for the first time in Ireland.
This development will also help enable discussions regarding additional requirements to be placed on local authorities to require them to provide community growing spaces where demand is present. Mr. Ó Cathasaigh finished by thanking Community Gardens Ireland for their work on highlighting the gaps in the law and submissions made as part of consultation processes in previous years.
The final presentation of the day was by Hans Zomer of Global Action Plan. Mr. Zomer took the attendees through the work that Global Action Plan (GAP) are doing through their Climate Heroes programme.
In addition, Mr. Zomer gave details on the GLAS Community Gardens and how beneficial these spaces are to biodiversity. Mr. Zomer also highlighted research completed recently by GAP and how beneficial it is for organisations who are working in the same area to work together.
Following the event, Chairperson of Community Gardens Ireland, Dónal McCormack said: “I wish to thank all of our speakers who gave up their time to tell their community growing story at this year’s spring gathering.”
“It’s clear from listening to the speakers how community gardens and allotments encourage people from all backgrounds to come together and grow food, not hate.”
There is a huge need from communities for strong community growing laws that helps them access land for community growing purposes. Despite the huge benefits from allotments and community gardens, local authorities are still not required to provide allotments or community gardens where demand is present. Given the climate and biodiversity crises taking place, it needs to be made easier for communities to access land for community growing purposes across the island of Ireland.”
Social Farms & Gardens Northern Ireland Manager, Patricia Wallace said: “In order for Community Growing to thrive we must have supportive government policies. We are delighted that Belfast City Council has adopted the Benchmark Standard and hope all Councils in NI will follow their lead in the coming months. Thank you to all attendees who joined our spring gathering event, the growing number of attendees is evident of the interest in communities to be connected to soil, nature and food growing”.
“The report also mirrors similar reports by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations. In 2022, the Urban and Per-Urban Agriculture Sourcebook from Production to Food Systems report was issued, which highlighted how many cities have identified the importance of promoting local food production and improving access to locally produced food. Improving access to land through adoption of our report contributes as part of an improvement of the wider urban food systems ultimately enables communities to grow more food locally.”