Durham care home goes green fingered with end of summer veggie harvest

People with learning disabilities living at Grizedale a care home in Durham enjoyed some end of the summer fun as they harvested their first crop of home-grown vegetables.

The home, which offers specialist accommodation and care to up to seven people, turned their garden into a vegetable wonderland, planting marrows, radishes and potatoes in its new allotment area.

Alan and Peter, two people who live at Grizedale, have been part of the team cultivating the veggie plot for the past year, and were delighted with their first harvest.

They hope to continue with the garden, adding more fresh vegetables to their plot.

Jackie Carr, registered manager at Grizedale, said: “We love to offer the people we support new and interesting experiences that are stimulating and fun. We’re delighted with the results of this first attempt at growing vegetables and look forward to seeing what else is produced.

“All credit must go to Alan and Peter, who have worked so hard on the garden and were very proud when they saw what had grown.

“Their enthusiasm for gardening has spread and I’m certain that they’ll be joined in the garden by more people next year.”

Peter Westall said: “This year growing our vegetables has been outstanding and they were very tasty. I think it has been very interesting growing our vegetables.”

Jackie added: “Alan Minto has been picking vegetables each day for meals, putting them in a basket and showing them to staff and other clients, with a huge smile on his face showing how proud he is of what he has achieved.”

Grizedale is part of Pathways Care (part of SalutemCare and Education) and is rated Good by the CQC.