Rooting in Tooting update: TTT's project with local refugees and asylum-seekers

We'd like to update you on the Rooting in Tooting project: TTT's joint project with the Tooting charity CARAS (Community Action for Refugees and Asylum-Seekers).

In our past blog posts (view them here) we've outlined that we have a year of diverse activities planned with CARAS.


Participant groups include the CARAS Youth Club and After-School Club, with families and the Women's Group still to come.

The project purpose?
Threefold - to help develop teamworking and relationships while enjoying new activities, to help develop language and communication skills, and to help participants feel that they are joining in with the local community.
We're so proud that CARAS won a Team Community Hero award at the Balham and Tooting Community Association annual celebration of local contributions on December 10th.

Working with the Youth Club
This is the group with whom we did the pilot project in spring - and it's typical of working in the refugee setting that the individuals and participant numbers have been changing all the time.

In one session we were making models of the rain-fed growing planters that we hope to build for real outdoors - a fun and focused session with a dozen young people.












In another session two dozen young people carved pumpkins, and in another we did more screenprinting using local photos of Tooting scenes. That day one or two lads were on still in their first few days in England...others translated and helped them join in.

Leo's Garden: an oasis tucked above Tooting

Tooting has a new and delightful asset!

 

A new garden balcony for all the staff at the Tooting campus of South Thames College opened today in memory of Mumney Olusanya (or Leo, as he was better known). Leo was Facilities Manager at the Tooting campus, and died on the 31st October 2013. Leo’s Garden is a University and College Union initiative and was opened by Angie Birtill of the Trade Union Studies Centre.

Angie raising a fizzy apple juice as a toast to Leo's memory

Spring bulbs were planted later today in memory of Leo, adding to the planting done over spring and summer this year - all funded by the volunteers themselves. As well as a memorial to Leo, the garden is consciously about health and safety - creating an attractive place for any college staff to boost their wellbeing during a busy day. 

Volunteering Opportunities - Join the Foodival Team

We're starting to plan Foodival 2015 - Transition Town Tooting’s sustainable food festival – and we’re looking for people to join the team.

Maybe you want to meet local growers? Or you love cooking? Maybe you’re looking for publicity experience? Or maybe you’d like to get involved on the day, making the event a success.

Whatever takes your fancy, we’ve got a role for you.  You’ll meet some wonderful people, have the chance to shape the Foodival, and of course, get to eat some delicious food!

Foodival takes place over the weekend of 12 – 13 September.

How can you get involved?

There are lots of ways you can get involved, either by joining the planning team, or helping out over the weekend.

Head over to the Tooting Foodival blog to see what we're looking for, and get in touch at transitiontowntooting@gmail.com if you're interested, or know someone who can help.

Or just pop in to the next planning meeting - Tuesday, 27 May, 7pm at the Kings Head on Upper Tooting Road.

The Great Greenhouse Build - we need your help!

Our current outdoor learning project with Gatton School is to build a greenhouse in the community garden made from recycled plastic bottles (see picture below - this is what we hope the finished greenhouse will look like). The year 6 pupils come to the garden for an hour a week to work on this and despite lots of hard work on their behalf, it is slow going. After the Easter holidays, we have just two more lessons (ie two hours!) to finish the project. 

Clearly this is going to be impossible - currently we have completed two side walls of the greenhouse (below), but we still have the back wall, the front wall with a door, two roof panels and two gable ends to make, and then we have to fit all the pieces together! Plus we have many more plastic bottles to cut.

So we really need some volunteers to rally round and help out. At the first community session during the Seed Swap we had some great helpers and managed to build a wall of the greenhouse.

Here's how you can help:

Because two more hours with 12x 10-year-olds isn't going to be enough to finish the build, Sharon will be hosting some working parties in the garden in the Easter school holidays. Please come and help - we REALLY NEED YOU! There are tasks for all abilities so don't feel you need any particular skills to make a contribution. If you have a hammer or a cordless screwdriver and can bring them along, even better.

The drop-in sessions will be from 12pm-4.30pm on:

Good Friday April 3

Thursday April 9

Friday April 10

The Community Garden is at 5 North Drive, SW16 1RN.
We're tucked in behind the big red-brick house at that address, with entrance through the black fence to the left of the building. We'll have a sign on the road.

Bring your friends, bring your family (there's even a playground for little kids to occupy themselves). And if you know anyone else who might be interested in helping out, please spread the word. The more the merrier. It really is good fun and hugely satisfying.

If you would like to come along, or have any questions, please drop us a line at TootingCommunityGarden@gmail.com or the Tooting Community Garden Facebook page so we know how many people to expect.

Hope to see you at the garden!