91Èȱ¬

Horatio’s Garden is a national charity supporting the mental and physical rehabilitation of people affected by spinal cord injury through creating and nurturing thriving garden projects in the heart of NHS spinal injury centres.

The charity’s beautiful, therapeutic and fully accessible gardens are a source of vital support for patients, their loved ones and NHS staff. Each Horatio’s Garden becomes an integral part of people’s lives as they spend many months in hospital adjusting to their life-changing injuries.

A spinal cord injury can happen to anyone at any time. They are often traumatic events and every year around 2,500 people are newly injured.

Research has shown that we gain mentally, physically, and socially from having access to green spaces.

Horatio’s Garden provides patients and their loved ones with vital privacy and tranquility – something which is often impossible to experience on a hospital ward.

The charity’s gardens are not your typical green space - their teams of gardeners, volunteers, and artists all work together to provide horticultural therapy sessions, creative workshops, and social events to support patients’ rehabilitation, complementing the clinical care provided by NHS staff. Not only do these activities aid physical rehabilitation by improving patients’ fine motor skills and balance, but they also improve patients’ mental health and wellbeing by enabling them to focus on their skills and abilities beyond their injuries, allowing them to discover new interests and talents.

For people affected by spinal cord injury facing extraordinarily difficult times, being able to feel the benefits of nature and community safely and confidently in Horatio’s Garden has a profoundly positive impact.

This is why your support matters. Together, we will improve the lives of everyone affected by spinal cord injury.

Having been a proud ambassador of Horatio’s Garden for many years, it is a tremendous honour to be able to support the charity’s 91Èȱ¬ Lifeline Appeal.

For me, this is a chance to demonstrate what I have always believed; that gardens and gardening are great healers, and that nature is always there to help us through the challenges we encounter on a daily basis.

For people adjusting to living with a spinal cord injury, these challenges are immense, not only for the person directly affected, but for people’s family and friends too. Horatio’s Garden provides everyone with a stunning natural sanctuary along with horticultural and creative therapies, as well as social activities to support patients’ physical and mental rehabilitation. With five vibrant gardens open, two on the way and the charity’s sights set on bringing a Horatio’s Garden to all 11 NHS spinal injury centres in the UK, they truly deserve the support of every one of us.

Craig was just 20 when a car accident left him paralysed from his lower chest down. He spent over eight months in the Queen Elizabeth National Spinal Injuries Unit in Glasgow, and it was here that he found Horatio’s Garden Scotland. Craig’s injury had made him feel depressed, but after being introduced to Horatio’s Garden and Head Gardener Sallie, he began to feel much more positive about his future. He embraced the chance to get involved in gardening, learning all sorts of skills, and discovering a hidden talent for horticulture along the way. He began to see what he was still capable of. He often spent time in the haven with his fellow patients too, offering everyone a friendly face and endless encouragement. As people with spinal cord injuries were especially vulnerable to the effects of Coronavirus, Craig was rarely able to see his loved ones throughout his time in hospital and the friends he made on the ward were all the more important.

Scarlett was 11 years old and sitting her SATs when she suffered her spinal cord injury. One night in September 2020, she complained of a pain in her leg. By the end of the evening, she couldn’t feel her legs. An MRI scan revealed a cavernoma, which can cause seizures and stroke-like symptoms, had burst on her spine. After two weeks at St George’s Hospital in Tooting, London, she was transferred to the pediatric ward at the Royal National Orthopedic Hospital in Stanmore. It was then that Scarlett, along with her father, Michael, became a daily visitor to Horatio’s Garden London & Southeast. Being in hospital in the run-up to the festive season, Scarlett stripped willow for Christmas wreaths, handprinted Christmas cards and wrapping paper, enjoyed thinning lettuces as part of her horticultural therapy and mastered using a sewing machine, creating her own patchwork cushion and toys for her brother and sister. The garden offered Scarlett relief from physiotherapy and schoolwork, giving her time to be a child, be herself and simply have fun.

With a passion for life, Pip has always made the most of every opportunity, discovering a whole host of joyful pursuits along the way. A life-threatening horse-riding accident resulted in Pip becoming tetraplegic. Whilst in hospital, she ventured out into Horatio’s Garden Midlands as much as she possibly could, attending every horticultural therapy session, every creative workshop and always thinking of others. She gave Christmas presents in homemade gift bags to the NHS staff who looked after her, a testament to her natural empathy and kindness. The garden was a haven, not just for her but for her husband, Tony, too. Having access to the garden meant that Tony could visit Pip and that they could talk in private, away from the stresses of the hospital ward, helping them to adjust to life with a spinal injury.