Awards
bestowed upon Eden Nature Garden
Green Flag
Community Award
We are proud to hold our 19th Green Pennant, awarded in June every year. The Green Flag Community Award is given to successful public spaces run by volunteers and members of the community. They recognise a space that is welcoming, safe, well maintained, clean, environmentally sustainable, promoting biodiversity and involving the local community.
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The 2023 report states, 'The Garden is an evolving site. There is limited space to grow yet the Garden has adapted and has evolved from a Community Garden into a Nature Garden. A delightful garden to visit and an oasis in a dense residential area.'
London in Bloom
We have received our 13th ‘London in Bloom’ award, having first attained the ‘thriving’ level in 2011. For the last five years, we have achieved the top grade of outstanding’.
London in Bloom is run by the Royal Horticultural Society as part of its Britain in Bloom campaign and is a non-competitive award scheme for small local communities who are making a difference locally. It aims to increase the biodiversity of Greater London and build stronger and more vibrant neighbourhoods through community gardening projects.
In 2022, the judges said, 'Eden Garden is a perfect little paradise for wildlife and people. Its Instagram account advertises 'a slice of the countryside in the heart of Clapham' which is apt, but doesn't do full justice to the intense planting and layout Head Gardener Benny has organised here to make the best of challenging dry soil under very large trees, and provide a nonstop buffet for a series of bees, hoverflies, moths and butterflies.' The report in 2023 started with 'Wow....... Here is a community/nature garden that has been in the making for twenty years and it shows. This garden is very well supported with volunteers and provides a haven for wildlife particularly insects and pollinators including a number of rare/uncommon species.'
Incredible Edible Lambeth
In November 2022 we won a Blooming Lambeth Award and came first in the Best Space for Encouraging Wildlife category.
London Open Gardens Weekend
In 2008 we participated in London’s Open Garden Weekend and welcomed visitors from far and wide into Eden over one weekend in June. We were actively involved in the scheme for the following ten years until the parameters were changed to allow access only to gardens which were closed for the rest of the year.
Lambeth Champion
In 2012, our then gardener, Stephen Barney, was appointed as a Lambeth Champion.
A Lambeth Champion is someone who has gone that extra mile to help out in their local community. In Stephen’s case, he was …”recognised for transforming the area alongside Matrimony place into a local treasure… a beautiful, vibrant garden with oak seats, raised beds, pond and bee hives. It is used all day now by children coming to and from school or having birthday parties, community parties and by volunteers growing their own vegetables…..”
Eco Church
Eden has played a key role in helping St Paul's Clapham to achieve its two Eco Church awards - bronze in 2020 and silver in 2021 - in the category sustainable management of church land. This includes having a water source for animals and creating habitat for wildlife.