Home - Hammersmith United Charities

At the heart of Hammersmith for 400 years.

Giving older people homes for life in beautiful, affordable almshouses. Investing in the future through grant-giving. And raising the voice of our community to make it stronger.

Gardening for the planet

Held on April 22nd every year, Earth Day mobilises people across the globe to take action to protect our shared planet.

Image shows gardener Victoria Cripps There are so many ways that every one of us can take action, from choosing locally produced food, to reducing waste and sowing wildflower seeds.

At Hammersmith United Charities, we’re fortunate enough to care for two award-winning gardens at our almshouses. The gardens are managed by a team of three gardeners – Victoria (known to most residents as V), India and Lucy. Many of our almshouse residents are also keen gardeners so often support V and the team with tasks such as deadheading, watering and sowing seeds.

V says, “We’re always trying to think about the planet and how we can support wildlife in the almshouse gardens.”

If you have space to grow plants, whether in a garden, on a balcony or in your home, here are a few tips for growing with the planet in mind.

Compost your food waste

Producing your own compost from garden and food waste both helps to reduce that waste and also reduces the need for buying plastic-bagged compost.

V shares, “We compost the majority of our garden waste on site. We have a large compost bay for each garden. We also have a Bokashi composting bin in each shared kitchen. Every layer of food waste is added to with a layer of Bokashi bran, which speeds up the fermentation process. Once the bin is full, the waste gets added to the compost bay.

“All the compost we generate is used as a mulch for our flower beds. The residents can also help themselves to it for their own garden areas or pots.”

Conserve water

Mulching the beds helps to improve the soil quality and also reduces the need for watering as it helps the soil to hold onto moisture. UK summers are expected to become hotter and drier as our climate changes. Reducing the need for watering and increasing the use of rainwater will become more and more important.

V shares, “Lucy, India and I recently went to a networking day at Kew Gardens. Water was the big topic of the day, and we’re trying to be more ‘water-wise’ at the almshouse gardens. For instance, we used to keep some small trees in large pots but have planted them in the ground instead, so they now need much less watering. We’re also currently looking at how we can utilise any overflow from our water butts, perhaps by connecting them to a planter or water feature.”

When choosing new plants for the gardens, V considers how well they can cope with rising temperatures and periods of drought. However, as she explains, “It’s more complex than just considering drought tolerance, because we now have extremes of winter downpours and much hotter, drier spells in summer. So, we need to be thinking in terms of plants that can cope with both extremes.”

One of our gardens

Plant for pollinators

More than half of UK butterfly species are in long-term decline, and pollinating insects in general are struggling. One of the main issues is habitat loss, so planting pollinator-friendly plants is crucial. Anyone with even a small amount of outdoor space can play their part, as you don’t need to rely on large shrubs to attract bees and butterflies.

V says, “We had a huge buddleia that was taking up too much space and overhanging the walkway, so we had it removed. Buddleias are beloved by butterflies, so we’ve replaced it with several other pollinator-friendly plants. We grew some of these from seed, such as Lepechinia hastata, bought new plants including Scabiosa ‘Butterfly Blue’ and were given several hardy geraniums by the residents.”

Consider local wildlife

Pond Offering easily accessible water is an easy way to support local wildlife, including birds and hedgehogs.

Our Sycamore garden already has a pond and the gardening team is considering creating a water feature in the John Betts garden. However, you don’t need to have a large garden to help wildlife, as even a shallow dish of water on a balcony will be appreciated by the birds.

V shares, “We get dragonflies around the pond at Sycamore House and I’ve seen the hummingbird hawk moth at both sites. We don’t have bird feeders up, but we try to create natural food sources through our planting. As a result, we have a lot of common garden birds, such as sparrows, robins, wrens and blackbirds, as well as the Eurasian jay. One resident even saw a heron here!”

Get involved with nationwide initiatives

Nationwide events, such as the Big Garden Birdwatch (January) and the Big Butterfly Count (18th July – 10th August) are crucial in helping charities to monitor different species. Many of our residents and staff members take part in both events.

If you have a couple of hours spare a month, you could also register to be a Bee Walker and count the number of bees you see on a set walk each month.

Find out more

For more information on Earth Day, visit: earthday.org/earth-day-2025
The RSPB has a wealth of information about wildlife-friendly gardening. You can also find advice on the Wildlife Trusts and RHS

Headway West London

William has found advice, support and a community of people who understand what he’s going through at Headway West London. The charity works with people who have survived a brain injury, and their families, carers and other professionals. Laura Murphy, Chair of Headway West London, shares, “You get such great care from the NHS, but when you get discharged from hospital there are real gaps in service offerings. It can feel like a bit of a minefield finding support, whether that be to meet therapeutic needs, or around lifestyle, housing, finances and so on.”

The sense of community that people find at Headway West London is crucial. As William says, “It was very difficult initially to accept what changes I’d have to deal with in my life at that young age. To find the community was really important to me. There are a lot of people who are there recovering with you and supporting you.”

You can hear from other brain injury survivors here.

The REACTIVATE programme

Headway West London has received a grant from Hammersmith United Charities to fund up to eight brain injury survivors on the REACTIVATE programme. REACTIVATE is a 6-week rehabilitation programme, which as Laura explains, “is about giving people the strategies and tools that they can put into practice to help improve their life. Different professionals attend each week to talk about different aspects of wellbeing and recovery. It’s about maximising rehabilitation, whether that’s physical or psychological. This grant enables us to reach more members in the H&F area.”

The groups are kept small so that each session can be tailored to the individuals’ specific needs. Brain injuries vary in severity and impact, and they can be experienced alongside physical disabilities. The REACTIVATE sessions are designed to be as inclusive as possible. For instance, if the group is being taught yoga techniques to aid relaxation, then chair-based exercises will be included for people with mobility issues.

Laura adds, “We have two part-time link workers, who work closely with REACTIVATE members. For example, some members might be able to engage well with the sessions but won’t remember that the sessions are on so will need phoning to be reminded. Other people might find it really challenging to attend in person, so we’ve offered hybrid sessions where they can attend online.”

“One of the most important things is bringing people together who have a shared experience and mutual understanding. That’s hugely important. You can just be yourself and be open about all the problems you’re having. You don’t have to explain why you find some things difficult. A lot of them become like peer mentors for each other, start their own WhatsApp group and encourage each other to stay on top of things, keep up with friends, go out for walks and so on.”

Feedback for REACTIVATE has been overwhelmingly positive, with a recent participant saying, “A great job running the workshops. These last five weeks have been very beneficial post surgery, in getting out of the house and safely connecting with useful information and people who understand some of the current difficulties. It’s a great course, and I’m really glad I joined the group.”

Supporting Headway West London

Do you have a few hours free each week? Headway West London is looking for more people to volunteer. You might have a specific skill, like art or yoga, to share with members, or experience that would be invaluable for the charity, such as social media. Headway West London is also recruiting new trustees and is particularly keen to hear from people who have lived experience of a brain injury, or a background in HR. Contact Headway if you feel that you can help.

People say around a table during a Headway Reactivate session.

Can you tell us about the work you do on diversity, equality and inclusion at Wendell Park?

I have done a lot of work on diversifying the curriculum and changing the mindset of pupils, staff and parents through training, workshops and the use of national data and research.

We want all the children to be able to see themselves within school life and within the school curriculum, and to feel comfortable talking about their home backgrounds. We don’t want them to have preconceived ideas of what a person will be like. Instead, we want them to be curious, to ask questions and to find out more about a person.

We do a lot of work around the nine protected characteristics*. For example, we have discussions in our assemblies, invite guest speakers into school to give talks, and we make sure that we celebrate occasions like International Women’s Day, Black History Month, Disability Awareness Month and Pride. We also talk about famous people. For example, we spoke to the children about Beethoven and how his deafness didn’t stop him from becoming one of the world’s greatest composers.

People say that you can’t be what you can’t see, but we tell the children, “If you can’t see it, be it. Don’t be frightened of being the first one.”

By making diversity part and parcel of what the children are experiencing day in, day out, it becomes the norm for them. For instance, the children fundraise for the local community, which gives them an understanding of the struggle some people face and how they can make a difference. Recently, we’ve raised money for The Upper Room.

How are you sharing that message wider in Hammersmith?

We’ve done a lot of work with other teachers in the borough. I held a number of webinars where teachers had the opportunity to discuss the model that we use at Wendell Park and how to make sure that the curriculum is inclusive in their own schools.

We also started a grassroots organisation called The Power of Representation. For that, I had the pleasure of leading two webinars with the British historian Professor David Olusoga, who I think is absolutely fantastic. As part of the Year 6 curriculum, we now study his book ‘Black and British: A short, essential history,‘ When the children hear about the different communities who have been in Britain for centuries, it opens up history for them and makes them realise that they and their families are part of British history and that they belong.

What barriers still exist to gender equity?

Boardrooms are still male dominated. We still need more women in positions of power. We also need equity in pay, as all too often men and women are doing the same jobs, but the women are being paid less.

We’ve come a long way, but there’s still a way to go.

What can organisations and individuals do to help achieve gender equity?

Role models, mentors and coaches are crucial. Sometimes people may not see their own potential, so it’s really important when others who do see that potential are able to guide the individual forwards. Otherwise, it’s all too easy to stay in your comfort zone.

Earlier in my career, I had two fantastic headteachers – Sheila Mears and Julie Howarth – who really inspired me and pushed me forward. Without them, I would never have thought of moving up into leadership.

It’s important to get everyone involved on the journey towards gender equity, as we’re all on this journey together. We need to educate boys on this as well as girls. As an example, at Wendell Park, the football pitch is just for girls on a Wednesday. To start with, the boys complained, so we asked them a few thought provoking questions: “Have a look at famous footballers, who are they, male or female? Have a look at their pay, is it the same for men and women? Have a look at the history of football. Do you think female footballers have had the same opportunities? Why might that be? What can we do?”

We want our boys to grow up to be allies, to have an understanding of what they can do to make things more equal.

Which women leaders inspire you?

Michelle Obama. She opened up the White House to so many different people, championed education and is so resilient.

Do you think we need to consider intersectionality more when it comes to events like International Women’s Day?

100%. We need to look across the board and be aware of all the different barriers that people face, rather than looking at one protected characteristic in isolation.

When marking certain events and as an employer, it’s crucial to understand how to unlock the doors and be mindful that an individual may face multiple barriers because of having more than one of the protected characteristics.

That might mean making certain adjustments in your organisation, because if you don’t, you’re never going to be able to tap into the full resource that each individual can offer. The more diverse a workplace is, the more you get in return and the more you understand what the community you’re trying to reach actually needs.

Learn more

For diversity, equality and inclusion resources, Rosie recommends visiting Diverse Educators or speaking to its founder, Hannah Wilson.

* The nine protected characteristics are: age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation.

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Sheltered housing

Grant making