Dowlais Stables Community Garden Project

Community Garden

The Merthyr Housing Team worked with the Healthy Weights Team throughout 2024 to learn and embed appreciative enquiry into their roles. Appreciative enquiry is a narrative-based qualitative research tool designed to allow the person being interviewed to share insight from outside the interviewer's usual sphere of knowledge.

The team has integrated appreciative enquiry questions into their tenancy packs for each new household. This refocuses these initial conversations on building a relationship with the tenant rather than it being a transactional interaction.

From the appreciative enquiry conversations in 2024, the community development officers discovered that tenants were finding it difficult to walk to the nearby high street due to how the area felt, with litter making them feel unsafe. The team also learned that many tenants struggled to access good-quality food in this area. Karl, a Community Development Officer at Merthyr Tydfil Housing Association, supported the tenants in carrying out litter picks around their site and also found a tenant in Dowlais who was a keen gardener. Karl linked in with the Community Development Team, who sourced support from Keep Wales Tidy. They provided funding and guidance to support the tenants and staff in creating a space to grow fruit and vegetables.

Karl (Community Development Officer) said: "It has been magnificent to see the transformation of the garden at Dowlais Stables, and it has been fantastic to watch everything come to life. It has been a pleasure to be a part of the project, and it is wonderful to see our Contract Holders enjoying the garden. Mark from Keep Wales Tidy has been absolutely incredible."

The garden has become very popular, with all the tenants in the area enjoying fresh lettuce from the garden, and summer BBQs are now held there. The Community Garden project has helped tenants learn new skills, increase their access to good-quality food, boost their daily movement, and improve their well-being. The garden has also provided opportunities for tenants to socialise with each other, reducing isolation and loneliness. Recently, bat boxes, bird feeders, a hedgehog house, and a giant bug hotel have been added to the garden by Ieuan, who is part of the Biodiversity Team for Merthyr County Borough Council.

Julie, a resident who uses the garden, said: "I absolutely love the garden, and I cannot wait for everything to start growing again."

Claire, Lead for The Whole Systems Approach to a Healthy Weight at CTM UHB, said: "I am so pleased to see the change in Karl and his team, from supporting him to use appreciative enquiry within his role to listening to the amazing things the community in Dowlais have achieved. It lets us know how important it is to listen to our communities before we take action.

Creating spaces like this is key to supporting healthier lives. The Community Garden has not only provided fresh food but has also encouraged movement, connection, and a sense of pride in the local environment. Seeing how the tenants have embraced this space is truly inspiring.”

Images of Karl and some of the residents involved have been captured below:

Julie (Resident) and Karl (Community Development Officer)

Mr Morgan (Resident) with the bug hotel which recently added to the garden by the
Biodiversity Team at Merthyr County Borough Council.

Julie (Resident) with the strawberries and garlic which the residents will benefit from in the summer.