Cheltenham MP opens Charlton Lane Sensory Garden
08/08/05
Martin Horwood, Member of Parliament for Cheltenham will open Charlton Lane Centre's new Sensory Garden on Friday 12 August 2005 at 12 noon.
In 2003 Gloucestershire Partnership NHS Trust became part of the King's Fund "Enhancing the Healing Environment" programme, with the submission of a successful bid from the Charlton Lane Centre, Cheltenham.
The 'Enhancing the Healing Environment' programme is one of five King's Fund grants programme launched to mark the Millennium. The programme's aim is to encourage and enable nurse-led teams, working with colleagues and service users, to influence and improve the environment in which they deliver care.
The completed garden is the result of eighteen months of work by a multi-disciplinary team from the Charlton Lane Centre, led by Ward Manager, Denise Hall.
During the programme the team consulted with patients, carers and staff to identify what they wanted included in the garden. The company 'Peter Dowle Plants and Garden' was then engaged to create a design that incorporated these features.
The garden which has been designed as a therapeutic area has a Japanese theme with bamboo, water features including a "Tsukubai Water Basin", lots of stone from the Forest of Dean, granite seating and a low level bamboo fence.
Throughout the programme the team has received support from the King's Fund and Gloucestershire Partnership NHS Trust, who in conjunction with Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire Strategic Health Authority provided additional funding.
Talking about the project, Denise Hall said:
"Since it was completed in March 2005 the garden has been used by everyone within the Charlton Lane Centre irrespective of weather conditions - that's really made all the hard work involved worthwhile.
"
Commenting on the garden, David Coombs, Director of Nursing said:
"There is a growing body of evidence that an attractive and sensitively designed hospital environment - including outdoor areas - can offer therapeutic benefits to patients and raise staff morale. We believe the peaceful nature of the garden will make a valuable contribution to patients' recovery."
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