Supporting the council’s Take Part, Take Pride festival, this event was first postponed due to rain but nothing could dampen the spirits of the local school children who turned up a week later and carefully planted flowers they had grown themselves, from seed. Their hard work has really helped to brighten up the garden area for residents.

Behind the scenes in the weeks beforehand SHP estate officers had visited the scheme to ask residents what they would like to see in their garden area. This has now resulted in new rose beds being planted, as well as some raised flower beds in the courtyard area.

Residents also told us they wanted to get involved with doing some light gardening themselves, so they now have some garden tools and a small lock up storage box to keep the tools in.

On the day Neighbourhood Manager Peter Watts and Councillor Ruth Dombey joined in with the planting and gave a guiding hand to the young gardeners.

Residents from both Milton House and Chaucer Gardens Residents Association also got involved with the planting and helped children with the lay out of the beds.

Thanks to everyone who took part especially all the residents, children and teaching staff from Westbourne Primary School.

Also a big thank you to Fay Pugh, Sheltered Housing Officer at Milton House, who supported the project and laid on some great refreshments for the thirsty workers.

If you live on an estate and would like to help out with a communal garden make over, give us a call on 0800 195 5552 and ask for the Customer Involvement team who can give you some advice about how to get involved.

Residents have decided to try their hand at growing some vegetables with a dedicated veggie patch and Sgnt Gerry McClean and his team got digging to help out.

Neighbourhood Manager Suzanne Richards Jones said “It was a great day that I hope everyone really enjoyed,” and she added “We wanted to include all residents and for the much younger children a surprise visit from the Fire Brigade provided to be very popular.”

After some serious planting, the kids still had some energy left for a game of football with SHP staff!

Thanks to all residents at Sutton Court for coming along, to Tesco for providing the refreshments and the Safer Neighbourhood Team for helping out.

With representatives from Sutton Housing Partnership face painting for kids and a balloon race, ran by the Sutton Federations for Tenants and Residents, lots of fun was had by all as local children launched their balloons in an attempt to see whose would go the furthest.

Jean Crossby from the Circle Residents Association said, “This fun day has become something of a tradition up here on the Circle and we want it to get bigger and better every year,” and she added, “Although it is a free event, we really want to raise some money this year to continue with the hanging baskets we have put up at the Circle roundabout.”

The event was a great success and enough money was raised by local residents and the residents association to fund a hanging basket at the Circle roundabout.

This hanging basket community initiative, run by the residents association has now been able to find funding and sponsorship support from the following local businesses and partners;

• Smith and Byford – Gas Central Heating Contractor
• KNK – Repairs and Maintnance Contractor
• Circle Residents Association
• Sutton Arena (Greenwich Leisure Limited)
• Sutton Housing Partnership
• St Helier Safer Neighbourhood Team
• Apollo Contractors
• Buxtons Contractors
• London Borough of Sutton – Housing and Adult Social Services department