Dear friend,
At this time of year, we just want to say a heartfelt thank you to everyone who has been involved with us by coming to events and volunteering. It’s a pleasure to serve local people and we couldn’t do any of it without you. Here are just some of the things we’ve achieved in 2022 as we look back and celebrate the last year, we’ve:
- Held 141 sessions for volunteers, with a total of 2,332 volunteer hours.
- Worked with 13 local schools to deliver 47 sessions for 1,499 children.
- Supported over 30 groups, from food banks to U3As and universities to housing associations.
Jo has a special message of thanks that you can read at the end of this newsletter.Merry christmas from all at STAA ❄️
P.S. If you’d like to receive news like this in your inbox each month, join our mailing list here.
Christmas closure
We will be closed for Christmas from Saturday 24th December to Monday 2nd January, inclusive.
Winter workshops
Make your own festive willow decorationsSaturday 10th December 10:00-13:00, £35Create unique decorations like trees, stars or reindeer using traditional Scandinavian designs that can be strung together to great effect, making Christmas ornaments that will last for years.Design your own cut flower gardenWednesday 25th & Saturday 28th January 10:00-12:00, £25Love flowers? We want to inspire you to successfully grow beautiful cut flowers. From early Spring bulbs to late Autumn blooms, we will share with you the simple secrets behind our cut-flower garden. Make your own Spring hardy hanging basketSaturday 11th February 10:00-12:00, £35Come along and create a lovely, large, moss-lined basket, full of hardy colourful flowers and mini shrubs as well as gorgeous Spring bulbs to brighten up your garden, with Tracey from Outside The Cave.Fruit tree pruningSaturday 11th February 13:30-15:30, £30Leo Jordan will share the art behind fruit tree pruning. Come along for a masterclass in all aspects of orchard tree care including how to rejuvenate old trees and prune new trees to achieve the perfect crop.Learn the principles of seed sowingWednesday 22nd & Saturday 25th February 10:00-12:00, £25Growing plants from seeds has its challenges. Join us for a morning to discuss the principles of seed sowing and nurturing seedlings to learn how to successfully raise healthy plants.
On the Orchard
The Community Orchard runs free events for all ages every month.Our Community Open Day this month is a Christmas special, with free hot soup and festive crafts 🌟
New Shoots, every Tuesday 09:30-11:00Community Open Day, Saturday 17th December, 12:00-15:00
Volunteering
Volunteering continues as usual, with so much to help with at this busy time of year!Tuesdays at the Nursery, 10:00-14:00Digging, sowing, pruning, clearing, building, watering, harvesting! All things food and flower focused for a productive garden.Wednesdays at Oliver’s, 10:00-14:00Help maintain a beautiful display garden for visitors to enjoy, and promote its heritage features.Volunteer inductions, 10:00-12:00 on:Saturday 10th DecemberThis is an introductory session for anyone interested in volunteering at STAA. Receive a tour of our projects to find out what you might be interested in, and an opportunity to meet people and ask questions.Woodlands & Christmas special at Urban Nature, 10:00-14:00Saturday 10th DecemberWe will start our woodland tasks – expect pruning, coppicing and clearing. These tasks are a lot of fun, have a big impact, and will keep us warm! We will also take some time to reflect on what we have achieved this year, and to simply enjoy the space and wildlife ourselves.Suitable for all abilities and levels of experience, tools provided. Just dress for the weather! 🌦️If you have any questions about volunteering, please contact Lucy at volunteering@staa-allotments.org.uk or visit our website.
On the blog
This month on the blog we say share Paul’s story of volunteering with us for 14 years on the Urban Nature project, plus we have an update from Lucy on the £1,000 we were awarded from the Severn Trent Community Foundation.Read all about it: https://staa-allotments.org.uk/news/
Christmas message & thank you
As 2022 draws to a close, I would like to thank you all for your amazing support over the last year. It has been a busy one and we have been so grateful to be back at full delivery after the challenges of the previous 2 years. Being out and about more, we have forged excellent new local partnerships, re-established our Steering Group and engaged with many, many more people out in the community as well as on site.All of this ensures that our offer for next year and beyond is truly grounded in what our communities tell us they want and need. A huge thank you to the 70+ volunteers that are such a huge part of TeamSTAA. You really are amazing and have made such an enormous contribution to our projects and the local community this last year. For those of you who celebrate it – have a super Christmas and all the very best to you for 2023.From Jo Lees, CEO
