The Growing Happiness Project is part of The Volunteer Network and has been running for over two years. The project runs an allotment space on a site that is within the grounds of Glastonbury Abbey. The trustees of the Glastonbury Abbey Charity have allowed the project to use this space for free.

Following the Covid-19 pandemic and the resulting lockdowns, the Volunteer Network understood the need for a community-based project that could help to get people back out in the open air and help them to improve their mental health and emotional wellbeing; and so, the Growing Happiness Project was born. Open to the people of Glastonbury and the surrounding areas, the project is home to a Men’s group, a Women’s group and has also been used by many others, and all for free. Growing Happiness also provides a safe space for vulnerable and disabled people to come and be a part of something where everyone is equal and can enjoy a natural space while also learning valuable skills.

Growing Happiness has won a number of awards during its time, including a recent special volunteers award from the High Sherrif of Somerset. They have also been entered into 2024’s Britain In Bloom competition. Alongside this Growing Happiness has also been able to provide some much-needed food that has been donated to those struggling during the current cost of living crisis.

The allotment project is a biodiverse space, based on organic growing principles, that uses a wealth of recycled items to create everything it needs to operate and provide a space that can also be used as a learning space for all manner of local organisations.

Recently, the project was informed that the Glastonbury Abbey Charity required the return of the space by the end of September 2024. The project, with the assistance of the Town Council, are looking for alternative spaces where they can operate. However, moving the project from its current location would be a massive undertaking and would cause a significant setback for the excellent work that has already been achieved by the project as a growing space and as community mental health project.

The Growing Happiness Project have said that should it not be possible for them to remain on the site, could it be that the space be shared with what the trustees have identified as the new use for the site or, could the decision to ask the project to leave by the end of September 2024 be deferred to allow suitable time for a new location to be sourced and for the project to move with the minimum of loss to the current crop of plants.

As representatives of the Glastonbury community, we feel strongly that the Growing Happiness Project be allowed to stay on site and to continue their valuable work as an on-going community project. In light of this new information and overwhelming support for the Growing Happiness Project by the local communities, we respectfully ask the trustees of the Glastonbury Abbey Charity to reconsider their decision and to continue support the Growing Happiness Project and the local communities by allowing the project to remain in its current location.

A Beneficiaries Story.

One of the project's beneficiaries has said that attending the project helped saved her life. Following a setback with a physical disability, she is now permanently wheelchair-bound, which has significantly impacted her mental health.

The Growing Happiness Project and the support from the wonderful community it has provided, alongside its accessibility in its current location has helped her to overcome these setbacks and significantly improved her mental health.

Without the Growing Happiness Project continuing in its current location, she feels she would struggle to cope. She is also anxious that an alternative venue may not be able to cater for her additional needs.