Ashford and St Peter’s Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (ASPH) welcomed an expert judge from RHS Wisley to help decide the winners of the second annual ASPH in Bloom competition.
ASPH in Bloom is an annual event to encourage staff to create and maintain small areas of the hospital sites and is judged every summer. The green spaces support staff wellbeing by giving them an opportunity to take a break from work and get outside, but also help with our green plan to improve the hospital environments and encouraging local wildlife to thrive.
Funded by the ASPH Charity, staff had the opportunity to apply for up to £500 to develop outdoor areas across the hospital sites into beautiful green spaces for staff to enjoy and improve their wellbeing. Experts from RHS Wisley have been on hand to offer each team guidance and advice to make the most of the outdoor spaces they have developed.
Katie Fisher, Interim Chief Executive at ASPH said: “I’d like to thank all the teams that have taken this opportunity to make these little corners of our Trust greener and encouraged others to get outside and feel the health and wellbeing benefits of being closer to nature.”
Chris Young, RHS Community Outreach Advisor for Wisley and the South East and guest judge said: “Thank you for inviting us to contribute to the judging of your ASPH in Bloom project 2024. I think it’s fantastic initiative, with huge benefits for staff, patients and visitors. We were impressed with all this year’s entries that we saw. It was a pleasure to see the enthusiasm, creativity and hard work that’s gone into them.”
The winners of ASPH in Bloom competition 2024, are:
- The most environmental and nature friendly - Cedar Unit garden at Ashford Hospital with their giant bug hotel which has already attracted stag beetles.
- The biggest transformation or change - Physio Courtyard at Ashford Hospital.
- The most colourful - Abbey Wing planters outside the maternity unit.
- The most practical and useful - Edukitchen garden as they use the herbs in their cooking.
- The best for staff wellbeing - ITU garden as it is used by staff more than any other garden.
- The best for visitor wellbeing - Wildflower slope garden by the main entrance to St Peter’s Hospital, as visitors can enjoy it and it stops children from getting too close to the slope.
- The most collaborative garden - Woking Community Hospital Courtyard Garden as the outpatient department, dermatology and CSH Surrey teams collaborated together to develop and maintain this garden together.
The overall best in show award is shared by:
- The Physio Courtyard Garden at Ashford Hospital and The Woking Community Hospital Courtyard Garden.
Part of the winning Physio Garden team, Prabin Gurung, Clinical Specialist in MSK Physiotherapy, said: “Members of the MSK Outpatients Physiotherapy Team frequently use the courtyard during our break times to relax, unwind and refuel and I knew that developing the area would be a good boost for health and wellbeing. My colleague Alexia Derbyshire helped with her excellent knowledge of landscape design and plants. Now it is finished, the space is well enjoyed by our team and other Ashford Hospital staff too. Patients can also access the courtyard. Thank you to ASPH Bloom for making this happen.”
Dr Sam Vaughan Jones, Consultant Dermatologist and part of the Woking Courtyard Garden team added: “We were delighted that our garden project at Woking Community Hospital has been awarded the prize for the most collaborative garden. It has been a real joint effort with input from several teams at Woking (dermatology, outpatients, reception and the Bedser Hub) including staff from both ASPH and CSH Surrey.
“As this garden is overlooked by several departments, we hope it will prove to be a major boost for both staff and patients’ wellbeing in future. We were also thrilled to win joint best in show – an added bonus!”
Pictured top: The Woking Courtyard Garden
Pictured above: Physio Garden at Ashford Hospital
