A permaculture project for a small nursery in London

The Recharge-Me garden is a design for children in the early years who attend Friendly Families, a community-led nursery in Deptford, London. The initiative was born in a workshop held with staff, parents and the designer where collectively they drew their hopes for the outside space. The purpose is to offer multi-sensory experiences to children by interacting with nature and with themselves, so these experiences become a cycle of giving and receiving and recharging mutual energy. The methods used are based on eco-friendly and permaculture principles, such as the no dig gardening, the use of natural insect control, recycling and reusing.

We are introducing grounding therapy, where children connect with the earth by walking barefoot, led by parents or tutors teaches children self-soothing for emotional regulation.

The layout has different sections where children can explore, play and learn. The resources are very limited so we entered the London College Garden Design 2020 competition; we won a prize find out more here.

Alejandra Perez is a mother and a freelance garden designer passionate for working with children and creating playful green and safe spaces for them who believes that we can raise stronger children if we teach them how to “embrace our gardens”, creating awareness of their environment and promoting self-care.