‘I can still swing a spade’ – Study into community gardening groups published 

‘I can still swing a spade’: a qualitative exploratory study of gardening groups for people with dementia: Ageing & Society.

A study into community gardening groups has been published by Cambridge University Press entitled, ‘I can still swing a spade’: a qualitative exploratory study of gardening groups for people with dementia’. 

The study, conducted by researchers from the University of Exeter and Natural England, combines learning from seven community gardening groups with testimonies from people with lived experience of dementia. 

Co-author Dr Helen Foster-Collins, Lecturer and Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of Exeter, says: 

“We know that around two thirds of people with dementia in the UK live at home, so finding ways we can support individuals with dementia and their carers can have a massive impact on quality of life. Through this project we have been able to identify common themes on what works well, the beneficial impacts, and also some of the challenges of running these groups.” 

The Cambridge University Press paper can be found here: https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/ageing-and-society/article/i-can-still-swing-a-spade-a-qualitative-exploratory-study-of-gardening-groups-for-people-with-dementia/C8383B69D0FC247AE7282F5033E66E2E 

This research has also been distilled into a report that can be found here: https://beyondgreenspace.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/gardening-for-dementia-report-240424.pdf