Riviera funds Garden makeover

Residents at the Pendennis Estate, a Riviera Housing scheme in Torquay, celebrated the makeover of their communal garden with a tea-party on 27th July.

Riviera, a member of leading housing provider Sanctuary Group, gave £4,000 to fund the improvement project, which saw the British Trust of Conservation Volunteers (BTCV) clear the existing garden and build and fill two raised beds before securing the area with new fencing and a gate.

Riviera launched the garden makeover after talks with residents on the improvements they would like to see in their community. The overwhelming response was somewhere safe for their children to play, with enough space for them to be able to grow plants.

As a thank you to BTCV and Riviera Housing, the residents held an afternoon tea party in their newly transformed garden, complete with home made cakes. Riviera staff brought some seeds along for the children to plant, kindly donated by Sutton Seeds.

Resident Donna Boon said: "We have long wanted a safe area where the children could play and a garden we could enjoy and this is well worth the wait.”

Fellow resident Rod Beech added: “We are ecstatic with the results and very grateful to Riviera, BTCV and the volunteers who worked so hard.”

Lynne Roberts, Riviera’s community development officer said: “It was a lovely afternoon and nice for the residents to be able to show their appreciation to the volunteers from BTCV who have worked so hard on the project.”