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0:07In the shadow of of
0:10climate change, I think communities are
0:11wanting to take practical action more
0:13and more, whether that's planting trees
0:15or or sowing wildflowers or or growing
0:17their own food.
0:19>> When you start to grow food locally, you
0:20start to notice the nature around you.
0:23You start to notice the quality of the
0:25soil. You start to enjoy the produce and
0:27share it with your neighbors cuz it's
0:29exciting.
0:30>> Oh, there's a carrot.
0:32>> And that reconnects people in the
0:34community.
0:35>> This space here, which which is a
0:37phenomenal community asset, was was an
0:39unused unloved space. It's council land.
0:42Incredible Edible in Garstang stepped in
0:44and and took the space on. It's a
0:46complete transformation. And yet this
0:47whole space is being kind of operated
0:50and used in as part of a verbal
0:52agreement. There was never a contract or
0:54a license or or any kind of lease. So I
0:57think the group live in that kind of
0:59constant fear of of the fact that it
1:01could be taken away at any moment.
1:03>> If it was easier to get access to land
1:06that you had a right to close to where
1:09you live,
1:10more people would do it, fewer people
1:12would be put off, and we'd all be
1:14starting to really contribute to a
1:16different way of living our lives.
1:17>> One of the challenges that we hope the
1:19right to grow will address is that for
1:21many communities, when they don't have
1:24someone in the council who's there to
1:26say yes to these projects, it becomes a
1:28no by default because communities just
1:31can't navigate the complex bureaucratic
1:34systems that exist when all they want to
1:36do is get on some land and grow some
1:38food and do something great.
1:40>> The right to grow is building upon
1:43existing community food growing, but
1:45it's much more formal and hopefully will
1:47boost the amount of growing.
1:50>> Community food growing has loads of
1:52benefits, not just for the community
1:53itself, but for local authorities. It
1:56helps them to meet their own policy
1:58goals.
1:59>> Research has found that allotments and
2:01community gardens are biodiversity
2:03hotspots.
2:05We found that in allotments in
2:07Sheffield, Leicester, and Leeds, we
2:09recorded more than 300 species of
2:12pollinator. And these were bees,
2:14hoverflies, and moths that are all
2:16really crucial for supporting crop yield
2:19and supporting pollination of other
2:20plant species.
2:22>> Being out in nature
2:24it's actually boosted my health. I had
2:27lots of health problems. Being out here
2:30in the actual wildlife area, being part
2:34of this, developing it, maintaining it,
2:36it's amazing for yourself, for
2:40self-esteem, to bring community into us,
2:44to all get together and celebrate being
2:48out in nature.
2:49>> Research has shown that home growing
2:51fruit and veg in allotments in Sheffield
2:54probably feeds about 3% of the city's
2:56population on the recommended five a day
2:58diet.
2:59But there's plenty more land available
3:01for food growing in cities and towns.
3:03And for example, in Sheffield, we found
3:05that if you just use 10% of the land
3:07that could be used for food grow, you
3:09could probably feed about 15% of the
3:11population on the recommended five a day
3:13diet.
3:15>> So, initially, Hull Food Partnership, an
3:17independent organization in the city,
3:20was the main driving force really for
3:23the call to right to grow probably from
3:24about 2020, maybe even before then.
3:28And this culminated in the right to grow
3:31motion being passed by full cabinet in
3:342023.
3:37>> I think one of the reasons why it it is
3:39really important to communities in in
3:41Hull to know that the local authority is
3:43supporting the right to grow
3:46is because there are many communities
3:49that lack the
3:51um appropriate facilities in their own
3:53areas to actually do any growing. They
3:56don't have allotments, for example, or
3:57maybe there aren't any allotments
3:58available.
4:00>> So, we adopted the right to grow in
4:01Barry in mid-June. And on day one, I was
4:06astounded. We had four valid growing
4:08inquiries. And since then, we've got
4:11more than 10, which is brilliant.
4:14>> Over the past 5 years, Incredible Edible
4:15in in Leeds has has been growing food in
4:17public spaces. We we have over 150
4:20raised beds across the city. Some on on
4:23grass verges, some, um, outside
4:26community centers, some outside schools,
4:28some outside health centers. The
4:29majority of them are on public land. So,
4:32we've transformed the public realm. And
4:35and these spaces are now being looked
4:36after, they're being cared for by the
4:38community.
4:40>> Give us a chance to show that we can be
4:42stronger as a community, we can be
4:44healthier as a community, we can
4:46actually start small businesses selling
4:47local food on local markets all because
4:50we started to grow on more land, close
4:53to more houses, because we got a right
4:56to grow.
4:58>> Oh, we're getting smacked by our own
4:59raspberries.
4:59>> Community gardening is living proof that
5:02the people themselves want to change
5:04their relationship to the planet for the
5:06better. And so, if councils backed that,
5:09if councils made that easier for people,
5:12if they covered their insurance because
5:14they can,
5:15if they lent them their tools, if they
5:17offered them their compost, all these
5:19things, which cost so little from a
5:22council point of view, would save so
5:24much for society.
5:26>> Allowing communities access to, uh, grow
5:30food on on on public land or plant trees
5:32on public land really does have the
5:34power to to connect people, to enable
5:37people to to transform their lives and
5:39build new skills and,
5:41um, and learn new things. It's, uh,
5:44it just seems to be and
5:45thing to do.
5:47>> At the end of the day, we're all on this
5:49planet together and to build trust and
5:51understanding between us all has to be
5:53the right way forward.