Award-winning Chelsea Flower Show garden replanted in Leighton Buzzard

The Children’s Society Garden, designed by award-winning landscape architect Patrick Clarke, was one of the most talked-about show gardens at Chelsea in May.

But it has now moved from the manicured grounds of the Royal Hospital Chelsea to the town’s youth centre – where it will be a permanent outdoor wellbeing space for young people.

On Friday, June 12, the young people who helped shape the garden over the past 18 months got their hands dirty putting the final plants in the ground themselves.

The garden is the first dedicated outdoor wellbeing hub run by The Children’s Society and offers a calm, green space where young people can take part in group sessions, spend time in nature, or talk to trained practitioners.

It will also be open to other young people who use Central Bedfordshire Council’s Youth Centre, widening its reach across the area. 

The young people behind it, the charity’s “Young Creative Partners”, aged 12 to 20, were central to the design from the start. They took part in stained glass, sculpture and seed-sowing workshops.

The seed workshops were run by the charity’s long-term partner, seed company Fothergill’s, which also sponsored the cost of transporting the garden from London to Leighton Buzzard.

The group visited the finished garden at Chelsea before helping to plant it in its permanent home. 

Patrick Clarke, garden designer, said:  “Winning a Gold Medal at RHS Chelsea was a wonderful moment, but the real legacy is seeing the garden take on a new life here in Leighton Buzzard. It was designed to shine a light on the teenage wellbeing crisis, and I’m incredibly proud that it will now provide lasting value for the young people who helped inspire it, and for the wider community.” 

Jo Goldsmith, Safe Practice Manager at The Children’s Society, said: “Bringing the garden to the Youth Centre, and involving the young people in planting it, has been a lovely way to begin its next chapter. It will now offer somewhere to relax, build confidence and enjoy the benefits of being outdoors in a safe and supportive environment.

Molly Youngs, Fothergill’s Partnership Manager, added: “We’re proud to have supported both the workshops and the relocation of the garden. Seeing young people actively involved in planting it in its permanent home has been a fitting and inspiring way to complete the project.

The garden was created to draw national attention to what The Children’s Society calls a “happiness recession”, a sharp decline in teenage wellbeing across the UK. Its move to Leighton Buzzard means that message now lives on as a practical, lasting resource rather than a five-day show exhibit