Barnford and Farm Road Allotments

Descriptor: We first meet the three student film makers standing in a line in front of a Kerria japonica.

Students: Hi we're from Birmingham City University and we made the following piece about the Barnford and farm road allotments in Aldbury just one of the many Good Causes around the UK which has benefited, thanks to you, playing National lottery games.

Olivia Swinscoe - I'm Olivia and I produced, directed and edited the piece

Simon Bloomfield - I'm Simon

Rebecca Charles- And I'm Becky

Simon - And we both operated the camera

Becky - and assisted on the shoots

Olivia - we hope you enjoy the film

Descriptor: We first see a black and white image of the allotments in their heyday, and other images of Aldbury at the time. The image then changes to more recent neglected times for the allotments.....

We then see how the allotments have been revitalised having received the Lottery funding, with children and adults, alike, digging, and a woman pushing her wheelbarrow between the plots in the warm sunshine.

Sarah Cawood (in voiceover): The Barnford and farm road allotments in Aldbury, we're given to factory workers in 1915, but over time they fell into disuse. In 2004 a grant from the National Lottery helped a group of local people to breathe new life into the neglected plots which have now become a focal point for the community.

We now meet Lawrence Banner sitting on a bench talking about the allotments. As he speaks we see more free flow camera shots of gardeners and children busily working their plots.

Lawrence: The National Lottery fund that we received, changed this site from half vacant to over full, and it's brought on people of all ages, two schools, young children, West Indians, Italians and it's just brought about the community.

Descriptor: We now see photographs of how neglected the area looked before the funding: terribly overgrown and the sheds in a poor state. We now fast forward to new photographs of the work that has been done which has changed the site: new sheds, new tarmac entrance, classrooms and beds.

Lawrence continues: When I first took over in 2004 the allotment was in a very poor state of repair and there was just no interest. The Lottery money we received was spent on tarmacing the site to make it accessible, to build rose beds, to build classrooms to put a toilet onsite, it was just the start, the rolling start of a major, major improvement.

Descriptor: As Sarah Cawood speaks we see a sweeping free flow camera shot of the allotments plots and plants.

Sarah Cawood (in voiceover): These improvements made possible thanks to funding raised through the sale of National Lottery games have brought many new gardeners to the allotments. 

Lawrence In voiceover: We got two lads and they garden on four of the two foot beds. They are now in a secondary world which they didn't have before - they are part of the community. We now meet Martin who suffers from Dystonia, which is a neurological movement disorder. He has a motorised chair to help him get about.

Martin Evans: It's made a quite a big change to my life in general. On Saturday morning I didn't used to do nothing most of the time, just watching television, now every Saturday morning I come down here. People do come if you need help, somebody will always be here to help you, and you make a lot of friends as well add to the community.

Descriptor: We now hear Graham Walker, one of the gardeners, talking. As we do we see him dressed as a bee keeper attending one of his three hives. We now meet Graham sitting somewhere on the allotment

Graham: The allotments have changed colossally since they've received Lottery funding where as these allotments were half empty, now they are totally full. Which also helps us improve roads and facilities for people on the allotments.

Descriptor: As Graham continues to talk we see more free flow camera shots of him working at the hive with a colleague, checking the honey, with bees flying around them, then more free flow camera shots of him smoking the bees.

Graham continues ...I initially had allotments solely for my bees. To be fair they used to keep bees at West Bromwich which is probably seven mile from here and I always had an inclination that one day, I always knew one day, I would keep bees of my own. Having a plot here means I can get up in the morning to go to work, when I get wound up, I come down here, catch caution to the wind, I mean I had a heart attack, and err, it sort of changed me attitude to life it makes you think oh my next breaths the think I want, you know what I mean, and down here the fresh air does me more good than I would do stuck in a pub, club, or wherever you wanna be you know what I mean so it has done a lot for me and of course it was nice when I had the heart attack the people here mucked in and done the allotment for me, I think everybody does seriously worry about everybody else you know what I mean, off the allotment and on the allotment you know what I mean.

Descriptor: We see more of the allotments and then focus on one of the gardeners, Selwyn Honeghan who is busily forking the soil on his patch

Selwyn: When I'm working on the plot I enjoy it to see a lot of different people. We support each other by, if we have surplus plants we'd give them to other folks and if we have surplus vegetables we also give them to people.

Descriptor: As Selwyn speaks we see him amongst his vegetable and herb patch picking out the carrion to talk more about it....

Selwyn: I'm growing thyme, onions, garlic. This is carrion, it grows in the West Indies, they use it instead of spring onions. 

Descriptor: We now see Selwyn standing in his plot. As he speaks the camera focuses on the sunshine coming through a tree covered in pink blossom.

Selwyn: I would say it's brightened my life. I love the open it's a pleasure to be in the open air and enjoying the lovely blessing of the sunshine and the friendliness of course.

Descriptor: The camera then focuses on more brightly covered plants and flowers before we meet another gardener who is sitting in his shed feeding a chicken, which is on his lap.

Another gardener: You really unwind when you're up the allotment; it's really good like, you know

Descriptor: We then see a free flow camera shot of the same gardener with his grandson digging. We then see Graham again first attending his bees, and then sitting in the warm sunshine

Graham - I could pack my job up tomorrow and come down here every day of the week. I could live here.

Descriptor: We now meet another gardener Paula Woods, who is first on her knees weeding her patch, and then see her sitting and talking with very large purple tulips behind her. As she finishes talking we see her pushing her wheel barrow around her plot

Paula Woods - its good escapism, it's good therapy. When you come down here, the hours just pass by and you get a good workout as well ! (she laughs)

Descriptor: We return to Lawrence, and as he speaks for the final time we see some more free flow camera shots of the gardens: nicely maintained plots, very smart sheds covered with hanging baskets bursting with flowers, bamboo canes positioned into cone shapes, and see all the gardeners again as they tend their various plots and beds.

Lawrence - That giant sum of money that came our way absolutely transformed the site, just raised this into a community beyond all expectations. It started with a National Lotteries grant, it's now a site which is revered across Sandwell, and last year we won a National award, a green flag award, from the civic trust as the best allotment site in Britain